On May 9, 2022 the United States as a nation declared Fentanyl Awareness Day. An entire movement had begun and for good reason. Fentanyl deaths, not known as overdoses but referred to as poisoning, had made its way as the number one cause of death in people between the ages of 18-45. Fentanyl is being mixed into illicit drugs to be marketed as other substances. The poor production of these illicit drugs is killing those with and without a drug history. Fentanyl is cheap and easy to produce. It is being found in all drug forms, powder, patches, drinks and most commonly in pill form opioids. There is no way to tell by observation if something has been tainted by Fentanyl. There has been one product thus far that has been created in hopes of lessening the chances of Fentanyl poisoning. This product, known as Fentanyl test strips, was created in efforts to be 'safe.' Though the product can help in detecting the deadly drug it can't completely rule out traces of fentanyl in a product. In order to properly test a pill, it would need to be cut in half, crushed, and mixed into water. The test strips have to be dipped into a liquid in order to find traces of Fentanyl. Assuming the test is negative that does not mean there is not traces in the half that hasn't been tested. Until a more effective way of detection or eradication of this epidemic we all must keep talking about Fentanyl poisoning. May 9th has been recognized as national Fentanyl Awareness Day. However, the lives that could be lost prior to May 9th are much greater. Moving forward into 2023 we will treat every day as Fentanyl Awareness Day.
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