Symptoms of crack addiction cracked#
Symptoms of crack addiction free#

Having a very hot pipe pressed against the lips often causes cracked and blistered lips, colloquially known as 'crack lip'. Therefore, crack pipes are generally very short, to minimize the time between evaporating and ingestion (thereby minimizing loss of potency). Crack has a melting point of around 90В вЊ (194В вЏ), and the smoke does not remain potent for long. Crack users tend to smoke the drug because that has a higher bioavailability than other routes typically used for drugs of abuse such as insufflation.

Smoking problems: Any route of administration poses its own set of health risks in the case of crack cocaine, smoking tends to be more harmful than other routes.

Adulterants used with crack and cocaine include milk powder, sugars such as glucose, starch, caffeine, lidocaine, benzocaine, paracetamol, amphetamine, scopolamine and strychnine. Occasionally, highly toxic substances are used, with a range of corresponding short and long-term health risks.

Toxic adulterants: Many substances may have been added to expand the weight and volume of a batch, while still appearing to be pure crack.

Many of these issues relate specifically to the release of methylecgonidine and its effect on the heart, lungs, and liver.

Symptoms of crack addiction free#

Some research suggests that smoking crack or free base cocaine has additional health risks compared to other methods of taking cocaine. Like other forms of cocaine, smoking crack can increase heart rate and blood pressure, leading to long-term cardiovascular problems. Cocaine-related deaths are often a result of cardiac arrest or seizures followed by respiratory arrest.

In rare instances, sudden death can occur on the first use of cocaine or unexpectedly thereafter. Some users of cocaine report feelings of restlessness, irritability, and anxiety. The short-term physiological effects of cocaine include constricted blood vessels, dilated pupils, and increased temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure. Main physiological effects of crack cocaine Harm reduction and public health agencies may distribute packets of citric acid or ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) for this purpose.

However, whereas powder cocaine dissolves in water, crack must be dissolved in an acidic solution such as lemon juice (containing citric acid) or white vinegar (containing acetic acid), a process that effectively reverses the original conversion of powder cocaine to crack.

Д¬rack cocaine can also be injected intravenously with the same effect as powder cocaine. Whereas cocaine hydrochloride cannot be smoked (burns with no effect), crack cocaine when smoked allows for quick absorption into the blood stream, and reaches the brain in eight seconds. This pulls the oil up and spins it, allowing air to set and dry the oil, and allows the maker to roll the oil into the rock-like shape.Д¬rack vaporizes near temperature 90В вЊ (194В вЏ), much lower than the cocaine hydrochloride melting point of 190В вЊ (374В вЏ). It is at this point that the oil is picked up rapidly, usually with a pin or long thin object. Free base cocaine separates as an oily layer, floating on the top of the now leftover aqueous phase. Loss of CO 2 prevents the reaction from reversing back to cocaine hydrochloride. The heating accelerates the degradation of carbonic acid into carbon dioxide (CO 2) and water. Once mixed and heated, the bicarbonate reacts with the hydrochloride of the powder cocaine, forming free base cocaine and carbonic acid (H 2CO 3) in a reversible acid-base reaction. This process is frequently done with baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), water, and a spoon. The net reaction when using sodium bicarbonate isД¬oc-H +Cl в€’ + NaHCO 3 в†’ Coc + H 2O + CO 2 + NaClД¬oc-H +Cl в€’ + NH 4HCO 3 в†’ Coc + NH 4Cl + CO 2 + H 2OДў(Coc-H +Cl в€’) + (NH 4) 2CO 3 в†’ 2 Coc + 2 NH 4Cl + CO 2 + H 2OД¬rack cocaine is frequently purchased already in rock form, although it is not uncommon for some users to 'wash up' or 'cook' powder cocaine into crack themselves. Sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO 3, common baking soda) is a base used in the preparation of crack, although other weak bases may substitute for it. SynthesisДЄ close up of the 'cooking' process that creates crack. Use of toxic adulterants such as levamisole, a drug used to treat parasitic worm infections, has been documented. Д¬rack cocaine sold on the streets may be adulterated (or 'cut') with other substances mimicking the appearance of crack to increase bulk. Purer forms of crack will sink in water or melt at the edges when near a flame (crack vaporizes at 90В вЊ, 194В вЏ). Like cocaine in other forms, crack rock acts as a local anesthetic, numbing the tongue or mouth only where directly placed. Purer forms of crack resemble off-white, jagged-edged 'rocks' of a hard, brittle plastic, with a slightly higher density than candle wax.