Opioids are drugs sometimes prescribed by doctors to treat severe and/ or persistent pain such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, codeine, morphine, and others. This classification of drugs also includes illegal forms such as heroin and lab-made fentanyl. This drug works by attaching to the opioid receptors in the brain to block out the sensation of pain.
Opioid drugs are also extremely strong, dangerous, and highly addictive. According to a graph shown on CDC, 128 people die every day from opioid overdose in America and over 67,000 drug overdose deaths occurred in the United States in 2018. This number has only risen since then.
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What’s The Most Powerful Opioid?
The strongest of all opioid drugs is known as Carfentanil. This drug is extremely deadly. It is 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl. Carfentanil is generally used as an elephant tranquilizer and is never intended for the use of humans and is not approved for human use in any way. Carfentanil s a very powerful derivative of fentanyl. This drug is so strong that a dose the size of a grain of salt is all that is needed to lead to an overdose and death. Most people won’t even handle this drug without using protective gear such as masks and gloves from fear that they will breathe it in or absorb it through their skin.
Carfentanil is used in cutting heroin and fentanyl that is sold on the streets, causing many overdoses and deaths. The dose that is being cut into heroin in some cases is so small that forensic chemists are having a difficult time even finding it. This amount is still enough to send someone into an overdose. This just shows the potency of this drug.
How Opioids Affect the Human Body
Due to carfentanil’s potency, the effects it has on the human body and brain are very quick. Even in elephants, which carfentanil is intended for, the response to the drug is very rapid. Carfentanil very rapidly binds to the opioid receptors in the brain, completely overwhelming the brain’s chemistry and leads to overdose symptoms almost immediately. The symptoms of a carfentanil overdose may include:
- Loss of consciousness
- Un responsive to any stimulation
- Very slow, shallow, and erratic breathing
- Possibly no breathing at all
- Blue toned skin
- Choking and gurgling sounds
- Vomiting
- Limp Body
- Pale face
- Clammy skin
- Slow heartbeat and pulse
Due to the overdose symptoms occurring so quickly after exposure to carfentanil, it is recommended that naloxone be administered immediately after exposure to slow down the symptoms of overdose long enough for medical services to intervene and take over for further treatment.
Treatment for Opioid Dependency
We at Garden State Treatment Centerunderstand the seriousness of opioid use, and we believe opioid addiction must be treated as soon as possible. If opioid addiction is left untreated, the chances of fatality continuously increase. We focus on treating addiction with a combination of effective treatments, predominantly focusing on group and individual therapy.
If you or someone you love has been struggling with opioid addiction, please feel free to give us a call today. We will discuss treatment options, and do our best to point you in the right direction. Now is the time to turn your life around. Let us help you do it.
FAQ
Where opioids come from?