Are they dangerous?
No substance is 100% safe, including legal, prescription medications for drug addiction. For one thing, drugs that are used to treat addiction must be administered under strict guidelines and with doctor supervision because these drugs can cause a range of issues if misused. Naltrexone, for example, can’t be used until someone has fully detoxed from opioids. Taking NNaltrexone before the body has had a chance to detox can lead to very harsh and powerful withdrawal side effects.
Naltrexone is considered to be the safest and most effective treatment for opioid abuse because it is easy to use, and also comes with minimal side effects and risk of dependence. Naltrexone works by completely blocking the activation of the brain’s opioid receptors, which is why it is called an opioid antagonist. But medicines like buprenorphine are considered partial opioid agonists, so they only partially activate the brain’s opioid receptors. Both of these drugs have a low rate of abuse. However, some medication used to treat opioid addiction do come with a potential risk for abuse and addiction.
People will sometimes abuse these drugs because they can produce a slight euphoria in users who are not used to taking potent opioids like heroin or OxyContin. People who are addicted to heroin may also obtain medications like Suboxone to prevent painful withdrawals. While this isn’t necessarily dangerous, it is still considered illicit use of the drug.
