Can
Human Growth Hormone Treat Brain Damaged Addicts?
There have
been a number of studies in recent years that have provided evidence
that Human Growth Hormone may produce beneficial effects in patients
that are suffering from neurodegenerative diseases, but a recent
study shows that HGH Injections may have the ability to alleviate
neurological issues resulting from drug use. In this case, the study
strongly suggests that Therapeutic Human Growth Hormone may have the
ability to alleviate attention deficit and memory issues related to
heroin abuse.
There is a
large body of evidence that proves that the abuse of opiates such as
morphine, methadone, and heroin damage the cells of the brain, and
the two areas which are most profoundly impacted are the areas which
control memory and attention. This new research provides convincing
evidence that HGH Shots have at least some restorative effects upon
these two aspects of neurological function.
How Do
Heroin and Other Opiates Harm the Body?
Heroin and
Opiate Abuse have the ability to harm the body and the brain in a
number of different ways. Opiates, especially heroin, carry a high
risk of overdose, and also have the ability to spread a number of
different diseases through shared needles, such as HIV and Hepatitis.
People
that regularly abuse opiates can experience a number of health
conditions, including kidney and liver disease, constipation,
abscesses, heart infections, and collapsed veins. They are also at
enhanced risk of pneumonia, which results from both a compromised
immune system and depressed breathing.
Heroin and
other opiates derived on the black market also regularly contain
harmful additives that can damage and clog the arteries and blood
vessels, which can potentially damage a number of organs, including
the lungs and the brain.
How
Does the Body Process Heroin?
Heroin
produces its physiological effects because when it is injected or
snorted, it is circulated through the blood stream to the brain,
where it is broken down into morphine, which stimulates opioid
receptors in the brain and throughout the body. There are also opioid
receptors in the base of the brain, which is why the drug and related
drugs can cause overdose and death. Heroin depresses respiration,
arousal, and blood pressure, which can lead directly to cardiac
arrest.
How Do
Heroin and Opiates Cause Brain Damage?
Two of the
primary ways that Heroin causes brain damage is through oxygen
deprivation and through the influence of toxic additives. Heroin
seems to impact memory and attention span by rewiring the brain in
response to addiction. The addictive capacity of Heroin and other
Opioids is so strong that even after the feelings of addiction
subside somewhat, the neurological effects of addiction still leave
the brain wired in a way that negatively impacts psychological
function.
How Can
HGH Injections Protect the Brain from Brain Damage Associated with
Opiate Addiction?
A Swedish
study from Uppsala University explains that cells associated with
attention and memory are among the first to break down when the brain
is taxed by long-term opiate use. They also suggest that
Bio-Identical Human Growth Hormone Injections may have the ability to
salvage these damaged cells, alleviating the negative impact of
Opiate and Opiate Overdose on the brain.
How
Does the Body Make HGH and What Does it Do?
Human
Growth Hormone is produced naturally by the pituitary gland by small
organs known as Somatotrophs. HGH is largely responsible for cell
replication and cell growth throughout the lifespan. During childhood
and adolescence, HGH Levels in the body are high, which contribute to
heightened physiological growth and development.
Later in
life, HGH is secreted in lower concentrations in order to maintain
health and optimal hormone balance, and there is growing evidence
that HGH Injections can be beneficial in a number of disorders and
physiological issues which can be treated by encouraging enhanced
cellular reproduction in target areas, such as the brain or the
joints. In the case of joint injuries, Human Growth Hormone
encourages cartilage in the joints to develop more smoothly.
There is
also evidence that Human Growth Hormone Injections can enhance
rehabilitation and recovery times associated with injury and illness.
HGH
Treatments Appear to Protect Brain from Damage Associated with Opiate
Dependency
The
researchers related to this study explain that this presents a
potentially groundbreaking new way to treat patients suffering from
the effects of Opiate Addiction, and may be a way to prevent brain
damage in these patience and even increase psychological function
through HGH Injections. This can also be used to protect the brains
of patients that are taking Opioids for pain management to reduce the
risk of psychological side effects and neurological deterioration.
