Heroin is a very powerful narcotic and one of the most physically and psychologically addictive drugs on Earth.
Heroin abusers have a need for persistent, repeated use of the drug because of the painful physical withdrawal symptoms that result from non-use.
Heroin Can:
- Severely addict the user
- Cause panic attacks, tremors, sweating, vomiting and insomnia
- Appear as black tar, brown or white powder
Abusing heroin leads to serious health risks, including fatal overdose, spontaneous abortion, collapsed veins and risky behavior that may lead to HIV/AIDS, hepatitis and other infectious diseases. Users are also at high risk of pulmonary and respiratory complications.
Heroin has a high potential for abuse and is classified as a Schedule I drug in the United States.
What heroin does to your:
- Brain—Enters the brain quickly and slows down thinking, reaction time and memory. After a short period of use, many addicts no longer experience the high—they use heroin only for relief of painful withdrawal symptoms.
- Heart—Chronic users may develop collapsed veins and infection of the heart lining and valves. Pulmonary complications may also result from the poor health condition of the abuser.
- Liver—Chronic users may develop liver disease. Street heroin has additives that do not readily dissolve and clog the blood vessels that lead to the liver. This can cause infection or even death of small patches of cells in the organ. Hepatitis B and C are very prevalent in IV drug users and can cause fatal liver failure.
- Lungs—Heroin depresses the central nervous system and may slow breathing to the point of respiratory failure. Pulmonary complications, including various types of pneumonia, may also result.
Distinguishing scars/marks of user consist of:
§ track marks and collapsed veins from injecting
§ continual runny nose from snorting
§ bleeding from the nose due to snorting
Paraphernalia:
- needles for injecting the drug
- burned spoons from cooking down the drug
- razor blades for separating the powder form of the drug
- straws for snorting the powder form of the drug
- pipes for smoking the drug
Street Names:
- China White
- Smack
- Mud
- White Horse
- Tar
- Junk
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