Opioids ease my pain: Early-life malnutrition and elderly outcomes

Despite a large body of evidence showing that early-life malnutrition influences adult outcomes, there is no evidence that early-life starvation causes use of opioids. Studying the long-term effects of a food shortage in Iran caused by WWII, we find that the rate of people who use drugs in this coho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Social science & medicine (1982) 2023-06, Vol.327, p.115940-115940, Article 115940
Main Author: Mokhtari, MohammadAli
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Analgesics, Opioid - therapeutic use
Chronic Pain - drug therapy
Deaths of despair
Health and early life
Humans
Iran - epidemiology
Malnutrition - complications
Malnutrition - epidemiology
Opioid use roots
Opioid-Related Disorders - drug therapy
WWII and Iran
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Summary:Despite a large body of evidence showing that early-life malnutrition influences adult outcomes, there is no evidence that early-life starvation causes use of opioids. Studying the long-term effects of a food shortage in Iran caused by WWII, we find that the rate of people who use drugs in this cohort increased significantly higher than in surrounding cohorts. Then, we examine a broad spectrum of outcomes for this cohort to shed light on potential causes of opioid use in the survivors of this cohort. Our findings suggest that pain contributes significantly to opioid use. •Illicit drug use, early life events, and mechanisms are examined.•Iran's famine cohort uses opioids disproportionately, but not stimulants.•Several mechanisms for increasing opioid use in the cohort have been tested.•The famine cohort had worse health despite having equal education.•A significant increase in pain levels was found and suggested as an explanation.
ISSN:0277-9536
1873-5347
DOI:10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.115940