Heroin Street Names and Slang Terms - ARISE Treatment Center

Heroin is a powerful and addictive opioid drug that produces similar but stronger effects than morphine. As a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, heroin is currently illegal, has no medicinal use, and is considered one of the most addictive substances.

Using heroin, even once, is extremely dangerous. Heroin is so powerful that people who don’t have a tolerance for it can experience an overdose after taking a small amount.

Heroin abuse can cause slowed breathing and respiration, feelings of euphoria and relaxation, and serious health problems like addiction or overdose. If you or someone you love are abusing heroin, getting addiction treatment can help you turn your life around.

Since there is no medical use for heroin, it is purchased illegally on the streets. As a result, there are many street names, slang terms, and nicknames used to refer to heroin when buying or selling it. Knowing the street names for heroin can help you recognize when someone you love is using the drug.

 

Heroin

 

Understanding Heroin Street Names and Slang Terms

Nicknames other than heroin may be used to refer to the drug by dealers and users alike. Heroin dealers may want to “cover their tracks” by avoiding using the word “heroin” in their text messages, emails, phone calls, and other means of communication. Using other words that aren’t known by the general public can help dealers fly under the radar.

Drug users, on the other hand, will use street names and slang terms to communicate with dealers as well as hide their heroin use from friends and family.

The nicknames used for heroin are often created due to the drug’s appearance or side effects, but other nicknames are seemingly random.

Popular Heroin Street Names

Some of the most widely used nicknames for heroin include:

  • H
  • Big H
  • Good H
  • Capital H
  • Heavy
  • Hero
  • Horse
  • H Caps
  • Boy or boi
  • Dope
  • Smack
  • Skag
  • Dog Food
  • Junk
  • Reindeer dust
  • Chiva

Heroin Slang Terms Based on Appearance

Heroin can come in several different forms. The most common forms are a white powder, a brown powder, or a brownish-black sticky substance (black tar heroin). Certain nicknames may be used to refer to heroin based on its appearance. These include:

  • China white
  • Snowball
  • Sugar
  • White
  • White boy
  • White horse
  • White stuff
  • Blanco
  • Brown
  • Brown crystal
  • Brown sugar
  • Brown rhine
  • Coffee
  • Dirt
  • Black tar
  • Black horse
  • Black eagle
  • Black goat
  • Black olives
  • Black
  • Dark
  • Cement
  • Mexican mud
  • Mud
  • Roofing tar
  • Sticky kind
  • Tootsie roll

Heroin Street Names Based on Effects

Like other opioids, heroin is a central nervous system depressant that slows down breathing, heart rate, respiration, and more. While these side effects can feel calming, they are also addictive and dangerous to the body.

Many heroin street names reflect the effects of the drug, such as:

  • Joy flakes
  • Nice and easy
  • Dead on arrival
  • Hell dust
  • Heaven dust
  • Hard candy
  • Down
  • Poison

Nicknames for Heroin Based on Origin

Much of the heroin in the U.S. comes from foreign nations such as China and Mexico. As a result, many street names for heroin reflect their origin.

  • Mexican horse
  • Mexican dirt
  • Mexican mud
  • China white
  • China brown
  • Chinese food
  • Chinese red
  • Chinese buffet

More Street Names for Heroin

While the above-listed street names are the most popular, other slang terms may be used for heroin, as well. These include:

  • Antifreeze
  • Beast
  • Birdie powder
  • Big bird
  • Charlie horse
  • Cargo
  • Fairy dust
  • Flea powder
  • Galloping horse
  • Harry
  • Hercules
  • Joy powder

Slang Terms for Heroin Mixed With Other Drugs

Heroin is dangerous enough when abused by itself, but it is even more dangerous when combined with other drugs. Heroin drug combinations may have their own unique slang terms, for example:

  • El Diablo – A mixture of heroin, marijuana, and cocaine
  • Atom Bomb or A-Bomb – Mixing heroin and marijuana
  • H-Bomb – Using heroin and ecstasy together
  • Chocolate bars – Refers to heroin and Xanax
  • Dynamite – Mixing heroin and cocaine
  • Neon nod – Mixing heroin and LSD
  • LBJ – A mixture of heroin, acid (LSD), and PCP
  • Primo/Dragon Rock/Moonrock – Using heroin and crack together
  • Screwball/Speedball – Mixing heroin and meth
  • Blue hero/Chiva loca – Combining heroin and fentanyl
  • Pineapple – Heroin and Ritalin
  • Five-way – A mixture of heroin, cocaine, meth, alcohol, and Rohypnol

Mixing heroin with any of the above-listed substances can increase the risk of adverse side effects, addiction, and overdose.

Get Treatment for Heroin Abuse and Addiction Now

Abusing heroin for any amount of time can harm your mental, emotional, and physical health. Without treatment, heroin addiction usually ends in one of three ways: jail time, commitment to an institution, or death by overdose. However, you can avoid these detrimental outcomes by seeking treatment as soon as you realize there is a problem.

Here at Arise Treatment Center, our comprehensive heroin rehab center in Vista, California can help you uncover the root cause of your addiction, develop healthy coping skills for recovery, and learn about what it takes to stay sober. Start your heroin addiction treatment journey by speaking with one of our dedicated admissions coordinators today.

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