Heroin Addicts: Methadone Detox Facts

Question: What makes risk of overdose so high among heroin addicts?

(Posted by: on 2012-01-10 12:02:03)

Why do addicts overdose so much? Also, what is the "gateway effect " many believe is associated with marijuana?

Posted by: 1stAngel* on 2012-01-10, 12:07:45

B/ c of bad heroin & they only care about getting high,not the after effects. Getting a fix is #1 priority,they believe they can't be helped nor do they care..it's all about the next hit. also if they get anything pills,whatever they will take that too b4 & after the heroin...most don't over does on purpose & most do it by mistake. So many death associated w/ this drud was classified as a suicide & that's simple not true..also some was meant to commit suicide & was classified as overdose. I guess it's true in any case so it really doesn't matte b/ c to allow ones self to feel the need to use & have it all the time...is to be suicidal. Strong associations between marijuana use and initiation of hard drugs are cited in support of the claim that marijuana use per se increases youths’ risk of initiating hard drugs (the ‘marijuana gateway’ effect). This report examines whether these associations could instead be explained as the result of a common factor—drug use propensity—influencing the probability of both marijuana and other drug use. Design  A model of adolescent drug use initiation in the United States is constructed using parameter estimates derived from US household surveys of drug use conducted between 1982 and 1994. Model assumptions include: (1) individuals have a non-specific random propensity to use drugs that is normally distributed in the population; (2) this propensity is correlated with the risk of having an opportunity to use drugs and with the probability of using them given an opportunity, and (3) neither use nor opportunity to use marijuana is associated with hard drug initiation after conditioning on drug use propensity. Findings  Each of the phenomena used to support claims of a ‘marijuana gateway effect’ are reproduced by the model, even though marijuana use has no causal influence over hard drug initiation in the model. Conclusions  Marijuana gateway effects may exist. However, our results demonstrate that the phenomena used to motivate belief in such an effect are consistent with an alternative simple, plausible common-factor model. No gateway effect is required to explain them. The common-factor model has implications for evaluating marijuana control policies that differ significantly from those supported by the gateway model.

Posted by: Scoti on 2012-01-10, 12:13:49

My psychiatrist who deals with addicts tells me the problem with addicts is they tend to try to come off of it, withdraw then lose their tolerance. When they go back on they go back to taking the same dose they were on before which is for them now a fatal dose. If they went back on it at a lower dose they would have been safe. The gateway effect being attributed to hash is rubbish. The connection is that people who are on drugs like heroin and crack all started with hash, which is most likely true but at the same time most also tried the killer addictive drugs nicotine and alcohol first too, probably before trying cannabis. They were doing a study in the US to see if it's any addictive drugs in general that can act as a gateway drug. Cannabis is only made an example of because it's illegal but our brain chemistry doesn't really give a toss about what's legal and what isn't when it comes to drugs.

Posted by: J on 2012-01-10, 12:14:16

The risk is high because you can't tell how strong the heroin sold to them is. When you buy heroin from a drug dealer, it's not pure. They "cut " it (ie. mix it) with various different things, and sometimes the mix you get will have more heroin in it than others. The "gateway effect " I'm assuming is the theory that marijuana acts as a gateway to other, more damaging drugs.

Posted by: Londo on 2012-01-10, 12:18:20

Many heroin addicts will get their fix from where they can, some will also be on a methadone treatment to wean them off the drug altogether. The problems with this is that heroin is an illegal drug an as such it is not made or mixed to a consistent standard so what a junkie might get today will be weak and mixed with other stuff by the dealer (more baking powder/ paracetamol/ flour he mixes the more heroine he has to "cut " for other addicts to buy hence more money) in times of higher demand. Next week the addict might go to another dealer or where might be more about through dealers getting a new shipment and the quality might go up and have less "cut " and the heroine dose is stronger. The junkie will not know this and can take more to get a better high. This results in an overdose. Cannabis is often described as a "Gateway drug " because it is often one of the easiest to get and therefore more likely that it will be one of the first illegal drugs you encounter in life. Many people who live in the fringes of the law will have contact with suppliers and users of soft drugs like cannabis who in turn will have connections with people who are more into harder drugs or associated with other criminal elements. Chances are that if you are into the cannabis culture, you will mix with people who can get other harder drugs. This availability and the temptation to try a new high leads many onto harder drugs. Hence cannabis being the "gateway " into this world. On balance though, drugs are only as dangerous as you let them get. Know the risks and don't be stupid. If you are the kind of person who is easily led by others, don't start on any drugs, especially cigarettes and alcohol (the two worst ones as the government make cash on them so they are OK...;D).

Posted by: Jody on 2012-01-10, 13:31:11

The most frightening thing about heroin is kids don't know when they've had too much and the body doesn't protect them by shutting down. If one drinks too much, they pass out or throw up - or both. The body has a way of throwing away the excess through breathing, sweating, urinating and vomiting. This is not the case with heroin. It goes directly to the blood stream. There is a desire to get higher and higher by using more and more, and heroin can have different levels of potency - even in the same batches...Tolerance builds and it takes more to get the same effect. In fact, once hooked, it takes more and more just to feel normal. The mind and body both crave another "hit " when withdrawal symptoms begin, forcing a user to get more heroin injected quickly in an effort to remove the withdrawal effects. Marijuana is a gateway drug means that people who use marijuana to get high often move on to more potent drugs for a "better " high. Marijuana is relatively cheap, easy to get, and barely even a crime if a kid gets caught. So lots of kids start their drug career with marijuana, but don't stay satisfied with the effects. The theory is that if the kid never started using pot he would not move into harder drugs.