Typically reserved for emergency situations, adrenaline can be used for medical purposes. It comes in the form of an injection, according to MedlinePlus, and is used to treat a few life-threatening problems.
You can use an adrenaline shot for serious allergic reactions, such as a bee sting or a food allergy. It works well for an allergic reaction because adrenaline causes the muscles in the airways to relax, which makes it easier to breathe. It also tightens your blood vessels to increase blood flow back to the heart.
According to astudy published in the New England Journal of Medicine, adrenaline shots can also be used for heart attacks. However, according to the authors of the study, it’s not very effective at saving people who are having a heart attack. The authors also mention that people who survived the heart attack because of an adrenaline shot were almost twice as likely to have brain damage as individuals who didn’t have the shot.