Xylazine is Causing an Increase in Overdoses

A recent study found a steep increase in the number of people who overdose on the veterinary tranquilizer xylazine. Xylazine is often used by Mexican Drug Cartels as a cutting agent in fentanyl.

In a study, researchers examined 10 locations in the United States and found that xylazine was responsible for 6.7% of all overdose deaths in 2020, compared to 0.36% in 2015. All the xylazine overdoses that occurred were triggered by fentanyl, according to reports.

Xylazine

Some experts are concerned that xylazine, which is a sedative, could increase the risk of a fatal overdose when taken with fentanyl. That’s because the combination of the two drugs can worsen the slowed breathing caused by opioids. Xylazine can make it more difficult for opioid users to recover from their overdoses by using the opioid overdose antidote naloxone.

The results of that study, said researcher Joseph Friedman from UC Los Angeles, show that xylazine is being used widely as a contaminant in the drug supply.

Friedman said, “the supply of drugs is very bad right now.” It is unbelievable how many contaminants there are, and it is very hard to keep track of everything. People aren’t buying things that they think they are buying, or they don’t know what they are buying.