The prescription drug codeine is readily available in over-the-counter cough syrups. As a result, teenagers looking to achieve a high abuse these codeine-based cough syrups and mix it with soda and caffeine. These drinks, which may also be infused with candies to sweeten the flavor, go by many names, including “Lean,” “Purple Drank,” and “Sizzurp.”
Since codeine is an opioid, it is addictive. As with other opioid drugs, a tolerance develops, whereby the individual must have more and more of the drug to receive the same high. Tolerance leads to opioid addiction, which can have severe consequences and even be fatal.
Despite how serious opioid addiction is, teens can access codeine-laced cough syrups. When these syrups are mixed with alcohol, the results can be fatal. Below, we’ll discuss the answer to “what is lean,” the dangers of lean, its lethality, and how its addictiveness can also result in severe mental and physical conditions.
What is Lean?
You may wonder, “what is lean?” and how it relates to drug addiction. Lean is a drug concoction popular among teenagers. The ingredient, codeine, is an opioid medication, which renders it addictive. Cough syrups also contain promethazine, which induces sleepiness, enhancing the high of the drug. People drink lean as a party drug to induce relaxation or euphoria.
What makes Lean addictive?
When you search “what is lean,” you’ll read that codeine is a controlled substance. As an addictive medication, it can only be purchased via prescription. Unfortunately, over-the-counter cough syrups containing codeine are frequently abused by teenagers. Like any opioid, Lean is addictive; it causes the body to develop a tolerance, leading to addiction.
What is the lethality of the drug?
When you read up on search results for questions like “what is lean,” you’ll quickly learn that because codeine is a narcotic, lean is a powerfully addictive substance. When this drug is mixed with other drugs, the effects can be fatal. Suffocation results from taking the medication (as well as other drugs), which slows down breathing until the person suffocates. Codeine, without the mixing of other drugs, can slow down breathing to the point of suffocation.
What are the drug’s mental health consequences?
Beyond the drug’s lethality, you’ll also find information on mental health side effects when you search online under terms like “what is lean.” Severe mental consequences can emerge from substance abuse. Mental health concerns, including paranoia, anxiety, changes in mood, memory, and emotion, are all adverse effects of Lean.
What are the physical health consequences?
High amounts of promethazine may cause organ damage. Physical distress, including brain fog, loss of ability to urinate, migraines, nausea, and loss of coordination and consciousness, are reported from codeine abuse. Long-term consequences include damage to vision, seizures, delusions, disorientation, high blood pressure, and convulsions.
End your addiction: Get professional help.
Resolving codeine addiction takes work. For safety, tapering off hard drugs must be done under the 24/7 supervision of trained medical staff. Contact a drug detox center to get the help you need.
