Types of Heroin and their Ingredients

Types of Heroin and their Ingredients Addiction Drug Use Heroin Print Types of Heroin and their Ingredients By Elizabeth Hartney, BSc., MSc., MA, PhD Elizabeth Hartney, BSc, MSc, MA, PhD is a psychologist, professor, and Director of the Centre for Health Leadership and Research at Royal Roads University, Canada. Learn about our editorial policy Elizabeth Hartney, BSc., MSc., MA, PhD Medically reviewed by Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD on January 30, 2020 Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital. Learn about our Medical Review Board Steven Gans, MD Updated on February 04, 2020 Diverse Images/Universal Images Group/Getty Images More in Addiction Drug Use Heroin Cocaine Marijuana Meth Ecstasy/MDMA Hallucinogens Opioids Prescription Medications Alcohol Use Addictive Behaviors Nicotine Use Coping and Recovery In This Article Table of Contents Expand Psychoactive Ingredients Black Tar Heroin Brown or White Powder Street Heroin Chemical Additives Anesthetics Fillers Potential Toxins View All Back To Top A highly addictive and illegal drug, heroin is sold in three different forms:  black tar heroin, brown powder heroin, and white powder heroin.?? Each kind of heroin contains slightly different ingredients, and all are likely to have various other substances added, which can add to the drugs potency, in some cases making it even more dangerous. Heroin is usually a mixture of diacetylmorphine, the active ingredient that produces the drug effects, and a variety of filler ingredients.?? Some of these fillers are other opiates, and share some of the ?psychoactive effects of heroin, whereas others are simply powders that share the appearance of the form of heroin they are cut with. And in some cases, the add-ins are toxins that can cause deadly side effects. Psychoactive Ingredients Diacetylmorphine, or diamorphine, is a highly potent painkiller that is synthesized from the latex sap of the seed pod of the opium poppy, known as opium.?? The opium poppy grows in many parts of the world, including Asia, Australia, some parts of Europe, Turkey, Afghanistan, Colombia, and Mexico. This opiate is the main psychoactive ingredient in heroin, which produces the euphoric heroin high. It is also what gives heroin its addictive qualities and creates a state of physical dependence among its users; the more someone uses, the more they need to avoid withdrawal symptoms. Deaths related to synthetic opioid overdose has risen by 219% in the U.S. between 2010 and 2015. in the U.S.?? This is mainly due to the contamination of heroin and other drugs with illicitly manufactured fentanyl, an opioid painkiller, which is many times stronger and more dangerous than heroin. Research shows that drug users are concerned about fentanyl in their heroin, and most are open to using rapid test strips, which can be used to detect the presence of fentanyl in drug samples (before use) or urine (after use) and can help inform people about their exposure risk.?? In addition to diacetylmorphine and fentanyl, street heroin may contain a variety of other street and  prescription drugs, including methamphetamine.?? Although meth is a stimulant and heroin a relaxant, both produce feelings of  euphoria, so a  drug dealer  can often get away with mixing any euphoria-producing  psychoactive  drug with heroin if it is available at a cheaper price. Meth carries its own risks and typically contains toxic chemicals, making it particularly unsafe to inject directly into the bloodstream. Black Tar Heroin Black tar heroin looks like a sticky chunk of blackish brownish substance. It is produced by a very crude process in which the opiate that is produced is relatively unrefined compared to white powder heroin. Although black tar heroin has been around for over 100 years, its popularity in the  United States  began in the 1970s because it is cheaper and easier to make than white powder heroin.?? Brown or White Powder Street Heroin Further processing of black tar heroin, and cutting with lactose, can produce brown powder heroin.  White powder heroin  in its purest form is a salt form of the drug, known as diacetylmorphine hydrochloride, although it will typically be mixed or cut with other white powders, which reduce the potency and increase the risk of contamination and vein damage if the drug is injected. Typically, the purer the heroin, the whiter and shinier it appears, while the more heavily cut the heroin, the duller the white powder appears. Chemical Additives The process of making heroin from opium varies, depending on the methods used, and the facility in which it is made. These facilities range from state-of-the-art legitimate laboratories run by fully qualified chemists, to clandestine labs run by illicit drug manufacturers, to makeshift processes using old oil drums and outdoor fires run by local growers with little or no education in chemistry. Recently, heroin has been manufactured in home labs by people attempting to convert prescription painkillers such as oxycodone into street heroin. There is no way to know the point of origin or additional ingredients of heroin purchased on the street. It may contain contaminants that are by-products of the manufacturing process, including chemicals such as calcium oxide, ammonia, chloroform, hydrochloric acid, and acetic anhydride.??   Anesthetics Street heroin may contain local anesthetics, such as xylocaine. Although anesthetics themselves legally used for medical and dental purposes, they do carry risks, can have side effects, and are also potential allergens, carrying additional risks of adverse health effects, which may not be recognized or properly treated by users or dealers. Fillers Filler ingredients are added to bulk up the heroin so that dealers can increase their profit margins. They vary from benign substances, such as talc, flour, cornstarch, powdered milk, and various sugars, to harmful substances. For example, black tar heroin may be diluted with black shoe polish or dirt. Quinine is sometimes added to white powder heroin for its bitter flavor. Potential Toxins Its also possible for poisons to be cut into heroin. Strychnine, which is used as a pesticide used in rat poison, is one toxic ingredient sometimes mixed with heroin.?? Psychological symptoms of strychnine poisoning include anxiety, restlessness, agitation, and an increased startle response. Physical symptoms include jaw tension, muscle pain and spasms, the rigidity of the arms and legs, and arching of the neck and back.  ?? Black tar heroin may be cut with soil, which can contain the spores of a toxic contaminant called Clostridium botulinum. If that name sounds vaguely familiar, it may be because it causes a potentially fatal kind of food poisoning called botulism.   If these spores get into a wound, the spores can germinate and cause a rare infection known as wound botulism. Even though the wound may appear small, the infection is extremely serious. Although not actually an ingredient in heroin, people who burn heroin on aluminum foil to inhale the fumesâ€"a practice known as chasing the dragonâ€"may have elevated levels of aluminum in their urine.?? Aluminum is known to be a neurotoxin, although the long-term effects on heroin users still need to be established.