ABSTRACT
Most likely, opium was the first narcotic substance discovered at the dawn of humankind. The history of drug addiction is immensely rich and allows for tracing the long way humankind had to travel to reach the contemporary level of consciousness with respect to narcotic substances. A retrospective view of drug addiction that takes into consideration the historical context, while extending our knowledge, also allows for a better understanding of today's problems. The report presents elements of a retrospective view of problems associated with addiction to opium, morphine and heroin over the centuries, what is a subject of scientific interest in contemporary toxicology.
Subject(s)
Illicit Drugs/history , Legislation, Drug/history , Opioid-Related Disorders/history , Opium/history , Global Health , Heroin/history , Heroin Dependence/history , History, 15th Century , History, 16th Century , History, 17th Century , History, 18th Century , History, 19th Century , History, 20th Century , History, 21st Century , History, Ancient , History, Medieval , Humans , Morphine/history , Morphine Dependence/history , Public OpinionSubject(s)
Legislation, Drug/history , Opioid-Related Disorders/history , Opium/history , China , Heroin Dependence/epidemiology , Heroin Dependence/history , History, 16th Century , History, 17th Century , History, 18th Century , History, 19th Century , History, 20th Century , History, Ancient , Humans , Morphine Dependence/history , Opioid-Related Disorders/epidemiology , United StatesABSTRACT
In the mid-19th century, most American addicts were genteel women hooked on opiates through medical treatment. Within a few decades, a new group of addicts emerged--pleasure users who patronized opium dens. As local laws closed dens, the pleasure users--most often poor young men in northern cities--began experimenting with cocaine and heroin, causing an alarmed government to launch an escalating campaign to root out the new deviant subculture. Various treatment efforts were instituted, from short-lived clinics to federal narcotics farms. This drug use epidemic peaked in the 1920s and was essentially quelled by World War II. This paper briefly discusses differences between early British and US policies and the contemporary implications of this early drug use epidemic.