Can You Snort Heroin? Snorting Heroin Side Effects, Dangers & What Happens If You Snort Heroin?

Discover the shocking truth about snorting heroin. 1.8% of people aged 12 and up have tried heroin at least once, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. This deadly drug, made from morphine, creates a powerful high followed by sedation and a deep sense of relaxation. Snorting heroin has become more prevalent recently, but don’t be fooled. Snorting heroin is highly addictive and can severely impact the body and brain if abused for a prolonged period. Stay informed and stay safe from snorting heroin.

Can You Snort Heroin?

Although commonly thought of as a syringe-injected drug, heroin can also be smoked or snorted, posing unique health risks for each method. Though snorting heroin may seem less risky, the drug carries the potential for overdose and can cause serious physical and mental damage when abused over time. While it is possible to snort heroin, it is an incredibly dangerous and harmful practice. Snorting heroin, or sniffing heroin, allows the drug to enter the bloodstream quickly through the nasal membranes, leading to almost immediate and intense highs.

Heroin Drug Abuse Statistics

In 2020, heroin-involved overdose death rates decreased by nearly 7% 2019 to 2020. However, more than 13,000 people died from a drug overdose involving heroin in the United States, a rate of more than four deaths for every 100,000 Americans. The number of heroin-involved overdose deaths was nearly seven times higher in 2020 than in 1999. Almost 20% of all opioid deaths involved heroin.

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Effects of Snorting Heroin

Because heroin is a street drug, you can never trust that it’s pure. Although it’s made from morphine, a natural substance, it often contains additives and traces of other drugs like fentanyl. These can be harmful whether you snort, smoke, or inject heroin. Snorting heroin can cause damage to the nasal passages and respiratory system. Long-term use can cause several serious health complications.

Health problems associated with snorting include:

Viral Infections. Snorting also increases the risk of viral infections. Although the risk is much higher when injecting, infections can be spread through snorting when sharing contaminated paraphernalia.  

Hepatitis C. Hepatitis C attacks the liver, resulting in nausea, fatigue, and jaundice (yellowing of the eyes and skin). Many people don’t notice symptoms of hepatitis C until there is severe liver damage.

Heroin Overdose. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) [1], there were about five times more heroin overdoses in 2018 than in 2010. 

Signs and Side Effects of Snorted Heroin Infographic

Snorting heroin can have serious and potentially life-threatening side effects. Here are some of the most dangerous side effects:

1. Overdose: Heroin is a highly addictive drug, and it is easy to overdose on it. Snorting heroin can increase the likelihood of overdose because it delivers the drug to the brain quickly, increasing the risk of respiratory depression and other dangerous complications.
2. Respiratory depression: Heroin can cause shallow breathing or even stop breathing altogether, leading to respiratory failure. This can be fatal if left untreated.
3. Infection: Snorting heroin can damage the nasal tissues and create openings for dangerous bacteria to enter the body, potentially leading to serious infections.
4. Hepatitis and HIV: Heroin use has been linked to the spread of bloodborne diseases such as hepatitis and HIV. Sharing needles or other drug paraphernalia can increase the risk of contracting or spreading these diseases.
5. Addiction: Heroin is highly addictive; frequent use can lead to physical and psychological dependence. This can lead to a cycle of using more and more of the drug to achieve the same effects, increasing the risk of overdose and other complications.

Seek professional help if you or someone you know is struggling with heroin addiction or snorting heroin. Treatment options are available; seeking help can lead to a healthier and safer life.

Damaging Effects of Snorting Heroin 

Heroin is an opioid drug that’s highly potent and addictive. Once heroin gets into the brain, it converts into morphine, which binds to opioid receptors and creates the feeling of euphoria or the “high” due to dopamine release. Heroin also slows the central nervous system’s (CNS) functions, including heart rate and breathing.

Unfortunately, some people think that snorting heroin is safer because it doesn’t require the use of needles or any other paraphernalia. While it does eliminate the risk of infected needles and damage from needle use, it doesn’t remove any of the risks of the heroin itself.

Damage to the Nose

Heroin insufflation can cause long-term damage to the nose. People may experience nasal irritation, chronic runny nose, loss of smell, nose bleeds, or problems swallowing. More severe nose-related health issues can include the development of a hole in the cartilage that separates the nostrils or a deviated septum.

