• Problems
• How We Help
• Treatment
• Fast Help
• Family Intervention
• Secondary Care
• Accommodation
• Rehab Costs

Black Tar Heroin

There are many different variations of heroin through the world, differing in strength, quality, amount of imperfections and additives and - most obviously - colour. Different types of heroin are popular and available in different parts of the world - one of the best examples proves to be the USA, where South American 'white' heroin is most popular throughout the east coast, and Mexican black tar heroin is the most popular along the west.

Black tar heroin is sometimes referred to as 'negro', 'muck' or 'pigment', amongst other names, and is a result of poorer manufacturing processes by Mexican cartels through the mid 20th century. With poorer quality materials on offer to create their heroin, the manufacturers were left with a far less potent, dark coloured powder to sell on the streets - nevertheless, the effect of the narcotic was the same as the purer white heroin on the east coast, and the cheaper black tar took over the west coast as the Mexicans flooded the area with the product. As refining and manufacturing procedures got better, so did the quality of the product - as a result, black tar heroin is now far purer than it was when it was first introduced, and far more expensive, though still cheaper than white heroin.

Black tar heroin can have different physiological effects on the user to those of white powder, and users of the black tar are more at risk to different disorders as a result of taking the drug. One major issue facing users that inject black tar is the higher risk of veins hardening and becoming unusable at a much quicker pace - while this does negatively affect the user's body, some medical experts argue that it also manages to reduce the risk of the user picking up a disease from a shared needle, such as HIV. Other effects that are more solely linked to black tar heroin include necrotising fasciitis, which often proves fatal if untreated, and botulism of a user's wounds.

Black tar heroin is just one derivative of the drug, and there are many more available through the world, each with their own idiosyncrasies and effects.