Opiates (Heroin, Codeine)

Opiates are drugs that briefly stimulate the higher centres of the brain and then depress activity of the Central Nervous System. This alters the messages going to and from the brain and body, slowing physical, mental and emotional responses. They are used medicinally to relieve pain. They can include natural and synthetic forms. Natural opiates, such as Codeine and Morphine, are derived from the opium extracted from the seed pod of the Asian poppy. Other drugs such as heroin are further processed from morphine and others from Codeine.

Codeine

Codeine (also Oxycodone) is usually in the form of an over the counter pain killer such as Panadeine or Nurofen Plus, or can be prescribed by GPs as a severe pain reliever such as Oxycontin or Mersyndol. Pain Killers such as these are commonly abused by the Australian public, with 3% recently using analgesics for non-medicinal purposes. Another problem is people self-medicating with them as opposed to going to a doctor or taking the recommended dose, potentially leading to 'accidental' abuse and impairment to perform specific tasks. Impairment effects can include drowsiness, diminished response time and respiratory depression. Addiction to severe pain killers can develop.

Codeine Chemical Structure

Heroin

Heroin is not a widely used drug in Australia, but approximately 2.3% of people have tried Heroin, and 0.5% of people are current users.

Heroin is made from morphine or codeine (which are derived from the opium poppy) by using a chemical process. It is often of varying potency and usually includes other substances that are used to 'cut' the drug. Heroin is usually injected into a vein, but can also be smoked or snorted.
Other commonly used names for Heroin are smack, skag, dope, H, junk, hammer, slow, gear and horse.
The short term effects of using heroin include:

• An intense surge of euphoria
• Diminishing feelings of physical pain, hunger and sexual urges
• Central Nervous System depression including breathing, blood pressure and pulse becoming slower, dry mouth and increasing drowsiness.
• Nausea and vomiting can occur, particularly in cases of overdose
• Due to the unpredictable strength of the street drug, overdoses are common
• Heroin is highly addictive, both physically (the body undergoes a strong withdrawal from each hit, but adapts to heroin and becomes used to functioning with the drug present) and psychologically (emotional dependence).

The long term effects of using heroin can have side effects such as:

• Most long term heroin users will be addicted to the drug, physically and psychologically
• Chronic injecting users may develop collapsed veins, infection of the heart lining and valves, abscesses, cellulitis, and liver disease as well as pulmonary complications including various types of pneumonia. This is often because of poisonous additives to the heroin when it is cut.
• Constipation, menstrual irregularity and infertility in women, and loss of sex drive in men
• Users often spend most of their money on drugs, and therefore less on things such as housing and food leading to malnutrition and susceptibility to infections.
• HIV and Hepatitis B and C are common health problems for injecting heroin users after being contracted via unsafe sharing of needles
• Heroin has a short half life in the body, and the high commonly lasts from 15 minutes to 4 hours. It will usually take about 12-24 hours for most of the heroin to be eradicated from the body.

Heroin Chemical Structure