Full Description
In 1898 Heroin, the Bayer trademark name for diacetylmorphine, was commercially introduced to every corner of the Earth. Contrary to common assertion, Heroin was not recommended for treatment of morphine or opium habits. Rather, Heroin filled a desperate need for a powerful cough suppressant. The leading causes of death at that time, tuberculosis and pneumonia, were linked to uncontrollable coughing. Heroin performed well in preliminary testing by the manufacturer and upon release was hailed for its effectiveness.
Although Heroin is a morphine derivative, for several years it was thought not to be particularly habit forming. Its addictive potential became apparent especially in the United States, where its sale was pretty much unrestricted until 1914. Heroin's prominent use among teen-aged gangs in New York City prompted the city's health commissioner in 1919 to characterize that use as an American disease.
Contents
Preface by David F. Musto
The First 60 Years
The Roads to H: The Emergence of the American Heroin Complex, 1898-1956 by David T. Courtwright
Inside Policy Making
100 Years of Heroics by Daniel Patrick Moynihan
Heroin Politics and Policy under President Nixon by Egil Krogh Jr.
One Bite of the Apple: Establishing the Special Action Office for Drug Abuse Prevention by Jerome H. Jaffe
The Urban Epidemic
Heroin Addiction in the Nation's Capital, 1966-1973 by Robert L. DuPont
Generational Trends in Heroin Use and Injection in New York City by Bruce D. Johnson and Andrew Golub
Treatment Options
Trick or Treat? A Century of American Responses to Heroin Addiction by William L. White
Methadone: The Drug, the Treatment, the Controversy by Herbert D. Kleber
Heroin Maintenance: Is a U.S. Experiment Needed? by Peter Reuter and Robert MacCoun
From Heroin Addiction to Opioid Maintenance: Problem or Cure? Or, Not All Opioid Agonists Are the Same by Richard T. Schottenfeld
Political and Cultural Complications
Lessons for Mr. Arlacchi: A History of the Heroin Market by Kathryn Meyer
Hip to Be High: Heroin and Popular Culture in the 20th Century by Jill Jonnes
Index
