Cheese Heroin

1. Cheese Heroin Elyse & Andrea Period 4

2. What is Cheese? • Cheese is a combination of drugs, made by combining heroin with crushed tablets of certain over-the-counter cold medication, such as Tylenol PM. Such cold medications contain acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, and the antihistamine diphenhydramine, the active ingredient in Benadryl. • Users commonly take the powder by insufflation ("snorting") rather than by intravenous injection. • First synthesized from morphine in 1874, heroin was not extensively used in medicine until the beginning of this century. Commercial production of the new pain remedy was first started in 1898.

3. Why some people take drugs. . . • People take drugs because they want to change something in their lives. • Here are some of the reasons young people have given for taking drugs: • To fit in • To escape or relax • To relieve boredom • To seem grown up • To rebel • To experiment

4. What does cheese heroin look like? • In its purest form, heroin is a fine white powder. But more often, it is found to be rose gray, brown or black in color. The coloring comes from additives which have been used to dilute it, which can include sugar, caffeine or other substances. Street heroin is sometimes “cut” with strychnine(a stimulant used for rat poison which induces violent convulsions and is deadly) or other poisons. • The various additives do not fully dissolve, and when they are injected into the body, can clog the blood vessels that lead to the lungs, kidneys or brain. This itself can lead to infection or destruction of vital organs.

5. What forms does cheese heroin come in? Cheese pills Cheese bindles Cheese baggies

6. Symptoms of Use and Withdrawal Overdose Risk • Drowsiness and lethargy(fatigue) • Euphoria • Excessive thirst • Disorientation • Sleepiness and hunger • Sudden change in grades and friends • Heroin, morphine and diphenhydramine HCL are all depressants • Overdose or combination with other depressants (i.e. alcohol) can cause respiratory arrest and subsequent death. Use • Mood swings • Insomnia • Headache, chills, nausea, vomiting • Muscle spasms, muscle and bone pain • Anxiety, agitation, disorientation • May last five to six days Withdrawal

7. Who uses cheese heroin? • The drug costs only a couple of dollars a hit and children as young as 9, hooked on cheese heroin, have been rushed to hospital emergency rooms for heroin withdrawal. • Because it is available in various forms that are easier to consume and more affordable, heroin today is more tempting than ever. Between 1995 and 2002, the number of teenagers in America, aged 12 to 17, who used heroin at some point in their lives increased by 300%. • A young person who might think twice about putting a needle in his arm may more readily smoke or sniff the same drug. But this is falsely reassuring and may give one the idea that there is less risk. The truth is that heroin in all its forms is dangerous and addictive.

8. Quiz 1.)What is cheese heroin made of? a.) black tar heroin and crushed Tylenol PM tablets b.) talcum powder and/or sugar c.) crystal methamphetamine d.)cannabis 2.)True/False Overdose or combination with other depressants can cause respiratory arrest and subsequent death. 3.) How long does the withdrawal period from cheese heroin last? a.) 2 days b.) 5-6 days c.) one month d.) 5-6 hours 4.)What is an effect cheese heroin can have when used? a.) euphoria b.)mood swings c.)anxiety d.)chills 5.) Between 1995 and 2002, the number of teenagers in America, aged 12 to 17, who used heroin at some point in their lives increased by _____%? a.) 20 b.) 500 c.) 100 d.)300

9. Answers to Quiz 1.)A 2.)true 3.)B 4.) A 5.) D