The purpose of this report is to identify the effects that Heroin has on the brain and the physical outcomes that it causes to your body later on in life.

Heroin is important to the society as it can cause you to be jobless as it slows down your level of thought and knowledge. Heroin also impacts on the user’s physical appearance and it is unattractive to look at and that’s very important in having a job. Heroin also changes your moods if the user hasn’t taken it and will cause you to have mood swings and possibly break down.

This report will give a good understanding of how heroin can affect the user from long term and short term of in taking it and how it effects your physical health.



Background

Heroin is a very popular and an addictive drug that is used by around 9.3 million people all around the world. It is mostly found in the United States with around 6% of the population that are users of Heroin. Heroin is used by many different age group but the most popular is both white men and women aged in their late 20s that are located outside of large urban areas. Heroin is a part of the opium drug group which is used as a depressant which slows down the activity of the central nervous system and slows down the messages that travel from your brain and your body. Heroin is taken by being injected, snorted and smoked, dependent of the purity of the substance to how it is taken. Most users mix the drug with other mixtures such as glucose, caffeine, sugar and paracetamol which can be very poisonous and dangerous.

People who inject it usually inject into the veins in their arms but after a while of injecting into the veins in the arm they will begin to collapse and become weak and unstable. The user then will then find a different place to inject the Heroin and it is usually the veins in the groined area. If the user uses the groin area for a long period of time they can develop a deep vein Thrombosis in the groin which is blood clots that can lead to inflammation of the skin and fat, and red tender lumps.
Heroin is a very addictive drug and when it is used after a long period of time your body is tricked and will stop producing Dopamine. This will cause you to become addicted and reliant of the drug because if you decide to stop taking it you will stop feeling good and will have no more experience with having pleasure

Figure 1: Stereochemistry: Classification of Isomers http://web.chem.ucla.edu/~harding/tutorials/stereochem/isomers.html

When Heroin is taken it can interact with a lot of different organs and cells. When the Heroin enters the brain it is transformed into Morphine which binds to molecules on cells which is known as opioids receptors. These receptors are found in many different areas around the body and brain. The receptors are also found in the brain stem which control things such as blood pressure, arousal and respiration. 

Heroin effect many people differently and depended of how long they have been a user for and their age, weigh and sex. It can affect you a lot differently from taking it for a couple of months to taking it for a couple of years and whether you take other drugs or not. Depending on how the user has taken the drug to how long it will take to start working, if you inject the Heroin it will take around 7-8 minutes to start taking effect. If you smoke or snort the Heroin it will take around 10-15 minutes. Short term effects of Heroin can vary via how much you take and how you have taken it. If you have injected it usually produces a faster and more intense high unlike just snorting or smoking it you will have a lower, less intense high. Some symptoms of short term Heroin users may include drowsiness, sense of heaviness in the arms and legs, dry mouth, vomiting, intense itchiness and slow breathing. In some worst case scenarios death or coma can also be a side effect of Heroin. Long term effects of Heroin can result in many different severe illnesses and addiction developments. Brain damage can be caused by repeated use, resulting into long lasting imbalances in the brain and hormone system. Users that share needle are also more likely to get HIV or Hepatitis B or C. Some symptoms to long term Heroin addiction may involve collapsed veins, infection of the heart lining and valves, liver or kidney disease, pulmonary complication and gastrointestinal problems. 

Figure 2: short and long term effects of heroin http://cornerstonecarecenters.org/the-short-and-long-term-effects-of-heroin/

Discussion

Users of Heroin that are extremely addicted to it will lead them to have physical dependence which is where the body is in a state of adaption to the drug and is used to it. This means that if the user lowers or abandons the drug all together they may experience severe symptoms of withdrawal. These symptoms can begin happening from as little as a few hours. This can lead to restlessness, muscle and bone pain, insomnia, diarrhoea and vomiting, cold flashes with goose bumps and kicking movements. The user will also feel cravings towards wanting the drug which may lead to a relapse and start retaking the drug. 

Heroin will also effect women and their reproduction system. If a woman is pregnant whilst taking Heroin it and lead to low birth weight from in excessive amount of nutrience from the mother as she would rely on the Heroin to get rid of her hunger and wouldn’t eat. If the mother of the infant is taking Heroin throughout the pregnancy the baby may be born dependent on Heroin and may suffer from Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome which is withdrawal of Heroin from the baby and will cause the baby to need to be hospitalized. Recent studies have shown that if pregnant women take opioid medication it can reduce Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome and shorter the babies need to be hospitalized. For men, Heroin can also affect their reproductive system as it causes the GnHN hormone to be lowered which is normally secreted by the organ that controls the pituitary gland. Therefore, it can lead to eliminating the hormones that are needed to produce the sperm. Studies have also shown that when taking Heroin, it can fragment the DNA within the sperm, causing a lower fertilising rate and miscarriage. 

Heroin is a very addictive and dangerous drug to take. Being extremely addicted to it can be a result in overdose and even lead to death. In 2014 over 10,500 people died from Heroin overdose in the United States, some of them were full time addicts that have either purposely overdosed or done it accidentally and others are first time users and instantly overdose. When you overdose on Heroin it will cause your body to start shutting down and cause you to become extremely tired which may lead to a coma or even death. Heroin users usually take pain medication or other drugs whilst also taking Heroin which can lead to overdose or even poison them. When people overdose on Heroin they may experience some symptoms such as slow/ difficulty breathing, dry mouth, extremely small pupils, low blood pressure, bluish coloured nails and lips, constipation, uncontrollable muscle spasms and coma. 

Conclusion 

In conclusion, Heroin is a very dangerous drug that shouldn’t be messed around with. Heroin has a lot of bad consequences and will change you mentally and physically. Heroin has a lot of different effects on people and can harm people differently. It can either make you have a few light symptoms or it can really harm your body and can even cause you to overdose and be in a coma or even cause death. Heroin shouldn’t be abused because it is a very addictive drug and it will get you hooked on it and can ruin your life. Even by taking the drug once or just trying it can make you become an addict of it and you will never want to stop taking it and it will cause you to rely on the drug and never want to turn back.

Public Education Piece

My public education piece is a Presentation to advise the general public of the information learned during this research assignment.

Reference 

Project know understanding addiction (2016) http://www.projectknow.com/research/heroin-effects/

National institute on drug abuse (2014) https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/heroin

Drug info (2016) http://www.druginfo.adf.org.au/drug-facts/heroin

foundation for a drug free world (2006-2016) http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/heroin.html

heroin in the brain (1998) http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/heroin/brain/

how does heroin work, addiction blog (2015) http://drug.addictionblog.org/how-does-heroin-work/