What Is the Opioid Crisis?
You’ve undoubtedly heard of the opioid epidemic. There are more than 2 million Americans who are dependent upon or addicted to prescription pain medications or street drugs. Opioid drugs are used to help in the reduction of pain, and there are a variety of opioids including oxycodone, morphine, hydrocodone, fentanyl, and heroin. During the year of 2016, over 40,000 people died from overdosing on these types of drugs. Even in 2016, there were still 236,000,000 opioid prescriptions written. The opioid crisis is a huge problem and it is important for more people to become educated on it. So what’s going on? What is the opioid crisis?
What are some of the commonly abused opioids?
There are many different opioids which are being abused. It is important to know most people abuse these drugs to reduce pain levels. However, once someone starts using these drugs more and more often, they have less of an effect which then causes them to use more of the drug at one time and to use even more often.
People want to know, what is the opioid crisis? It is when drugs such as codeine and morphine are abused. These drugs are derived naturally from the opium based poppy plants that are grown in Central America, Asia, and South America. Heroin is a drug that is manufactured from the drug, morphine.
Other opioids which are being abused include oxycodone and hydrocodone. These are the semi-synthetic types. They are made with synthetic and natural ingredients in medical labs. One of these kinds of drugs that was prescribed the most throughout the years 2007 to 2016 was Vicodin. Following Vicodin, the next highest prescribed drug was Percocet.
Fentanyl is another one of the commonly abused opioid drugs. This is completely synthetic and very powerful. Mostly, this drug is used following surgeries. However, some people who have chronic pain and have been on other pain medications for a long time are prescribed this as well. Others have used it illegally. This drug is stronger than morphine by about 100 times. Even tiny doses can be fatal in some people. The illegal purchase of this drug is one of the leading reasons for people dying of an overdose in the past years.
Methadone is a completely synthetic opioid as well. It is generally prescribed to those who are trying to overcome heroin addiction or even a prescription drug addiction. It eases the withdrawal symptoms. However, many people then become addicted to this drug as well.
With so many different opioids out there and the numbers prescribed and bought illegally, there is no wondering why the opioid crisis is so out of control.
What is the addiction role in the opioid crisis?
When talking about opioid abuse, the addiction comes to mind and is a huge part of many people’s lives. It is unfortunate as an opioid addiction has already taken the lives of so many. When someone tries to stop taking opioids, they may experience withdrawal symptoms. Sometimes these can be mild and other times they can be severe. Either way, if it makes the user uncomfortable, they may start using again and become addicted.
What is the opioid crisis? Well, when so many people are abusing opioids and then becoming addicted to them, it increases the number of people involved in this epidemic. There are many people as young as 12 years old who are now using and abusing these types of drugs.
Those who start abusing prescription pain medications may be looking for that first high they got when they started using. When they can’t get that with the same kinds of medications, they may start using heroin. It is estimated that around ¾ of those who are heroin addicts began their addictive lifestyle with prescription pain medications. With that being said, there are now more people dying from a heroin overdose because that is where their opioid addiction led them. Naloxone can be given to help reverse effects of an overdose, but sometimes it is too late.
When did the opioid crisis begin?
During the American Civil War, morphine was being used as an anesthetic for soldiers in battle. Many started becoming addicted to the drug when they left the Civil War. During 1898, heroin was made and produced for the first time. At that point, it was known to be less addictive than morphine. In 1914, an act was put into place, which required doctors to write the prescriptions for drugs such as cocaine and opioids. In 1924, there was a ban on heroin for production and sale throughout the United States. During 1970, the Controlled Substances Act was put into law. This created the different schedules of drugs based on the possibility of abuse. Heroin was in the Schedule I category and drugs like fentanyl and morphine were considered Schedule II. Vicodin, at this time, was a Schedule III but was later changed to a schedule II. In 1985, OxyContin was introduced as a better and safer way to treat pain. However, in 2007, the government charged the pharmaceutical company that made OxyContin, for misleading the safety of the drug. In 2010, a different formation of OxyContin was introduced which was supposed to curb drug abuse. However, some people do still abuse the drug. In 2015, a sting happened where hundreds of medical providers were arrested for dispensing far too many opioid drugs. In 2016, new opioid prescribing methods were put into place by the CDC. During 2017, President Trump put an order in for combating drug addiction as well as the opioid crisis. A national healthy emergency was declared for the same reason. In 2018, there was $6 billion provided for prevention of opioid abuse by law enforcement.
The opioid crisis is not one to be taken lightly. Far too many people are losing their life because of an opioid addiction or an addiction to harder drugs because of the opioid addiction. Spread the word and educate others on the opioid crisis today.