HGH,
Opiates, and Neurogenesis
Earlier
studies provide strong evidence that long term Opiate Use and
Addiction prevents the brain from staying healthy, because it slows
down neurogenesis, or the development of new cells in the brain.
Opiate Use primarily slows down neurogenesis in the area of the brain
known as the Hippocampus.
This area
of the brain is located in the cerebellum, and the area is strongly
related with what is known as episodic memory. Episodic memory is
responsible for linking people, places, and emotions to particular
memories, essentially maintaining them for long-term storage.
HGH
Deficiency is Also Associated with Cognitive Decline
Human
Growth Hormone and other related hormones sustain neurogenesis, and
HGH Decline is associated with a loss of cognitive ability as the
brain can no longer create new cells and connections at the rate at
which old cells and connections deteriorate. In essence, Opiate
Dependence slows down the rate at which cells regenerate, causing the
patient to retain memory and attention like someone many years older.
Previous
Studies Show that HGH Provides Cognitive Benefits
The
co-author of this neurological HGH Study, Fred Nyberg, explains that
older patients treated with Bio-Identical HGH in previous studies,
experienced enhanced cognitive function, and that they hypothesized
that Opiate Dependent patients would experience the same quantifiable
benefit.
It appears
that Opiates and Human Growth Hormone have opposite impacts on the
brain. Opiates limit the brain's ability to restore itself, even
after the patient has stopped using the drugs. Human Growth Hormone
Injections appear to counteract that negative neurological impact,
allowing people currently taking Opiates for clinical reasons to
avoid the related neurological decline, and perhaps restoring
neurological function to individuals that are recovering from a
previous addiction.
In
Vitro Lab Testing Proves that HGH Protects the Brain from Morphine
The way
that the researchers demonstrated the possible effectiveness of this
form of treatment was through in vitro testing. They used partially
developed nerve cells drawn from the fetus of a mouse and isolated
them in a petri dish. To mimic the effects of opiate addiction on
nerve cells, they dipped the cells into a bath of pure morphine for
seven days. Control neurons were simply dipped in morphine, but
experimental cells were also treated with Bio-Identical Human Growth
Hormone.
In the
end, they found that the neurons in the control sample started to die
from morphine exposure, but those in the culture with Human Growth
Hormone added were able to survive in spite of the morphine. In
certain cases, the number of neurons actually increased among
cultures in the experimental group!
Nyberg is
optimistic, explaining that if Human Growth Hormone Injections have a
similar effect on neurons in the brain as they do on brain cells in
the petri dish, the hormone may end up being an effective medical
treatment to preserve the mental faculties of both ex-opiate addicts
and those suffering from chronic pain which only responds to morphine
and similar drugs.
Pilot
Studies Have Begun in the Treatment of an Opiate Dependent Patient
Since the
original study was published, Nyberg and his associates have begun
experimental HGH Injection Therapy on a single pilot patient. This
patient takes opiates for chronic pain and is suffering from memory
issues directly resulting from Opiate Treatment.
Although
this pilot study is still ongoing, Nyberg explains that the results
achieved thus far are incredibly promising. The pilot patient has
been taking HGH Injections with no major side effects, and is
experiencing a quantifiable increase in cognitive memory ability.
The
results are actually so promising, that Nyberg is already preparing
to take HGH for Opiate Addiction to a clinical trial, in order to
assess the potential of the treatment more completely. All signs thus
far suggest that Growth Hormone Therapy will be effective at
safeguarding the Hippocampus from the neuro-degenerative effects of
powerful opiates.
HGH
Injections Could Possibly Alleviate Neurological Dependency
Associated with Drug Addiction
A
representative of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Frank Vocci,
is interested in the potential to use Bio-Identical Human Growth
Hormone as a treatment for drug addiction. There have been legitimate
arguments made that the benefits to cognitive function produced by
Human Growth Hormone could potentially have the ability to make it
easier for current addicts to quit addictive drugs, and that it may
help those that are already clean stay clean.
Research
regarding the potential of Human Growth Hormone to combat addiction
is still in a purely hypothetical stage, and there is no hard
evidence supporting the use of HGH Injections for Addiction Recovery.
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