The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has launched a new education campaign aimed at preventing drug overdose deaths. The goal of the campaign is to reduce opioid-related hospitalizations, emergency department visits, and overdoses by 50% in three years. Experts say that this will become one of “the most impactful public health interventions” as it could save lives on a grand scale.
Because many illegal substances may be blended or laced with illicitly produced fentanyl, they are more strong and possibly fatal than ever before.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has launched four complimentary education efforts aimed at young people aged 18 to 34 years old in order to prevent more lives from drug overdose. The advertisements educate people on fentanyl’s prevalence and hazards, the risks and consequences of combining drugs, the life-saving effectiveness of naloxone, and the necessity of decreasing stigma surrounding drug use in order to help people get help and recover.
To construct the advertisements, the CDC met with young people who had used drugs as well as peer rehabilitation experts. Each campaign contains fresh materials on all four themes in order to help individuals make better choices, receive the care they need, and ultimately decrease the number of drug overdoses and fatalities.
“This crucial information may help us all save a life from an overdose and assist those who use drugs in treatment and recovery,” said Debra Houry, MD, MPH, acting senior deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
We’re going to get through this together, Atascadero
Fentanyl may be included in a variety of drugs.
Many illegal narcotics may be blended or laced with illicitly manufactured fentanyl without a person’s awareness, making them more strong and possibly fatal than ever before. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid up to 100 times stronger than morphine, and other synthetic opioids are implicated in the majority of opioid-related overdose fatalities. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is increasingly being detected in counterfeit prescription prescriptions, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and other illegal substances. Because fentanyl cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted, it is practically difficult to identify whether drugs have been laced with it without the use of fentanyl test strips.
Overdosing Can Be Caused By Mixing Drugs
People who use drugs may use a variety of substances, and combining drugs may be considerably more dangerous than using them alone. Mixing stimulants with depressants, such as benzodiazepines (“benzos”) and/or alcohol, raises the risk of stroke and heart attack, whereas mixing opioids with other depressants, such as benzodiazepines (“benzos”) and/or alcohol, slows breathing and may result in serious brain damage or death. In the end, there is no such thing as a safe manner to combine medications. Even if you have previously combined medications, your body may respond differently each time.
Naloxone is a life-saving drug.
Naloxone is a life-saving medication that can help people who have overdosed on opioids. If given in time, naloxone, which is often administered as a nasal spray, may help a person whose respiration has slowed or stopped owing to opioids, including fentanyl. Anyone may carry naloxone and deliver it to someone who is overdosing, perhaps saving their life.
In most places, naloxone is accessible without a prescription at many local pharmacies in all 50 states and Washington, DC. Most states have Good Samaritan statutes in effect to protect people who are overdosing and anybody who helps them in an emergency from being arrested, charged, or a combination of these.
People in Rehab and Treatment Are you in need of assistance?
Substance abuse affects one out of every fourteen people in the United States. However, the stigma associated with drug use might make it difficult to seek treatment. To assist minimize stigma, those who use drugs should be treated with compassion and offered support throughout their treatment and recovery. Treatment for opioid use disorder, as well as behavioral treatments, are also options for rehabilitation. Individual or group therapy is accessible in a variety of venues, including in person, online, and via telehealth visits.
“Addiction is a disease that can be treated,” stated Christopher M. Jones, PharmD, DrPH, MPH, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. “Recovery is possible, even if it isn’t always a straight road ahead. Connecting with various services and supports, as well as talking with a healthcare physician to establish a treatment plan that works best for that person, may help with recovery.”
A Crucial Step in the Prevention Process
In the United States, drug overdoses have claimed approximately 900,000 lives in the last 20 years. According to recent studies, drug overdose fatalities increased during the COVID-19 epidemic, beating any preceding year’s overdose fatality rates. The major cause of the almost 30% rise in overdose mortality was illegally made fentanyl. We are taking a critical step toward preventing drug overdoses and saving lives by sharing the campaigns and accompanying materials with young people aged 18 to 34 who use drugs.
Visit cdc.gov/stopoverdose to learn more about the CDC’s drug overdose prevention activities.
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