Opiates,
sometimes referred to as narcotics, are a group of drugs
which are used medically to relieve pain, but also have
a high potential for abuse. Some opiates come from a resin
taken from the seed pod of the Asian poppy. This group of
drugs includes opium, morphine, heroin, and codeine. Other
opiates, such as meperidine (Demerol), are synthesized or
manufactured. Opium appears as dark brown chunks or as a
powder and is usually smoked or eaten. Heroin can be a white
or brownish powder which is usually dissolved in water and
then injected. Most street preparations of heroin are diluted,
or "cut," with other substances such as sugar
or quinine. Other opiates come in a variety of forms including
capsules, tablets, syrups, solutions, and suppositories.
Heroin ("junk" "smack") accounts for
90 percent of the opiate abuse in the United States. Sometimes
opiates with legal medicinal uses also are abused. They
include morphine, meperidine, paregoric (which contains
opium), and cough syrups that contain codeine [or a synthetic
narcotic, such as dextromethorphan].
Opiates tend to relax the user. When opiates are injected,
the user feels an immediate "rush." Other initial
and unpleasant effects include restlessness, nausea, and
vomiting. The user may go "on the nod," going
back and forth from feeling alert to drowsy. With very large
doses, the user cannot be awakened, pupils become smaller,
and the skin becomes cold, moist, and bluish in color. Breathing
slows down and death may occur.
Dependence is likely, especially if a person uses a lot
of the drug or even uses it occasionally over a long period
of time. When a person becomes dependent, finding and using
the drug often becomes the main focus in life. As more and
more of the drug is used over time, larger amounts are needed
to get the same effects. This is called tolerance.
The physical dangers depend on the specific opiate used,
its source, the dose, and the way it is used. Most of the
dangers are caused by using too much of a drug, the use
of un-sterile needles, contamination of the drug itself,
or combining the drug with other substances. Over time,
opiate users may develop infections of the heart lining
and valves, skin abscesses, and congested lungs. Infections
from un-sterile solutions, syringes, and needles can cause
illnesses approximately 24-72 hours after they begin, and
subside within 7-10 days. Sometimes symptoms such as sleeplessness
and drug craving can last for months.
Researchers estimate that nearly half of the women who are
dependent on opiates suffer anemia, heart disease, diabetes,
pneumonia, or hepatitis during pregnancy and childbirth.
They have more spontaneous abortions, breech deliveries,
caesarean sections, premature births, and stillbirths. Infants
born to these women often have withdrawal symptoms which
may last several weeks or months. Many of these babies die.
The four basic approaches to drug abuse treatment are: detoxification
(supervised withdrawal from drug dependence, either with
or without medication) in a hospital or as an outpatient,
therapeutic communities where patients live in a highly
structured drug-free environment and are encouraged to help
themselves, outpatient drug-free programs which emphasize
various forms of counseling as the main treatment, and methadone
maintenance which uses methadone, a substitute for heroin,
on a daily basis to help people lead productive lives while
still in treatment.
Methadone, a synthetic or manufactured drug, does not produce
the same "high" as illegal drugs such as heroin,
but does prevent withdrawal and the craving to use other
opiates. Methadone is dangerous, however, because of the
addictive qualities which can sometimes be more destructive
than those of heroin.
Opiates are derived from the dried 'milk' of the opium poppy
which contains morphine and codeine, both of which are effective
painkillers and are used for many medical uses (both are
used in many cough medicines and anti-diarrhoea treatments).
Heroin in its pure form is a white powder which is easily
soluble in water.
Soldier killed in opium shoot-out
