It’s 50 times stronger than heroin, 100 times stronger than morphine—and just 2 milligrams (equal to 10 to 15 grains of table salt) can be lethal.
- 84 percent of all teen overdose deaths in 2021 were related to fentanyl.
- Fentanyl-related adolescent overdose deaths nearly tripled between 2019 and 2021, and a quarter of those deaths involved counterfeit drugs—pills like Valium, Xanax, or Percocet, often obtained from friends or bought through social media.
- Fentanyl is an incredibly potent synthetic opioid. It’s 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Just 2 milligrams, equal to 10 to 15 grains of table salt, can be lethal.
- Having the right tools, such as fentanyl test strips and Narcan (naloxone) in your home or school medical kit, can also save lives. Never buy fentanyl tests from friends or online. Always get them from your local health department or a trusted community organization, such as addiction recovery programs, as counterfeit tests are in circulation. Also, make sure they’re legal to obtain in your state.
- Drug makers are now working on anti-opioid vaccines: one for heroin, one for oxycodone, and one for fentanyl. The fentanyl vaccine is said to work by preventing the drug from entering the brain, thus eliminating the “high” users experience, as well as the risk of respiratory depression. The other vaccines work on the same premise.
Even as opioid deaths have become a leading cause of death among Americans younger than 50,1 another horrifying trend is emerging: teen deaths caused by fentanyl-laced counterfeit drugs.2,3
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),4 84 percent of all teen overdose deaths in 2021 were related to fentanyl, an incredibly potent synthetic opioid. It’s 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Just 2 milligrams, equal to 10 to 15 grains of table salt, can be lethal.5 As reported by USA Today:6
“Fentanyl accounted for more than 67,000 preventable deaths in 2021, which represents a 21% increase since 2020, according to the National Safety Council.7 More than 5,600 of those deaths occurred in people ages 15 to 24.”
Other data show fentanyl-related adolescent overdose deaths nearly tripled between 2019 and 2021, and a quarter of those deaths involved counterfeit drugs—pills like Valium, Xanax, or Percocet, often obtained from friends or bought through social media.8
While far deadlier than other opioids, fentanyl is much easier and cheaper to manufacture, which is why it’s being used in counterfeits. Its potency, however, makes it risky. If unevenly distributed, you can easily end up with lethal doses in some pills.
In 2022, 75,000 of the nearly 110,000 overdose deaths were fentanyl-related,9 and again, thousands of those were teens. In Hays County, Texas, nearly 40 percent of fentanyl-related overdoses in 2022 were among people under 1810—a statistic attributed in part to the rise in mental health problems among teens during the COVID pandemic.
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