- Methadone binds to opioid receptors in the brain and relieves the craving for heroin, while blocking its side effects. Methadone's many short-term effects include sweating, fluid retention, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, tremors, achiness and itching. An addict can die at the beginning of treatment if his dosage is overestimated.
- By allowing the user to transition from heroin in a monitored environment, methadone reduces the user's risk of contracting an infectious disease--an effect associated with heroin injection. Methadone also allows the user to reintegrate into a healthy and productive lifestyle.
- The long-term effects of methadone include physical and psychological addiction, tolerance and withdrawal.
- If a mother is taking methadone during pregnancy, the child will be exposed to methadone as it travels through the placenta. The baby will experience withdrawal after birth. These symptoms may include reduced appetite, difficulty sleeping, fussiness, vomiting, trembling and fever. Children born with exposure to methadone in the womb can grow into healthy adolescents, but the long-term effects are unknown. MMT is a common recommended treatment for heroin addiction in pregnant mothers, because the effects of heroin withdrawal may have more dire consequences, including stillbirth and premature birth.
- The effects of methadone withdrawal include tremors, lightheadedness, tearing, sneezing, running nose, chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, pain sensitivity, depression, delirium, fatigue, hallucinations, anxiety, paranoia and panic. These symptoms are supposed to be less intense than the symptoms of heroin withdrawal, but they are also more drawn out, lasting a month or more. Heroin withdrawal may last up to one week.
- Methadone is low cost and long lasting, and for this reason it is sometimes used in cases of chronic pain. Despite this, methadone's primary medical use is in treatment of addiction to heroin and other opiates.
