News Excerpt:
Myanmar is "facing challenges" in stemming opium poppy cultivation.
More about the news:
- According to the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Myanmar produced an estimated 1,080 metric tonnes of opium in 2023.
What is opium?
- Opium is a depressant drug, which slows down the messages traveling between your brain and body.
- It is derived from the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum L.) and is one of the earliest plants recorded for medicinal use.
- It holds a milky substance called latex that contains a number of chemicals, including morphine and codeine.
- Latex is extracted from the opium pods and dried to create opium, which is further refined by boiling and drying again.
Use of opium:
- Opium can be smoked, eaten raw or as a pill, or made into a tincture for drinking.
- Opium can also be manufactured into heroin and is a prerequisite for heroin production.
Effects of opium:
- Short term effects may include:
- Euphoria
- Relaxation
- Analgesia (pain relief)
- Slower, shallower breathing
- Lower heart rate
- Impaired reflexes
- Temporary constipation
- Loss of appetite.
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Long-term effects:
- Tolerance - needing to use more to get the same effect
- Irregular periods and difficulty having children
- Loss of sex drive
- Constipation · dependence on opium.
- In Case of Overdose:
- Very slow breathing
- Loss of consciousness
- t]iny pupils
- Untreated overdose can lead to brain damage and death.
- If its consumption is stopped -
- Symptoms like depression, abnormal mood swings, insomnia, psychosis, and paranoia remain.
- These brain scans show a reduction in dopamine receptors which control judgment and behavior.
Manufacturing of opium:
- Currently, there are three main sources for illegal opium: Burma, Afghanistan, and Colombia.
- The surge in its harvest made Myanmar the world's biggest producer of opium poppy in 2023 after production in Afghanistan slumped to around 330 tonnes following the Taliban government's ban on poppy cultivation.
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United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
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