Heroin: Addiction and Treatment
Heroin Addiction and Treatment
Abstract
This paper offers a brief explanation of the history of heroin. Describing the origins of heroin, who discovered it and describes the detrimental effects heroin has on an individual. There are several treatment options available for heroin addicts and this paper will look at a few of the ones that have shown the most success.
Heroin Addiction and Treatment
Introduction: A Brief History of Heroin
Heroin comes from the opium poppy. This plant has been used by a number of various civilizations going back to include ancient civilizations. Opium, heroin, and morphine are derived from the poppy. Opium had been used by Drs. in the United States for many years prior to the Civil War. When morphine was discovered Drs. switched to using morphine instead of opium for pain, mainly because the hypodermic needle had been invented and morphine could be injected and pain could be better controlled. Heroin was derived from a chemical process discovered by Felix Hoffman in 1874. Heroin was initially distributed as a pain killer, and cough suppressant by Bayer Company in 1898. Drs. initially thought that heroin could replace morphine because they thought heroin did not possess the addictive qualities of morphine. In fact Drs. used heroin to get their patient’s off morphine. They thought it was a cure for morphine addiction. It did not take long for them to realize that heroin was even more addictive than morphine. Governments have approved legislation to curb heroin use and distribution. These laws have been amended several times over the years and eventually lead to heroin being classified as a Schedule 1 narcotic. A Schedule 1 narcotic is a narcotic that has a severe risk of being abused and becoming addictive. Since the laws were passed it is illegal to possess, process, and distribute heroin. There are also mandated punishments for those that are caught using,
Abstract
This paper offers a brief explanation of the history of heroin. Describing the origins of heroin, who discovered it and describes the detrimental effects heroin has on an individual. There are several treatment options available for heroin addicts and this paper will look at a few of the ones that have shown the most success.
Heroin Addiction and Treatment
Introduction: A Brief History of Heroin
Heroin comes from the opium poppy. This plant has been used by a number of various civilizations going back to include ancient civilizations. Opium, heroin, and morphine are derived from the poppy. Opium had been used by Drs. in the United States for many years prior to the Civil War. When morphine was discovered Drs. switched to using morphine instead of opium for pain, mainly because the hypodermic needle had been invented and morphine could be injected and pain could be better controlled. Heroin was derived from a chemical process discovered by Felix Hoffman in 1874. Heroin was initially distributed as a pain killer, and cough suppressant by Bayer Company in 1898. Drs. initially thought that heroin could replace morphine because they thought heroin did not possess the addictive qualities of morphine. In fact Drs. used heroin to get their patient’s off morphine. They thought it was a cure for morphine addiction. It did not take long for them to realize that heroin was even more addictive than morphine. Governments have approved legislation to curb heroin use and distribution. These laws have been amended several times over the years and eventually lead to heroin being classified as a Schedule 1 narcotic. A Schedule 1 narcotic is a narcotic that has a severe risk of being abused and becoming addictive. Since the laws were passed it is illegal to possess, process, and distribute heroin. There are also mandated punishments for those that are caught using,
References: Darke, S. (2013). Pathways to heroin dependence: time to re-appraise self-medication. Addiction, 108 pp. 659-667. Retrieved from: doi: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2012.04001.x [Accessed: 21 Sep 2013]. Doweiko, H. (2012). Concepts of Chemical Dependency,. 8th ed. Belmont: Brooks/Cole. Heroin (2013). In Encyclopedia of Drug Policy: "The War on Drugs" Past, Present, and Future. Retrieved from: literati.credoreference.com/content/entry/sagedrugpol/heroin/0 [Accessed: 20 Sep 2013]. Lobmaier, P., Gossop, M., Waal, H. and Bramness, J. (2010). The pharmacological treatment of opioid addiction---a clinical perspective. Clinical Pharmacology, 66 pp. 537-545. Retrieved from: doi 10.1007/s00228-010-0793-6 [Accessed: 20 Sep 2013].