Many researchers and health care professionals believe that the opioid epidemic is mostly a consequence of “supply side” abundance, resulting from aggressive marketing by the pharmaceutical industry as well as physicians who have over-prescribed. A recent public opinion poll identified physicians as being responsible for the crisis (28). Given the link between prescription opioid use and later onset of heroin abuse, an obvious public health strategy is to focus on reducing improper opioid prescriptions. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has recently issued guidelines stating that non-opioid therapy is preferred for chronic pain outside of active cancer, palliative, and end-of-life care (29).
How a healthy diet affects their health
Given our limited understanding of the biological underpinnings of OUD, one could assume that if society increased its levels of stress and depression, the epidemic could worsen due to more triggers for relapse (78). The biological theory of OUD opens possibilities for multiple interventions at the physiological level. Emerging data suggests that nutrition may be a useful adjunct for biological (169) as well as social (170) intervention.
Experiences with healthy eating among individuals with opioid dependence: insights from a dietary assessment
Poor nutritional intake has implications for chronic comorbidities and may negatively impact ongoing patient health and addiction recovery. This review highlights the need for increased attention to nutritional intake and interventions in this vulnerable patient group. Data collected included all measurements of nutrition including macronutrient, and micronutrient intake and any bioanalysis results. Methods utilised for the collection of this data was also collected for each included paper. Papers were reviewed by the chief investigator who assessed the individual studies to produce a descriptive summary of characteristics and relevant results. The synthesis of both methods and collected nutritional intake data was tabulated to allow direct comparison.
Opioids: Pharmacology, Physiology, and Clinical Implications in Pain Medicine
Importantly, with elevated stress levels there appears to be a cumulative effect on vulnerability to OUD (103). The concept of reward deficiency syndrome (RDS), introduced by Blum et al. (104), identified the dopamine D2 receptor (assessed by A1 allele) as the primary site for substance-seeking behavior. Interestingly, DAD2 dysfunction has also shown associations with increased risk of PTSD (105). Blum and colleagues created the Genetic Addiction Risk Score (GARS) as a marker for predisposition to RDS (106). It is rare that a single gene predicts behavior (44) and to date there is no convincing data that any one gene can transmit addiction to future generations (107).
What drug treatment providers overlook.
Nearly all participants recognized the positive health effects of maintaining a healthy diet and acknowledged that neglecting their diet negatively impacted their overall health. Although many participants had sufficient knowledge of what they should eat to improve their health, many requested more practical guidance on how to prepare food in a healthy way. Research has reported that imbalances in certain nutrient statuses can lead to the development of barriers to withdrawal from opiate addiction 19,20.
- The psychosocial theory of addiction vulnerability is focused on the individual but is highly dependent upon social and environmental factors (path B).
- It has been argued that the microbiome is the link between person, public, and planetary health (184) and therefore we must consider environmental, psychosocial, and personal/nutritional factors implicated in gut dysbiosis.
- This study aims to explore the experiences and perceptions of healthy eating among individuals with opioid dependence, as well as their experiences with dietary assessment using the DIGIKOST-FFQ application.
- Similarly l-alpha-acetyl methanol (LAAM) and Naltrexone have also been used as a replacement therapies.
Methadone is a long-lasting μ-opioid agonist and a pharmacological tool which attenuates withdrawal symptoms effectively replacement therapies. This review article aims to explain opiate addiction mechanisms, epidemiology and disease burden with emphasis on dietary and nutritional status of opiate dependent patients in methadone maintenance therapy. Treatment with opioid agonists, including buprenorphine-naloxone and methadone, is the most effective pharmacotherapy for opioid addiction 12.
However, many emphasized the need for increased knowledge, not only about what they should eat but also regarding practical aspects such as meal preparation and cooking techniques. Heroin use was also reported to influence participants’ intake of food, making them them less interested in eating, and they could end up not even eating at all. The UK government has ordered Public Health England to conduct a review of the scale and nature of the problem with prescription levels. Professor Judith Feinberg from the West Virginia University School of Medicine told the BBC that opioids are easy to prescribe, and for many poor people their insurance won’t pay for anything but a pill. The feelings of pleasure that result from taking an opioid can also make people want to continue experiencing those feelings, which can contribute to psychological dependence on the drugs. They work by attaching to opioid receptors in your brain cells to release signals that block your perception of pain and boost your feelings of pleasure.
- Naloxone often is not oral bioavailability, effects immediately for reversal of opioids.
- Recovia uses an evidence-based psychoeducational curriculum to help patients understand how physical and emotional well-being may affect food choices, and vice versa.
- In this article, the literature on the nutritional issues faced by people who use drugs (PWUD) or those undergoing treatment for recovery is reviewed, as is the effect of drug use on dietary intake and dietary habits.
- Treatment with opioid agonists, including buprenorphine-naloxone and methadone, is the most effective pharmacotherapy for opioid addiction 12.
A final codebook was applied to the data, and NVIVO 14 35 was used to generate the primary themes and subthemes. We employed a qualitative design and recruited twelve patients undergoing opioid agonist therapy in Bergen. All participants were interviewed using a qualitative interview guide focused on experiences with healthy eating. Additionally, we conducted a dietary assessment using the DIGIKOST-FFQ tool, which was administered twice.
At lower doses, opioids can make people feel sleepy, but higher doses of the drugs can slow your breathing and heart rate, which can lead to death. A tandem issue to tackling opioid dependency is finding safe, effective, non-addictive strategies to manage chronic pain. NIH is actively involved in building a partnership with FDA and industry to accelerate these efforts.
Interpreted the data, wrote original content, and critically revised the manuscript. Khary Rigg, 4 connections between opioid addiction and nutrition Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Behavioral Health Science and Practice at the University of South Florida.
In addition, Waddington et al. found that women reported potential insufficient intake of several vitamins including vitamin A, vitamin E and thiamin. Conversely, male intake of vitamins appeared to be more in line with Australian Government dietary guidelines.25 Both female and male patients were observed to be consuming a high level of sodium and females were observed to have a low intake of both calcium and iron. The effect of drug use on plasma parameters has also been studied with emphasis on lipid profile, glucose and hemoglobin levels, and hematocrit. The aforementioned decrease in serum lipid levels could be mainly attributed to malnutrition and weight loss, specifically the loss of abdominal fat, in addition to the presence of liver diseases or HIV that are common among heroin users.