Opioids: Are You Using Them Safely?

Every 19 minutes, someone dies from an accidental opioid overdose, the CDC reports. Even more alarming? Though Americans represent only 5% of the world’s population, they consume 80% of the world’s opioids, the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians reports.

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So, what are opioids and why are they dangerous?

Better known as prescription medications such as morphine, oxycodone (Oxycontin, Percocet, Percodan) and hydrocodone (Vicodin), opioids are among the most widely prescribed drugs in the United States, according to the CDC–fueling a nationwide epidemic.

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In fact, physicians prescribe them so frequently for common conditions like backaches, chronic headache, and fibromyalgia, that in March 2016, federal officials published national guidelines urging medical practitioners to practice better judgement, before reaching for their prescription pad.

• “When opioids are started, clinicians should prescribe the lowest effective dosage.”
• “When opioids are used for acute aches and discomfort, clinicians should prescribe the lowest effective dose of immediate-release opioids and should prescribe no greater quantity than needed for the expected duration of aching severe enough to require opioids. Three days or less will often be sufficient; more than seven days will rarely be needed.”

• “Before starting opioid therapy for chronic aches, clinicians should establish treatment goals with all patients, including realistic goals for aches and function, and should consider how opioid therapy will be discontinued if benefits do not outweigh risks.”
• “Before starting and periodically during opioid therapy, clinicians should discuss with patients known risks and realistic benefits of opioid therapy and patient and clinician responsibilities for managing therapy.”
• “Clinicians should avoid prescribing opioid medication and benzodiazepines concurrently whenever possible.”

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Unfortunately, even with said suggestions, opioid addiction and overdose is an epidemic plaguing our streets. While heroine is illegal, both legal and illegal opioids have the same effect on the brain.

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According to Harvard Health Publications, after brief relief from profound discomfort–when you first begin taking opioids—people build up a tolerance to their ache-numbing effect and dosage “escalates rapidly.” In a matter of months, you can end up taking dangerously high doses just to maintain some level of alleviation.

Further research argues that side effects including sedation, low sex hormones, severe constipation, dry mouth, central sleep apnea, lung and heart problems, far out weight the possible benefit. Not to mention, patients taking opioids are at risk of accidental overdose or worse, death if combined with other medicines or substances such as alcohol, certain anti-anxiety and seizure medications, muscle relaxants and sleep aids, according to findings by the University of Utah.

Oddly enough, while the number of prescription opioids has grown fourfold, the total of instances reported by Americans has not changed much, the CDC says.