What are the EFFECTS of HEROIN on the body and mind?
Heroin is a derivative of morphine, the main opium alkaloid, and is also known as diacetylmorphine. It is a semisynthetic substance obtained by acetylation of morphine, which we analyze today, as always, #physiologicallyspeaking.
We've already discussed MORPHINE in the following video: • Quali sono gli effetti degli oppioidi? Mor... 👈
Heroin is a substance first synthesized in 1874 by British researcher C. R. Wright, but the new molecule was not considered promising when tested on animals. It was resynthesized in 1897 by Felix Hoffmann, a German chemist working for Bayer. Hoffmann himself had exploited the acetylation process with salicylic acid, obtaining aspirin, and just 11 days later he did the same with morphine, producing heroin. The substance was commercially named heroin because it was initially believed to lack the unpleasant side effects of addiction and dependence associated with morphine, and it began to be sold freely by the multinational pharmaceutical company Bayer as early as 1899.
Since heroin was advertised and administered primarily as a drug for the treatment of respiratory diseases and for detoxification of morphine addicts, users neither sought nor expected its psychotropic effects. Within 20 to 30 years, however, it was finally understood that, with heroin, pharmaceutical research had created a narcotic far more dangerous than morphine. For this reason, the marketing and use of the substance began to be banned in the 1920s. A century later, in the relative danger ranking of narcotics compiled by the medical journal The Lancet, heroin ranks first among narcotics.
Unlike morphine, when injected intravenously, heroin causes a characteristic euphoric rush lasting approximately 30–60 seconds, due to the rapid crossing of the blood-brain barrier and subsequent saturation of opioid receptors. This feeling of intense pleasure and warmth is why heroin users prefer the intravenous route of administration. Heroin can also be smoked or snorted. After the initial effects, which last about a minute, nausea, vomiting, and itching may also occur. Users typically feel drowsy for several hours; heart function slows, and breathing is also severely slowed, sometimes enough to be life-threatening. Slowed breathing can also lead to coma and permanent brain damage. Heroin causes numerous long-term complications. Over time, heroin can affect decision-making, the ability to regulate behavior, and responses to stressful situations.
The most significant long-term side effects primarily concern the potential for physical and psychological dependence. The difficulty in overcoming withdrawal increases with prolonged use and with age. In addition to addiction, intravenous use of heroin (and any other substance) through syringes can lead to serious consequences, such as infection with serious viral agents such as HIV and hepatitis viruses.
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Sources:
The Basics of Pharmacology by Whalen, Felid, Radhaskrishnan, 2020, Zanichelli
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eroina
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroin
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(10...
https://nida.nih.gov/publications/dru...
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
http s://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18388795
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Chapters:
00:00 | How heroin was discovered and marketed
05:52 | Bayer's responsibility in creating the world's most dangerous drug
06:46 | How heroin works at the neurophysiological level
12:46 | AIDS and hepatitis: the other side of the problem
13:39 | Heroin overdose and final notes
Disclaimer ⚠️ This video is for informational, historical, and scientific purposes only. It is in no way intended to encourage the use of the substance.
What are the effects of heroin on the body and mind? | Marco Franzoni