Children talk about how their mother used heroin in front of them

The heroin epidemic that is plaguing America's cities is having an impact on the smallest of us. Heroin users are more likely to shoot up in front of their own children than any other drug abusers, WCPO reports, and children are feeling the consequences of their parent's actions.

9-year-old Cadence is the daughter of Brittany, a former heroin addict. She spoke candidly to WCPO about her mother's addiction -- even witnessing her mother use heroin.

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"It was this little pink tray. She had this white stuff and a straw or a half straw. She scrapped it up and slurped it up," Cadence said.

Brittany's 8-year-old daughter also witnessed her mother high on heroin. "She just kept falling asleep when I tried to wake her up," she said.

But Brittany says she didn't even realize her daughters were watching her: "I tried to do it out of their sight. I never knowingly did it in front of them."

Brittany hopes that her children will be able to learn from her mistakes. "I'm hoping with everything they see with I've had to deal with and my being honest with them about it, that they won't want to live this life, that they will want to make a better lives for themselves," she said.

See the before and after pictures of heroin users:

Brittany has been clean and receiving treatment for 9 months and her children are living with their grandparents.