# Why don't people just eat heroin and cocaine instead of injecting & snorting it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 27, 2006, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344 "2006-02-27T19:02:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/1 "2006-02-27T19:02:05Z")
Wouldn’t it still get into the bloodstream without all that injection and nasal damage nastiness? ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/2 "2006-02-27T19:05:17Z")
Yes, it would, but it wouldn’t do so nearly as quickly, which is what they’re going for. Besides, the [absorption is much lower](http://www.heroinhelper.com/letters/feb_2003.shtml): > [@](#): > > **Question** > > Is it possible to ingest heroin by eating it? Do you know if this is done and how long would it take before it took effect? And would overdose be possible?I am writing a novel and would really appreciated your help. Many thanks. > > **Answer** > > Yes, you can eat heroin. In fact, the first commercial heroin was in the form of cough-drops. Because of its chemistry, heroin is poorly absorbed in this way as discussed in Why Users Inject. Only about 15% is absorbed relative to the IV route. > > You can certainly overdose eating heroin. In fact, it is easy in a way, because you can eat it for a long time before your body absorbs it–about a half-hour. It is kind of like a time-bomb. > > Actually, check out Snopes. Look up the discussion of the poisoned trick or treat candy. There is a good true story in there related to it. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/3 "2006-02-27T19:07:22Z")
I don’t know about heroin and cocaine, but many drugs can’t survive the trip through the digestive system. That’s why there’s no pill for insulin, for example, and it has to be injected. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/4 "2006-02-27T19:08:02Z")
When drugs (even things like Tylenol) are taken orally, they get into the bloodstream through the intestines and then have to pass through the liver before they can get access to the rest of the body. One of the liver’s main jobs is to neutralize chemicals that get into the bloodstream by making them less toxic, so once your brain-zapping narcotic gets _to_ the brain, it’s got little punch left. By snorting or injecting the drug, you’re giving it a shot to get right to the brain before the liver gets a shot at detoxifying it. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/5 "2006-02-27T19:08:53Z")
Most importantly for the user, the rush is not only quicker, but just so much more intense with the IV route. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/6 "2006-02-27T19:12:14Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > Most importantly for the user, the rush is not only quicker, but just so much more intense with the IV route. Ditto for the nasal route. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/7 "2006-02-27T19:14:15Z")
The same remarks apply to cocaine, since native peoples utilized it for centuries by chewing coca leaves. Uptake will be slow and probably inefficient in this case well. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/8 "2006-02-27T19:36:15Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > The same remarks apply to cocaine, since native peoples utilized it for centuries by chewing coca leaves. Uptake will be slow and probably inefficient in this case well. Not necessarily. The gums and inside of the lips are pretty good at absorbing chemicals, and this is probably how the chewed coca leaves impart their buzz to the chewers-- not threw digesting the juices. In fact, you often see cocaine users do a a “gummer” after snorting. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/9 "2006-02-27T19:55:48Z")
One of the benefits of the heroin substitute, methadone, is that, unlike heroin, it loses none of its potency when taken orally. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/10 "2006-02-27T19:57:23Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > One of the benefits of the heroin substitute, methadone, is that, unlike heroin, it loses none of its potency when taken orally. What makes it most useful is the fact that it does not give nearly as much euphoria as heroin and other opiates. ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/11 "2006-02-27T20:29:17Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > What makes it most useful is the fact that it does not give nearly as much euphoria as heroin and other opiates. I believe it also saturates the Mu receptor for an extended period lessening the effect of any other opiods taken or injected, thus dulling the euphoria that comes from using the drug forms. ---
**Author:** ![pretend\_my\_name\_is\_witty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9e5f3/32.png) [@pretend\_my\_name\_is\_witty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pretend_my_name_is_witty)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/12 "2006-02-27T21:27:24Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > I don’t know about heroin and cocaine, but many drugs can’t survive the trip through the digestive system. That’s why there’s no pill for insulin, for example, and it has to be injected. There’s [hope](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1507408.stm) for the diabetics yet in pill-form… ---
**Author:** ![pretend\_my\_name\_is\_witty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9e5f3/32.png) [@pretend\_my\_name\_is\_witty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pretend_my_name_is_witty)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/13 "2006-02-27T21:33:16Z")
Just realised my link is over five years old. Getting off-topic now, but [here’s](http://www.lifeclinic.com/focus/diabetes/advances.asp) that looks a little more up to date. Apparently the pill is being/has been tested in animals so far. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/14 "2006-02-27T23:29:08Z")
