Like other hard drugs, heroin is a highly addictive and dangerous illegal substance obtained from the seed pods of the opium poppy plant.
Due to its adverse effects on human health, it is indubitably illegal to grow opium poppies in many countries.
However, India, China, Korea, and Japan make the major exceptions by legally producing opium gum. Mexico, Colombia, Southeast, and Southwest Asia are also among the world’s largest opium suppliers.
The opium poppy plant produces a milky latex found in unripe seed capsules which are processed to produce morphine, codeine, and heroin.
Now that we know where the substance originates from, let’s look into some of its other features.
What does heroin look like?
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), heroin is sold as a white or brownish powder that dealers ‘cut’ with impurities of sugar, painkillers, powdered milk, quinine, or starch.
This is majorly to increase the quantity of the product and thus, make more profit. A rather common impurity known as fentanyl is added to heroin to reduce the risk of overdose and increase the potency of the substance.
Owing to its wide range of impurities, the drug has acquired various street names over the years including:
- Junk
- Horse
- White horse
- Smack
- Skag
- Dope
- China white
- Brown sugar
Pure heroin is a white, pink, brown, or beige powder (depending on the reagents used to process it) known as diamorphine hydrochloride/ white heroin. It is a highly refined form of heroin and has a bitter taste.
Other than white heroin, there are several other forms of heroin, such as:
- Black tar heroin – this type differs from powder heroin in that it has a tar-like appearance with a sticky feel and is dark brown or black. Being cheaper and easier to produce, it is less costly than the rest.
- Asian heroin – depending on its origin, it can either be powdered, white, and highly soluble in water to indicate Southeast Asian origin, or course brown powdered with poor solubility in water to indicate Southwest Asian origin.
- Brown heroin – is not as refined as white heroin and is produced in its first stage of purification. This makes it cheaper and easier to produce.
How is heroin used?
Heroin can be injected, snorted, sniffed, or smoked.
White heroin, due to its high quality, is usually injected or snorted because of its high-temperature requirement which makes it harder to burn and smoke.
Black tar, brown and Asian forms of heroin can be melted down and injected, or smoked.
Side effects of heroin
Although there are different forms of heroin, their side effects are pretty much the same. At a glance, some of the common immediate side effects of heroin include:
- Nausea or vomiting;
- A rush of relaxation or pleasure;
- Low sex drive;
- Poor motor skills;
- Dry mouth;
- Shallow breathing and a slow heart rate;
- Drowsiness;
- Warm skin;
- Narrowing of pupils.
The intensity of these effects, however, may differ depending on the following factors:
- Dosage ingested.
- Quality of substance ingested.
- Height and weight of the user.
- Body fat content.
- Genetics
- Hydration
- Rate of metabolic reactions.
How long does it take for heroin to hit?
Essentially, the effects of heroin are felt within the first few minutes of ingestion. The most perceptible being euphoria.
These effects may last for the next 45 minutes – one or two hours before wearing off. Nonetheless, depending on the amount ingested and quality, a heroin high may last longer.
How long does heroin last in the body?
Research reveals that heroin has an average half-life of about three to eight minutes. This implies that within this time, 50% of the initial volume ingested would have been broken down. Generally, it takes 4-5 half-lives for a drug to be completely eliminated from the system.
Therefore, in about 30-40 minutes, all heroin will have been flushed out of your system. Once broken down, two compounds are formed; morphine and 6-acetyl morphine, the former of which has a longer half-life.
Various drug testing methods are employed in the detection of heroin in the body for varying periods. Each test type has its own duration under which heroin can still be detected in the body.
Urine test
Commonly known as urine drug screening (UDS), it is the most commonly administered drug test. With a urine sample, one can detect traces of heroin (or morphine) within one to four days since the last use.
To know how to collect a urine sample and submit it for testing click here.
Saliva test
This is a rather quick method with quick results. Due to this, it should be administered soon after the last use of heroin for accurate results.
For this reason, a saliva test for heroin can only be valid an hour after the last consumption.
Blood test
Heroin metabolites can be detected in blood within two to three days since last use. Previous studies reveal that the 6-acetyl morphine (6 AM) assay test can distinguish between recent heroin use and therapeutic use of opioids as painkillers.
Hair test
Frequent heroin users with long hair have a larger window of detection as the 6 AM metabolite remains detectable in hair follicles for up to 90 days since last use.
For more information on drug testing methods, visit our blog.
False-positive
A false positive drug test result is likely to occur following the ingestion of foods containing poppy seeds. Poppy seeds may contain opiate residues, which even by a small amount may trigger false-positive results.
Alternatively, certain medications such as rifampin and diphenhydramine may trigger similar results for opiate testing.
How to flash heroin out of your body
As earlier mentioned, heroin metabolizes darn quickly and will, therefore, be out of sight for the majority of the standard drug testing methods. This is good news for a novice user.
Therefore, you can only clean your system off of heroin by avoiding continuous usage of the illicit drug once the body eliminates it through metabolic processes. However, for an addict, it is dangerous to quit cold turkey as this would trigger severe withdrawal symptoms.
It is advisable to enroll in a rehabilitation center or seek professional help for sound treatment plans.
