Originally derived from opium, heroin is a very addictive illegal substance. According to the National Drug Intelligence Center, 3,091,000 Americans have reported using the drug at least one time. Heroin can be inhaled, snorted or injected....
A variety of treatments are available to help individuals addicted to heroin to cope with the harsh withdrawal symptoms, including medications and behavioral therapies. A medically assisted detoxification is usually the first step, but the best...
Heroin is a synthetic drug made from opium poppies. It is a white or brown powder that can be injected, snorted or smoked, and it primarily affects the brain. The drug is highly addicting and, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse,...
Heroin is a highly addictive opiate sourced from the Asian poppy. Due to its effects on the brain and body, quitting a heroin addiction can have serious physical and psychological side effects. As a result, a number of drug treatments have been...
Drug abuse, especially with drugs such as heroin, has a profound effect on brain functioning, particularly with long-term drug use. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, "addiction is a brain disease that affects multiple brain...
The use of opiates like methadone to treat pain is controversial because they are linked to negative health outcomes. According to Laxmaiah Manchikant M.D. in a 2009 article in "Pain Physician," prolonged use of opiates has been associated with...
Heroin is an illicit opiate drug capable of causing addiction and a host of health problems. According to the National Institutes of Health, an estimated 3.7 million people have used heroin at some time in their lives. Learning to recognize the...
Heroin is an illegal narcotic drug that is injected, smoked or snorted. All heroin addicts experience symptoms of withdrawal when they are abstinent from the drug, unable to obtain sufficient quantity of the drug or when the quantity has less than...
Doctors have found that when treating heroin addicts it is often best to use medication along with support services. This is because the attachment to heroin is so strong it causes many relapses. The medication-and-support approach helps with the...
Because opiates such as heroin induce an immediate sensation of euphoria, they are powerfully addictive drugs. The Society for Neuroscience reports that as many as 1 million Americans are addicted to heroin, making it a serious public health...
In 2008, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published findings from a national survey on drug use, which reported that 341,000 people had been medically treated for heroin use during that year. One treatment for heroin use is...
Drug addiction extends beyond illegal substances such as cocaine and heroine. You can also become addicted to medications legally prescribed by a doctor. Prescription drug addiction can be as damaging to you and your loved ones as any other drug...
Methadone is a long-acting opioid drug that is used clinically as a strong pain-reliever and to relieve the withdrawal symptoms felt by people recovering from abuse of other opioid drugs. Opioid drugs are natural or synthetic compounds derived...
Drug abuse and addiction are often difficult disorders to treat due to the psychological and biological components that complicate the recovery process. In understanding the nature of drug abuse and addiction, it is important to recognize when...
Methadone is an effective treatment for heroin detoxification. The Harvard Medical School notes that a single dose of heroin is effective for a mere four to six hours, but the withdrawal syndrome can last a full week. Methadone helps to ease the...
The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health notes that methadone, a synthetic opioid, was originally developed as a means for relieving pain. Methadone was later found to be effective in treating addiction to opiates such as heroin through...
Drug rehab centers often provide treatment on a continuing basis, offering varying levels of care to meet the needs of different clients. Options include outpatient treatment, intensive outpatient treatment, and inpatient or residential treatment....
Heroin withdrawal is a long, and often painful, process. Many health care providers are now offering complementary and alternative treatments to help with managing withdrawal symptoms, including Traditional Chinese Medicine. Chinese herbs for...
Heroin is an illicit drug that is a type of opiate, or painkiller. Once injected, smoked or sniffed, the drug binds to receptors in the body and brain, causing a number of intoxicating effects. There are three approved medications for helping...
Methadone is used as both a painkiller when other drugs have failed and as a treatment path for heroin addicts to help them beat their addiction, notes MedlinePlus. Methadone works by altering how the brain responds to pain and how the nervous...
Heroin abuse is a serious problem in the United States. Not only can it cause potentially life-threatening health complications, but the abuse often impairs a person’s ability to function in daily life. Many people addicted to heroin would...
Opiates such as methadone, morphine and oxycodone are highly addictive narcotic pain medications that are generally prescribed in preparation for surgeries and following serious accidents, injuries or medical conditions. Withdrawal from opiates...
One of the most commonly abused narcotics according to the American Council for Drug Education's, heroin is derived from either the opium poppy or chemical synthetics. Dependence on heroin can be a difficult to break. For this reason, certain...
Suboxone, or buprenorphine, is a medication used to treat dependence on opioids like painkillers (e.g. morphine, methadone and oxycodone) or the illegal street drug heroin. Suboxone helps patients reduce their use of opioids and continue treatment...
Heroin, one of the most addictive opiates, can cause a long-term and chronic disease of the drug addiction. Opiates.com reports heroin as one of the most addictive substances and rates it as the most influential in the "war on drugs." The...
Opiates are drugs derived from the plant opiate. Common examples of opiates are heroin, narcotic painkillers and morphine. Many people become addicted to opiates after being prescribed narcotic painkillers following an injury. Typically, opiate...
Methadone is a narcotic pain reliever used during detoxification and recovery from illicit drug use such as heroin. Using the drug reduces the amount of withdrawal symptoms such as sweating, insomnia, nausea and shaking that accompany...
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services lists 60 substance abuse treatment centers within Miami, and 156 within a 100-mile radius of the city. These centers vary by the services they offer, the type of client they serve, the special needs...
In 2008, approximately 3.8 million Americans aged 12 or older had admitted to using heroin at some point in their lives, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. This drug is highly addictive and using it can have serious...
The NADA protocol is an acupuncture ear treatment method that is effective with treating addiction. Learn more about ear treatments and acupuncture from our medical expert in this free video.