Heroin News and Research

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Heroin is a very addictive chemical called diacetylmorphine. Heroin is a modified form of morphine, a highly abundant opium derived from the seedpods of the poppy plant.

Children who are open to experimenting with herbal products may be more open to trying illicit drugs

Adolescents who have ever used herbal products are six times more likely to have tried cocaine and almost 15 times more likely to have used anabolic steroids than teens who have never used herbal products

23 Mar 2006

Crystal meth the new drug pandemic

According to a U.N. narcotics watchdog the synthetic drug methamphetamine is a bigger problem in the United States and other countries than either heroin or cocaine.

1 Mar 2006

WHO to take action against fake drug racket

The World Health Organization (WHO) has appealed for international action against fake and mislabelled medicines.

16 Feb 2006

Potential universal strategy for treating drug addiction

An international research team led by the University of Saskatchewan has discovered a signaling pathway in the brain involved in drug addiction, together with a method for blocking its action, that may point to a single treatment strategy for most addictions.

14 Feb 2006

Girls are catching up with boys in use of illicit substances

Despite commonly held beliefs that boys are at higher risk for using illegal substances, data indicate that girls have caught up with boys in illicit drug and alcohol use and have actually surpassed boys in cigarette and prescription drug use. There are also more girls who are new users of substances than boys.

13 Feb 2006

Study supports a flexible approach to methadone dosing

Methadone has been used for more than 30 years as a treatment for heroin addicts. Doctors have all along struggled to find the best doses to help patients overcome their heroin cravings without getting them used to higher levels of methadone (itself an dependence-forming substance) than necessary.

7 Feb 2006

New research helps in war against international drugs trade

An increased demand for meat in Afghanistan could play an important role in stemming the international flow of heroin, according to a new study led by the Macaulay Institute, Aberdeen.

24 Jan 2006

Alcohol-deterrent drugs help long-term abstinence

Studies investigating the long-term outcomes of alcoholism treatment are rare and inconsistent.

8 Jan 2006

Genetic testing for Parkinson disease, is there a point?

Should we start being genetically tested for Parkinson’s disease (PD)? According to research just published in the December issue of the "journal Movement Disorders" this might be a possibility in the future if you belong to a family affected by G2019S, a genetic mutation responsible for some PD cases.

7 Dec 2005

Studies outline dangers of mixing stress, deprivation and tempting foods

Two studies in the October issue of Behavioral Neuroscience show that when animals are stressed, deprived and exposed to tempting food, they overeat, with different degrees of interaction.

7 Nov 2005

Cannabis boosts brain power in rats

Scientists now say that Cannabis, the third most popular recreational drug after alcohol and tobacco, could boost brain power.

17 Oct 2005

Cannabis boosts brain power in rats

Scientists now say that Cannabis, the third most popular recreational drug after alcohol and tobacco, could boost brain power.

16 Oct 2005

Evaluation of the efficacy of buprenorphine hydrochloride and clonidine hydrochloride, in detoxification of opioid-dependent teenagers

In a comparison of two drugs prescribed to treat teenagers dependent on heroin and other opioids, the drug buprenorphine was more effective, especially in treatment retention, according to a study in the October issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

4 Oct 2005

Nicotine has an unusual psychological property that may drive dependence

Associate Professor Athina Markou, Ph.D., who is in the Scripps Research Molecular and Integrative Neurosciences Department at Scripps Research’s La Jolla Campus, and Paul Kenny, Ph.D., a former Research Associate in her laboratory, report in an upcoming issue of the journal Neuropsychopharmacology that nicotine has an unusual psychological property that may drive dependence.

28 Sep 2005

46,000 crack cocaine users aged 15-44 in London

Researchers believe there could be 46,000 crack cocaine users aged 15-44 in London, suggesting one in every hundred young adult Londoners could be a user.

19 Sep 2005

Stress leads to drugs, leads to more stress and more drugs - part of a vicious cycle

According to a new Australian study, opiate drugs such as morphine have been found to leave animals more vulnerable to stress, and this could mean stress and opiates are caught in a vicious cycle.

1 Sep 2005

Opiate drugs such as morphine leave animals more vulnerable to stress

A new study has found that opiate drugs such as morphine leave animals more vulnerable to stress. This means that stress and opiates are in a vicious cycle: Not only does stress trigger drug use, but in return the drug leaves animals more vulnerable to stress.

30 Aug 2005

Quitting heroin under anesthesia is dangerous and ineffective

According to a new study, having a general anesthesia is not an effective way for heroin users to avoid the painful, drawn-out process of breaking their habit and can be dangerous.

24 Aug 2005

First direct evidence that endorphins play a role in the phenomenon known as the placebo effect

Just thinking that a medicine will relieve pain is enough to prompt the brain to release its own natural painkillers, and soothe painful sensations, a new University of Michigan study finds.

23 Aug 2005

Use of general anesthesia for heroin detoxification offers no benefit when compared to two other methods

The use of general anesthesia for heroin detoxification offers no benefit when compared to two other methods, and is associated with several potentially life-threatening adverse events, according to an article in the August 24/31 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

23 Aug 2005