Heroin is within the category of drugs like opioids. Medically, these types of drugs are administered as a prescribed treatment for pain or after severe injuries or surgery.
However, heroin remains one of the most addictive drugs in the world, as well as specifically in the UK.
Due to its strong highs and other short-term effects, heroin is a highly sought-after drug, usually taken by injecting, snorting, or smoking. Generally, it comes in the form of a light brown or white powder (when pure) but can also come in the form of a black tar-like substance.
When addicted, individuals will constantly crave consuming heroin and experience withdrawal symptoms if they do not satisfy this desire. Individuals will also begin to build up a tolerance, meaning that they require more of the drug to gain the same effect.
Addiction causes changes in the brain, reducing its efficiency and having long-term effects even after abstinence, sometimes leading to consistent relapses (1).
Because of this, the short-term benefits of taking heroin can quickly turn into serious health risks and give the individuals problems that they will have to deal with for a long time.
These problems can be even more damaging when the individual is pregnant. This is because the negative effects will not only affect the mother, but also the unborn child.
To learn more about the effects of heroin on pregnancy, as well as in general, look at the following paragraphs.
As mentioned above, the effects of heroin can be very serious, especially when considering someone who is using heroin whilst pregnant.
Someone may choose to take heroin whilst pregnant for several reasons.
First, they may be an existing user and continue to consume the drug even after learning they are pregnant. When addicted, stopping usage can be extremely difficult, despite the negative effects that may arise.
Going cold turkey while pregnant is also incredibly risky (more in later paragraphs).
Secondly, a person may turn to heroin abuse in the event of discovering pregnancy as this can be an incredibly stressful and draining situation in an individual’s life, causing them to seek relief in recreational drug use.
No matter what the reasons, the effects can be just as harmful.
Mainly the effects are focussed on the birth of the child, which may be affected in many ways. For example, many babies exposed to heroin usage while in the womb may be born with severe birth defects, often causing issues later in life such as mobility, respiratory issues, and cardiovascular issues.
The baby may also be born prematurely, requiring additional care and supervision during the early stages of its life. There are also many long-term health risks associated with this.
For example, babies are likely to be born smaller when born prematurely – a risk that is also increased with heroin use during pregnancy on its own.
In extreme cases, individuals using heroin through pregnancy may have a stillbirth, where the baby dies in the womb before the full term of pregnancy but after a certain length of time (around 20 weeks).
In all cases, it is important to discuss heroin usage throughout pregnancy with a healthcare professional such as a dedicated or allocated doctor.
Aside from the effects of heroin specifically on the unborn child, there are many other negative effects that long-term heroin usage and/or abuse can have.
This is perhaps the most dangerous risk. Once an individual is addicted to heroin, they will continually seek it, meaning that all the negative effects that are associated with heroin usage will apply to those suffering with addiction.
Heroin usage is often associated with sleepiness, often occurring after the euphoric highs that a person may experience. The individual may begin to nod off, sometimes resulting in a deeper, unawakenable sleep, or in some cases, comas.
An individual may develop an infection as a result of heroin usage. This can range from organ infections such as to the heart and lungs, but individuals also risk catching infections such as HIV and hepatitis when unsafe needle use is involved.
As a result of long-term heroin use, especially through smoking or snorting, individuals are more at risk of experiencing respiratory failure, where oxygen struggles to pass between the individual’s lungs and blood. This can cause serious health risks.
Heroin is also known to affect the kidneys and liver (2), as well as other major organs such as the heart and lungs. This can cause a dangerous build-up of harmful chemicals that would otherwise be removed from the body, having irreversible effects.
If an individual is using heroin before pregnancy, as previously explained on the webpage, then there are several different risks associated with this usage.
This is because the effects experienced when withdrawing from heroin – otherwise known as withdrawal symptoms – can be even more traumatic and damaging when the individual is pregnant.
There are additional risks, some of which are the same as the effects mentioned above, but there are also several additional dangers.
When withdrawing from heroin, the individual may be at an increased risk of miscarriage, due to the physical effects of withdrawal such as infections and organ failure.
Because of this, an individual should never go ‘cold turkey’ if they were previously using heroin and find out they are pregnant. This involves completely stopping usage but can cause severe strain on the body and have negative effects on the unborn child.
There are several treatments that can be used for those individuals who are pregnant and wish to reduce usage or enter rehabilitative treatment for heroin addiction.
Generally, there are two common types of pharmacological treatments that are offered to pregnant individuals when they want to reduce usage.
The first type of pharmacological intervention is methadone. This is another drug in the category of opioids, created during World War II as a painkiller for soldiers, but has strong application in addiction treatment.
When used with those struggling with addiction, methadone stops the individual from getting the same high as heroin. It also provides a small high, but not as strong or as addictive as heroin.
It can also reduce the effects of withdrawal symptoms and reduce cravings for heroin.
The second type of treatment is buprenorphine. This is another type of opioid prescription drug and is known to be an effective treatment for addiction.
It works similarly to methadone; in that it alleviates the symptoms of withdrawal (specifically the physical symptoms) and can be used to slowly transition the individual from heroin to buprenorphine alone. This can be followed by a transition to complete abstinence.
Buprenorphine is also more effective in reducing cravings for heroin by altering the brain’s neural pathways associated with addiction and perceived ‘need’ to consume the drug.
In addition to pharmacological treatments, there are also several alternative options for pregnant individuals who may not be suitable for medical interventions.
Pharmacological treatments should never be used alone, and they should always be employed amongst other types of treatment such as therapy and other holistic treatments.
The most recommended treatments for pregnant individuals struggling with heroin abuse are described below:
Both these suggestions of alternative heroin addiction treatment are extremely valuable. This is because they focus on the psychological effects of heroin abuse, something which can often be overlooked if the individual also has physical symptoms which may put their unborn child at risk.
In all cases, the individual should work closely with a healthcare professional to create a suitable and appropriate addiction treatment plan.
This should consider the individual’s history with heroin abuse, their current and past usage, their current health, any mental health issues, as well as their current situation and rehabilitation possibilities.
With the right care, and when carefully planned and followed out, rehabilitation can be an extremely rewarding process.
By improving your physical health, as well as keeping yourself and your child safe, you are giving yourself the best possible chance for a long and positive life.
To learn more about heroin and its effects on pregnancy, look at some of our other web pages or call our dedicated addiction hotline on 0800 140 4690.
[1] Fareed, A., Kim, J., Ketchen, B., Kwak, W.J., Wang, D., Shongo-Hiango, H. and Drexler, K., 2017. Effect of heroin use on changes of brain functions as measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging, a systematic review. Journal of addictive diseases, 36(2), pp.105-116.
[2] Edland, J.F., 1972. Liver disease in heroin addicts. Human pathology, 3(1), pp.75-84.
Boris is our editor-in-chief at Rehab 4 Addiction. Boris is an addiction expert with more than 20 years in the field. His expertise covers a broad of topics relating to addiction, rehab and recovery. Boris is an addiction therapist and assists in the alcohol detox and rehab process. Boris has been featured on a variety of websites, including the BBC, Verywell Mind and Healthline. You can connect with Boris online at LinkedIn or X.com.