Irritation and damage to the nasal passages can do more than affect a person’s nose. These issues can impact their breathing and sense of smell. They can also result in a lower immune system and greater susceptibility to infection.

Can You Snort Heroin? – The Dangers of Snorting Heroin

One of the most dangerous side effects of snorting heroin is the way it can slow down a user’s breathing, which can in turn decrease the amount of oxygen delivered to the brain. Heroin overdoses can result in respiratory arrest and even death.

In 2019, more than 14,000 people died from a drug overdose involving heroin in the United States, a rate of more than four deaths for every 100,000 Americans. The number of heroin-involved overdose deaths was more than seven times higher in 2019 than in 1999. Nearly a third of all opioid deaths involved heroin.

Sadly, many people misuse and become addicted to prescription opioids like OxyContin and eventually transition to heroin due to cost and accessibility. For example, in a survey of people in opioid addiction treatment, 94% of respondents said they started using heroin because it was cheaper and easier to obtain than prescription opioids.

Risks of Snorting Heroin

Heroin isn’t a commercially produced pharmaceutical drug, but rather people must buy one on the street. There’s never any guarantee that the substance someone is snorting is just heroin. Additives are commonly used as fillers and even other drugs that can further increase the risk of adverse effects.

Although snorting heroin may reduce some health risks associated with injecting heroin (i.e. collapsed veins, bacterial infections of the blood and heart valves), repeatedly snorting heroin carries its own risks, such as damage to the mucosal tissues in the nose as well as perforating the nasal septum—the tissue that separates the nasal passages.

Snorting heroin may be somewhat less risky than injecting; however, heroin, however, is about half as potent when snorted as compared to when it is injected.10 It’s a noticeable difference and those who snort or smoke heroin risk switching to injecting as their drug use progresses.

Snorting Heroin Overdose

Some heroin users falsely believe that snorting this drug after a period of abstinence is safe. However, a study published in the journal Forensic Science International suggested that reduced or irregular heroin use can decrease tolerance to the drug and increase the risk of overdose.

Heroin overdose happens when the drug slows breathing and heart rate to critical levels. People who overdose on heroin usually experience disorientation or a weak pulse. They may fall into a coma. Overdosing on heroin can cause users to pass out, stop breathing or die.

Some people snort heroin and cocaine together, a combination known as a speedball. Speedball increases the potency of both drugs and can result in confusion, nausea, heart attack, overdose, or death.

Detox Treatment

The first step in treatment is medical detox. It will help you navigate the complicated withdrawal process, but it doesn’t address patterns of thought and behavior that contribute to heroin abuse. Various treatment approaches and settings can help provide the ongoing support necessary to maintain long-term sobriety after you complete detox.

Cravings are very common during detox and can be challenging to overcome. This often leads to relapse. Constant medical care provided during inpatient treatment helps prevent relapse. Clinicians can provide the necessary medication and medical expertise to lessen cravings and the effects of withdrawals.

Psychotherapy

Several different modalities of psychotherapy have been used in the treatment of depression, including:

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) – is an effective treatment that involves making changes in both the patterns of negative thoughts and the behavioral routines which are affecting the daily life of the depressed person for various forms of depression. 
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy – is a comprehensive mental health and substance abuse treatment program whose ultimate goal is to aid patients in their efforts to build a life worth living. The main goal of DBT is to help a person develop what is referred to as a “clear mind.” 
• Person-Centered Therapy – is a strategy that allows and encourages clients to understand and resolve their concerns in a safe, supportive environment.

Dual Diagnosis Treatment

Substance abuse and mental health disorders often co-occur. In many cases, traumatic experiences can result in a mental health disorders and substance abuse. Dual diagnosis programs treat both of these issues together. The best approach for the treatment of dual diagnosis is an integrated system. In this strategy, both the substance abuse problem and the mental disorder are treated simultaneously. Regardless of which diagnosis (mental health or substance abuse problem) came first, long-term recovery will depend largely on the treatment for both disorders done by the same team or provider.

Top 5 Can You Snort Heroin? Frequently Asked Questions