Drug overdose deaths among teenagers have doubled in the past two years, with fatal overdoses of fentanyl occurring at an even higher rate, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.
The report examined overdose information from 32 states that accounted for more than 75% of the fatalities in the two-year span. A total of 2,231 teenage overdose deaths were recorded in the study, with 1,871 caused by illicit fentanyl.noted. Teenagers purchased counterfeit drugs on social media that had unknowingly been laced with the opioid. Of the 1,871 fentanyl overdoses, 1,313 had occurred when it was mixed with a nonopioid drug, according to the study.
"No longer are we talking about meeting on the street and making that connection," Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monacoearlier this year to help parents and educators recognize when teenagers could be buying drugs. The guide includes hints on the use of emojis to symbolize certain drugs in text and social media exchanges. For example, the pill emoji is often used to represent a range of drugs, including Adderall, ecstasy, Percocet, oxycodone, or Xanax.
Officials have warned of an opioid crisis in the United States, with a record 107,622 citizens dying of a drug overdose in 2021, up 15% from the year prior. Opioids were responsible for 70% of the deaths.
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