Medical Questions » Illegal Drugs Questions » Question No. 534
| Question: | Where does heroin come from? Does it have any medical uses? |
| Answer: | Heroin is refined from the milky juice of the opium poppy, which is grown legally for medical purposes in north-eastern Tasmania. Most illegal supplies reaching this country originate in Afghanistan and south-east Asia, particularly northern Thailand and Burma. Heroin is one of the most addictive substances known.
Codeine, pethidine, morphine and oxycodone are all derived from heroin and can be abused if taken regularly or excessively. These substances are collectively called narcotics. Codeine and oxycodone are found in low doses in many readily available pain-killers, diarrhoea medications and cough mixtures. Codeine in higher doses, along with pethidine and morphine, are used by doctors as tablets or injections to relieve severe pain after operations, in cancer patients, and in other similar situations.
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