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China was in a prosperous time with agricultural goods and opening new land for harvest.  Merchants produced cotton and silk textiles, even porcelain.  Then Opium, an extremely addictive narcotic drug, entered the picture.  In China, during the 1700s,  workers and peasants fell victim to this. It is estimated that 1 out of 10 Chinese were addicted, which is about 4 million people.  With this addiction, Chinese society fell into a destructive mode.  Business activities were reduced, citizens failed to enroll in the service of the imperial government, and the standard of living fell. China was falling because of the British smuggling of Opium.      -Carson

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Opium is the natural ingredient in Heroin, which is most often injected, however, it may also be smoked, sniffed, used as a suppository, or orally ingested. Smoking and sniffing heroin do not produce a "rush" as quickly or as intensely as intravenous injection. Oral ingestion does not usually lead to a "rush", but use of heroin in suppository form may have intense euphoric effects. Heroin can be addictive by any given route.

When opium is smoked, the drug causes a short-term high that includes relaxation, pain relief, reduced anxiety and impaired alertness and coordination.  These effects usually wear off in about 3-4 hours.  Using opium for a prolonged time or using opium excessively can lead to a tolerance of the common side effects and the user may not feel as relaxed when the drug is used. In fact, over time, opium use can lead to heightened anxiety, weight loss, and mental deterioration.  There is even a potential for death to occur as a result of opium overdose though not common unless a derivative of the drug is being used.

In the modern world, Opium is used primarily as Weed would be here, but is in the middle east region. It can get you high, but also an overdose, will kill you!-Devin

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In 1800 Britain had a huge demand for tea and China was the supplier. Britain traded silver for Chinese tea. After years of trade the British noticed an unbalanced trade between silver and tea and they wanted their silver back. The British discovered a high demand for opium in China so they started to trade it to China through Guangzhou, the only trading port in China open to foreign trade. Chinese emperor Lin Zixu did not want the outlawed drug in his country so he sent troops to attack Guangzhou. The British countered this by sending their overpowered army over to force the Emperor to open new ports and make it harder for British traders in China to be prossecuted. -Brian