Here’s to Your Health
Brought to you by Community Partner Compact, www.compact2020.com
You’ve probably heard about fentanyl in the news. Let’s explore what fentanyl is and how it relates to fake pills.
Fentanyl is a deadly synthetic opioid that is being pressed into fake pills or cut into heroin, cocaine, and other street drugs to drive addiction. Fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin. Cartels are making fentanyl and pressing it into fake pills. Fake pills are made to look like OxyContin©, Xanax©, Adderall©, and other pharmaceuticals. These fake pills contain no legitimate medicine. Fentanyl is also made in a rainbow of colors, so it looks like candy.
What makes fentanyl deadly. DEA lab testing reveals that six out of every ten fake pills with fentanyl contain a potentially lethal dose. It only takes a very small dose of fentanyl- 2 milligrams – to be lethal, such as the amount found on the tip of a pencil. Fentanyl use can cause confusion, drowsiness, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, changes in pupil size, cold and clammy skin, coma, and respiratory failure leading to death.
Parents and Caregivers. It’s important to be aware that the drug landscape is dramatically different from when you grew up, or even from just a few years ago. Drug traffickers are using social media to advertise drugs and conduct sales. If you have a smartphone and a social media account, then a drug trafficker can find you. This also means they are finding your kids who have social media accounts. All parents and caregivers need to be educated on current drug threats to be able to have informed talks with their children. Here are six tips:
1. Encourage open and honest communication
2. Explain what fentanyl is and why it is so dangerous
3. Stress not to take any pills that were not prescribed to you from a doctor
4. No pill purchased on social media is safe
5. Make sure they know fentanyl has been found in most illegal drugs
6. Create an “exit plan” to help your child know what to do if they’re pressured to take a pill or use drugs
Compact 2020 is here to help you educate your child about fentanyl and fake pills. For more information, visit our Facebook page @Compact2020 or call 205-605-1824. To read other articles like this one, visit www.BirminghamChristian.com/COMPACT. †
