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Opioids have become more widely known as several countries and cities across North America, Australia, etc. are starting to take legal actions against drug-makers and vendors for the severe damages caused by opioid addiction.
What are Opioids?
Opioids include the whole family of opiates (gotten from the natural ingredients in opium). This includes semi-synthetic and synthetic substances. Opioids consist of strong prescription acute and chronic pain relievers. It has been revealed that a noticeable number of patients who utilize opioids for longer than the prescribed period would develop a dependency.
The four major types of opioids:
Endogenous opioids (made by the body)
- Endorphins
- Enkephalins
- Dynorphins
- Endorphins
Opium alkaloid
- Morphine
- Codeine
- Thebaine
Semi-synthetic opioids
- Diamorphine (heroin)
- Hydromorphone
- Oxycodone
- Buprenorphine
Fully synthetic opioids
- Fentanyl
- Pethidine
- Methadone
- Tramadol
- Tapentadol
How do people make use of opioids?
Opioids may be prescribed to anyone suffering from chronic or acute pain when their present pain management – using non-opioids and non-drug treatment – is inadequate.
Opioid use disorder
The opioid-use disorder is the medical terminology for opioid addiction. Opioids are extremely addictive since they stimulate the discharge of endorphins within the brain.
An individual might feel compelled to enhance their dosage or look for illegal means for obtaining opioids, like heroin, in a situation where they feel like they can’t get relief without taking opioids.
The Opioid Crisis
The broad scale of prescription opioid distribution from 2007 to 2013 is believed to weigh at an estimated 76.5 billion opioid painkillers. Rural areas with low-income have been hit the most, including West Virginia, Virginia, and Kentucky.
Deadly overdoses happened in large numbers across Appalachia and some other ‘hotspots’. Typically considered to be a problem in the Midwest in the United States, the rate of opioid disorder and overdoses rose in every eastern US states.
The death toll caused by drug overdose in the United States was 70,200 in 2017, with about 47,600 of those being linked with opioid addiction. It is typically accepted that the rates of opioid abuse are underreported and underdiagnosed.
Synthetic deaths as a result of opioid overdose are now greater than the number of heroin deaths in the United States. This shows that the manufacture of drugs including cocaine and methamphetamines are now ruined with opioids like fentanyl.
It is estimated that a staggering 400,000 individuals have died in North America due to opioid addiction since 1998. However, the impact of opioid addiction spreads more than measurable deaths and overdoses. Also, it influences unemployment, exacerbations of different behavioral health conditions, and loss in productivity.
Preventing opioid addiction and overdose
To tackle the opioid problem, it is recommended that we implement the following techniques:
Enhancing opioid education for both consumers and health providers
Encouraging communication between health providers; and
Using a Chiropractor to tackle and relieve pain without having to even try opioids in the first place.
For more information on how to take care of acute and chronic pain without opioids. You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our Chiropractic Office in Elizabeth City, NC, today.
