Krokodil

A heroin substitute that has recently become an epidemic in Russia. Its popularity is thought to be due to the price; up to ten times cheaper than heroin itself and possible to concoct at home. The recipe is readily available on the internet and is cooked up in the kitchens of users before being injected into the arm, groin etc. The high lasts for a much shorter time than most of its opiate cousins; about two hours maximum. This means the user spends most of their day cooking and hardly ever sleeps as a new hit is needed so often. The injection sites become green and scaly, giving the drug its nickname of "crocodile" (or "krokodil" in Russian). Ingredients include over the counter codeine, paint-thinner and match heads. It is the impurities from these that cause the awful side effects which include severe and fast acting gangrene, haemorrhaging, rupture of arteries (often in the heart itself) and widespread necrosis or rotting of the flesh. It is considered to be one of the most addictive and dangerous opiates out there, killing most of its users within one year. Unlike heroin, krokodil causes withdrawal symptoms so severe that a user going cold turkey must be given powerful tranquillisers to prevent them passing out from the pain. This makes coming off the drug so unappealing that addicts will often watch their skin rot away from the bones rather than face sobriety.