FENTANYL: THE FACTS

Fentanyl is a highly addictive and powerful synthetic opioid,

50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Classified as a class A drug, it comes in two forms as either powder or liquid: pharmaceutical fentanyl (prescribed by doctors to treat severe pain, especially after surgery) and illegally made fentanyl (rampant among drug markets because of its heroinlike effects).

Odourless and tasteless, illegal fentanyl is increasingly cut into other drugs,

as ‘it takes very little to produce a high with fentanyl, making it a cheaper option’, according to the US National Institute on Drug Abuse. Fatal overdose can occur as users don’t realise they are taking fentanyl.

Many of the chemicals used to make illegal fentanyl are transported from China

to drug cartels in the US and Mexico – it is easy to smuggle as even small doses are extremely potent. The illegal drug caused about 70,000 deaths in the US in 2022 alone, equating to one American overdosing every seven minutes.

The recent meeting of Joe Biden and Xi Jinping

culminated in China agreeing to tighten restrictions on precursors to the drug.

Fentanyl has played a part in the fatal overdoses of A-list stars including Prince and the Euphoria actor Angus Cloud. In the US, the opioid crisis has been declared a public health emergency.

Are we at risk of fentanyl becoming widely available in the UK? Not yet, it seems. In 2021, 58 fentanyl-related deaths were recorded in England and Wales. Even so, it is becoming more available among heroin markets in north-east England, according to the National Crime Agency.

However, nearly half of all drug poisonings across England and Wales involved opiates (natural opioids) in 2021.

— Lilia Sebouai