Heroin FAQ

Most likely not. Heroin's "incredible" addictiveness is often overplayed by media, backed up by the tragic specters of long term addicts, physically wasted by their habits. Nevertheless, like alcohol, nicotine, amphetamines and cocaine, heroin is a highly addictive drug with a seductive physical and psychological effect. Its ability to smother and cushion a user from their lives often draws the user into a psychological addiction, way before the physical compulsion starts. If you or someone you know needs heroin addiction treatment, visit our facility listings specializing in heroin rehabilitation.

All ways of taking heroin can lead to addiction. Users contend that smoking and sniffing heroin do not produce a "rush" as quickly or as intensely as intravenous injection, but the heroin still ends up in the brain, where addiction and tolerance build up.

This phrase "chasing the dragon" refers to smoking heroin by heating it on a piece of tinfoil and inhaling the vapor through a tube or rolled up banknote. This is a very dangerous practice that has resulted in addiction or overdose for many who have tried it.

The body has its own pain-killing opiates called endorphins which are released in times of physical injury. Heroin is converted by the brain into morphine which then binds to the endorphin receptors all over the body, creating a powerful and pleasurable warm sensation.

Pure heroin is usually white, while street heroin is usually turned brown from impurities and adulterants. It is important to note that there is no way to gauge heroin purity simply by looking at it.

Purity varies, fluctuating on a local basis depending on availability (dealers reduce purity when they don't have as much) but generally, yes, heroin is purer now than it has ever been making the risk of overdose greater than ever.

This is partly because former cocaine cartels are now branching out into heroin as well, effectively flooding the market. Higher purity also makes snorting and inhaling an alternative to injecting without compromising the intensity of the high.

No. About 10% of heroin users in London, for example, are HIV+. But 50% have Hepatitis B and around 90% have Hepatitis C. HIV and Hep B & C are passed on more readily through unsafe injecting practices (sharing dirty needles, using found needles) than by most other means.

In the US, heroin comes from Mexico, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and the notorious Golden Triangle area of Southeast Asia (Burma, Thailand, Laos). Most of the heroin in the UK comes from poppies grown in Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey.

The brown heroin commonly seen in the UK doesn't dissolve very easily and therefore difficult to inject intravenously. Users have to use acids, usually citric acid from lemons, to do so.</span

Heroin addiction claims lives and livelihoods every day. If you or a loved one are addicted to heroin, waiting to contact help can be dangerous. Get the help you need - contact our free, confidential helpline today at 1-844-343-4915 and find a heroin rehab center in your area today.

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