What Is Heroin?

Heroin is a highly addictive opiate drug (strong painkiller) causing initial euphoria followed by profound relaxation, so it is considered as a ‘downer’ drug. It is synthesized from morphine, a substance obtained from seed pods of an opium poppy plant. Chemically, heroin is diamorphine (diacethylmorphine). It has a quicker and stronger effect than morphine.

Most of heroin is said to be produced in Afghanistan.

What is ‘synthetic heroin’?

‘Synthetic heroin’ is an informal term used for completely human-made, non-opium based narcotics, like methadone, oxycontin, phentanyl, pethidin.

Heroin Name

Heroin got its name because of its supposedly ‘heroic’ effects upon a user (as advertised by its first producer on the end of the 19th century). It was synthesized as an alternative for morphine, and should have less side effects and be less addictive than morphine, but it has appeared that just the opposite is true.

continue reading Heroin Abuse, Addiction, Overdose, Withdrawal – Symptoms, Side Effects

How Long Does Cocaine Stay in Your Body?

Like many other drugs, cocaine can be detected in the urine, blood and hair from few hours to several months after its use. Period during which cocaine stays in the body depends on a cocaine dose, form, frequency and duration of use, body mass, age and individual metabolic (breakdown) rate.

Urine Test for Cocaine

Cocaine can be detected in the urine for 4-8 hours after a single snorted (nasal) dose, and up to 24 hours after a single ingested (oral) dose (1).

A breakdown product of cocaine, benzoylecgonine can be detected in the urine for up to 60 hours after a single use, or up to 22 days after repeated use (1). Other metabolites detected in urine after cocaine use: ecgonine methyl ester, cocaethylene (when cocaine is taken by alcohol) (3).

continue reading How Long Does Cocaine Stay in Your System? Urine, Blood, Hair Test for Cocaine

What Is Cocaine?

Cocaine is a powerful and addictive brain stimulant. It is a popular recreational drug, but illegal in US and most other countries.

Naturally appearing cocaine is an alkaloid benzoylmethylecgonine, extracted from the leaves of a coca plant, mostly raised in South American countries Bolivia, Columbia and Peru (1).

Cocaine Forms and Uses

Coca Leaves

Coca leaves contain less then 1% of cocaine (1). Some people in South America chew coka leaves; it suppresses hunger, thirst, pain and fatigue. This use should not be understood as a cocaine abuse; it is considered harmless and is not likely addictive.
continue reading Cocaine, Crack Abuse – Addiction Signs, Overdose Side Effects

Monosaccharides – Simple Sugars

Monosaccharides (Gk. mono- = single, saccharide = sugar) have only single sugar unit in their structure. They are called simple sugars, since they cannot be split into substances that would still have characteristics of a sugar. Monosaccharide units can combine together to form disaccharides (containing two sugar units) or polysaccharides as starch (containing several sugar units).

Monosaccharides of main importance in the human body are glucose, ribose and deoxyribose. Other monosaccharides, used by human mainly as nutrients are fructose, galactose, mannose, and tagatose.

Monosaccharides are made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen and are arranged in groups according to the number of carbon atoms in their molecules such as trioses containing three carbon atoms, tetroses four, pentoses (e.g. ribose, deoxyribose) five, and hexoses (e.g. glucose, fructose) six carbon atoms.

continue reading Sugar Types: Monosaccharides (Simple Sugars)

Can Dehydration Cause Headache?

Dehydration can cause both sudden or chronic headaches.

Causes of a sudden dehydration headache:

• Occasional pressure-like headache due to not drinking enough water, especially after physical exertion and in a hot weather
• Migraine, a pulsating, one- or both-sided headache with nausea and sensitivity to light, appearing shortly after a skipped meal or exertion in a hot weather
• Hangover, an intense, throbbing headache, usually both-sided, appearing several hours after excessive alcohol drinking, aggravated by bending down or moving around, accompanied by thirst, nausea, fatigue, sensitivity to light and diarrhea
• Headache due to water loss caused by vomiting, diarrhea, heavy menstrual bleeding, burns, heat stroke

continue reading Dehydration and Headache – Symptoms and Prevention