How Heroin Is Making Its Way To The Suburbs

by Bridget on June 24, 2012

During the 1980s, half of all heroin addicts lived in either New York or California. The big cities provided the easiest access to the drug and caused millions of individuals to become severely addicted. Since then, heroin has spread around the country. Usually found in inner cities and run-down areas, officials now say that heroin is making its way to where you would least expect it; the suburbs. Kids in the suburbs are taking up the drug in staggering numbers, and are experiencing devastating consequences as a result. Heroin is one of the most addictive and dangerous drugs in the entire world, and if a person is not treated for an addiction, they will more than likely end up in jail or dead.

Suburban Areas

Ironically, kids that live in large cities have heard and understood the message that heroin is extremely dangerous, while kids in the suburbs never have. Parents and educators in better neighborhoods never fathomed that their kids would be brazen enough to use heroin in the first place. However, that is exactly what is now happening in record numbers.  Young people in suburbs are beginning to experiment with heroin because they are not fully aware of what can happen to them if they develop an addiction.

New Research

New research from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reveals that the number of teenagers dying from heroin overdoses has risen substantially in the past twenty years. In 1999, 198 young people overdosed on heroin. In 2009, there were 510 deaths. Thankfully, more teens are now becoming aware of the dangers of heroin, and more and more young people who are struggling with an addiction are seeking treatment. This is an encouraging sign that education on the dangers of drugs are starting to have an effect on young people in the suburbs where 90% of heroin addicts are white. Some researchers believe that the increase in heroin use among young people can be directly linked to prescription drug abuse.

In the past few years, the number of individuals who have developed addictions to prescription drugs has skyrocketed. Most of the people who develop addictions to these types of drugs come from suburban areas. However, these drugs can be difficult to get, and as a result, people begin to turn to heroin. Heroin offers a similar effect as most prescription painkillers. It is also easier to find, cheaper, and produces a more intense high. This is why heroin use is so incredibly dangerous. In the majority of cases involving heroin addiction, it is nearly impossible for a person to kick the drug on their own. Heroin addiction rehab centers are the best method of getting over an addiction to heroin. In these facilities, a person will be able to go through a medical detox to get all of the harmful substances out of their bodies, and then begin to undergo counseling and therapy to help them get to the bottom of their addiction.

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