> [@USCDiver](#): > > I believe it also saturates the Mu receptor for an extended period lessening the effect of any other opiods taken or injected, thus dulling the euphoria that comes from using the drug forms. Yeah,it effectively blocks other opiates from that site for a long time. Unfortunately a lot of addicts try to override the blockage, by taking more and more heroin until they “get the rush”. Sadly, they can overshoot (no pun intended, really) and die. I’ve known addicts on Naltrexone, an opiate blocker, which sits in the receptors and blocks them without activating them at all, to do this too. If one is looking for the fastest way to get the drug into the brain where it is active, there’s no faster way than snorting. A lot of the effect of the drug is then due to it directly accessing the brain via the olfactory nerve (which is really just a modified piece of brain tissue). This bypasses all that tedious journeying thru the circulatory system and having to cross the blood-brain barrier. Of course this route can be quite deadly, too. And it can really destroy one’s nasal passages in the process. However these drawbacks are generally overlooked by folks in the grips of their addiction. ---
**Author:** ![mawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e79b87/32.png) [@mawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mawk)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/15 "2006-02-28T02:42:20Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > If one is looking for the fastest way to get the drug into the brain where it is active, there’s no faster way than snorting. A lot of the effect of the drug is then due to it directly accessing the brain via the olfactory nerve (which is really just a modified piece of brain tissue). This bypasses all that tedious journeying thru the circulatory system and having to cross the blood-brain barrier. does this mean that you could mash up paracetamol or tylenol or whatnot and snort it as a much more effective cure for a headache? or is the damage it will do be greater than the benifit of quick pain release? ---
**Author:** ![roshia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6bbea6/32.png) [@roshia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roshia)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/16 "2006-02-28T05:34:15Z")
> [@mawk](#): > > does this mean that you could mash up paracetamol or tylenol or whatnot and snort it as a much more effective cure for a headache? > > or is the damage it will do be greater than the benifit of quick pain release? I don’t know exactly how much damage it would do, but I’d bet that at the very least it would be really, **really** uncomfortable, and a quick googling seems to support this. I can’t imagine snorting any powder is a good idea if you can avoid it. Don’t snort things that weren’t meant to be inhaled; trust me, I thought it would be a good idea to snort a pixie stick when I was little. I’ve learned my lesson!😉 ---
**Author:** ![Heart\_On\_My\_Sleeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/77aa72/32.png) [@Heart\_On\_My\_Sleeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heart_On_My_Sleeve)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/17 "2006-02-28T05:39:54Z")
I’ve wondered the same thing about marijuana. It must be effective because of brownies and stuff, right? Even if it may be slower? I guess marijuana helps glaucoma patients by decreasing internal eye pressure, but I wonder why they would have to smoke it instead of ingesting as well. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/18 "2006-02-28T05:59:51Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > What makes it most useful is the fact that it does not give nearly as much euphoria as heroin and other opiates. And, of course, the euphoric effects of heroin itself are eventually dulled with prolonged addiction. Many long-term addicts spend their (often short) lives trying to “recapture, That first fine carelss rapture”. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_loblaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@bob\_loblaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_loblaw)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/19 "2006-02-28T07:28:14Z")
> [@Heart On My Sleeve](#): > > I’ve wondered the same thing about marijuana. It must be effective because of brownies and stuff, right? Even if it may be slower? I guess marijuana helps glaucoma patients by decreasing internal eye pressure, but I wonder why they would have to smoke it instead of ingesting as well. eating marijauna has a much different, and somewhat delayed, intoxicating effect than smoking it. eating the bud is much more accurately described as primarily a body buzz; where smoking it would be considered primarily a head buzz. thc is still a phychoactive compound, whether taken via bong or brownie, cone or cookie, and though it generally takes a larger minimum quantity to get high by eating than by smoking (or vapourizing) the body is much more reactive to excessive dose when munching the weed: not nearly enough that one could be in danger of dying from pot without heroic effort; but in general, if you smoke too much you pretty much go to sleep, and a good and restfull sleep with minimal joint or muscle pains (unless you happen to be laying back-asswards across that one deceptively comfy chair,) early – if you eat too much, you might spend a couple extra hours awake thinking about the colours you are feeling, and the tastes you are hearing, and the textures that you are _knowing_ and trying to explain to yourself why those damn ass bright lights bothered you before. and what do i need a massage for anyway? and by the way, i like bread. and yellow is cool, but i’d rather listen to something purple. but not bright purple. a medium purple, with a hint of strawberry. and can we really understand the nature of the nauga, when all we really experience is it’s hyde? though either way, if you gotta work the next day, you are likely to sleep in, unless you are a cronic… in which case, you might already be at work. …or so i’ve heard. ---
**Author:** ![pretend\_my\_name\_is\_witty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9e5f3/32.png) [@pretend\_my\_name\_is\_witty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pretend_my_name_is_witty)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344/20 "2006-02-28T12:18:43Z")
> [@mawk](#): > > does this mean that you could mash up paracetamol or tylenol or whatnot and snort it as a much more effective cure for a headache? > > or is the damage it will do be greater than the benifit of quick pain release? One of my old ‘friends’ used to be a bit of pothead/pillhead and indulged in coke quite a bit. Glad I dont hang around with him any more! He used to do this to get rid of a hangover, crush up paracetamol and ibuprofen tablets and snort them. Seemed to work for him, but I bet to a normal person it’d be sore! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-people-just-eat-heroin-and-cocaine-instead-of-injecting-snorting-it/346344.md?page=2)