Over the past decade or so, the rates of heroin abuse and addiction throughout the US have skyrocketed exponentially. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the number of individuals who actively abuse heroin has risen significantly since the year 2007. Heroin is an illicit, potent, and extremely habit-forming narcotic opioid that is naturally derived and processed from morphine. Heroin is typically sold as a white or brown powder and is either ingested nasally (snorted) or intravenously (injected). Some individuals snort heroin because they believe that doing so is less dangerous than injecting heroin. 
Dangers of Snorting Heroin Vs. Injecting Heroin
Injecting heroin has a reputation for being more dangerous than snorting the chemical substance because many of the overdose deaths that directly involve heroin are largely attributed to chronic intravenous use. However, there are many dangers associated with snorting heroin as well. The truth is, however, that using heroin, in general, is never safe – no matter how you ingest this chemical substance, you are putting yourself at risk of serious health-related complications including overdose and death. If you have been abusing heroin for any length of time you must reach out for professional medical help as quickly as possible. Nowadays, a great amount of heroin in circulation is cut with fentanyl, a synthetic opioid close to 100 times more potent than morphine. If even the smallest amount of fentanyl is either snorted or injected, it can result in almost instantaneous fatality. That’s why opioid-based and heroin overdoses are on the rise in recent years. Getting professional help for heroin addiction is more important now than ever before because the average lifespan of a heroin addict keeps on dropping.
What’s More Dangerous: Snorting or Injecting Heroin?
Those that snort this specific drug for an extended period are liable to experience complications like:
- Holes that develop in the nasal septum over time
- Chronic nose bleeds
- Irritation inside of the nostrils/chronic inflammation and an inability to breathe through the nose
- A compromised sense of smell/complete loss of sense of smell
- Difficulties swallowing/chronic problems with the throat
- Throat cancer
- Overdose-related death
When it comes down to it, snorting heroin can easily be just as dangerous as injecting the drug directly into the bloodstream.
Heroin Addiction Recovery
Over the past several years, heroin addiction has completely ravaged Southern Florida, claiming thousands of lives and upturning the lives of many innocent individuals and families. At Evoke Wellness at Miramar, we have developed an effective, long-term continuum of heroin addiction treatment. We believe that quality clinical care should be ready for any individual who has been suffering at the hands of life-threatening heroin addiction. If you or someone you love has been ingesting heroin in any form – either snorting it or injecting – professional addiction treatment is essential. There is no “safe way” to use heroin – heroin addiction is a chronic disease, and those who are experiencing symptoms of heroin addiction now will only find that those symptoms get worse and harder to manage over time.
About Heroin Wellness FL
At Evoke Wellness at Miramar, we provide men and women in Southern Florida and all surrounding areas with the quality of clinical care they need to overcome heroin addiction once and for all. Regardless of how you have been abusing heroin, seeking professional medical care is of the utmost importance. The majority of individuals who begin snorting heroin will eventually transfer to intravenous use. Intravenous drug use is always extremely dangerous seeing as the chemical substance travels to the bloodstream more quickly and the risk of overdose is increased significantly. If you have been struggling with a heroin abuse disorder and you have not been successful in quitting on your own, feel free to give us a call at any point in time. Our admissions counselors will walk you through our straightforward admissions process and help get you started on the road to recovery as soon as possible.
