Fentanyl surpasses heroin as deadliest drug in U.S.

-
The synthetic drug, fentanyl, has surpassed heroin as the deadliest drug in the United States, taking more than 18,000 lives in 2016, federal health officials said Wednesday.
In 2016, the latest year for which full data is available, "29 percent of all drug overdose deaths mentioned involvement of fentanyl," said the report from the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Fentanyl is a powerful, synthetic narcotic that has been blamed for the deaths of rock stars including Prince and Tom Petty.
It works on the brain like morphine or heroin, but is 50 to 100 times more potent, and can easily lead to overdose.
Fentanyl has become the deadliest drug in the U.S., taking more than 18,000 lives in 2016. /AFP Photo
The rate of drug overdose deaths in the United States has tripled from 1999 through 2016, as the nation grapples with a persistent opioid epidemic.
Fentanyl-related drug overdose deaths have doubled each year from 2013 through 2016, "from 0.6 per 100,000 in 2013 to 1.3 in 2014, 2.6 in 2015, and 5.9 in 2016," said the report.
Meanwhile, deaths from heroin and methamphetamine more than tripled from 2011 to 2016.
Heroin was the top cause of drug overdose death from 2012 to 2015, said the report.
The prescription painkiller Oxycodone ranked highest in 2011. 
Cocaine has consistently ranked either second or third in terms of deadliest drugs, followed by methamphetamine.

Popular posts from this blog

Donald Trump Reacts To Blasey Ford-Kavanaugh Hearing

-
Image
President  Donald Trump  tweeted his support of   Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh  Thursday after Kavanaugh testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee to address Christine Blasey Ford ’s allegation that he sexually assaulted her. Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump Judge Kavanaugh showed America exactly why I nominated him. His testimony was powerful, honest, and riveting. Democrats’ search and destroy strategy is disgraceful and this process has been a total sham and effort to delay, obstruct, and resist. The Senate must vote. The president was noticeably silent on Twitter throughout the daylong hearing, during which both Blasey and Kavanaugh offered tearful testimony. Immediately after the hearing ended, Trump called Kavanaugh’s testimony “powerful, honest and riveting,” while calling Blasey’s accusations part of a political tactic by Democrats.  He echoed Republicans like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who during the hearing went on a tangent about Bl
Read more

Learn about the mysterious mandarin duck in New York's Central Park

-
Image
In his recent post, David Barrett, the owner of the Tweeter account “Manhattan Bird Alert”, announced that a mandarin duck has been spotted in Central Park's pond, stirring up discussions in New York City. Previous Male mandarin ducks have stunning pluamge. /VCG Photo A beautiful mandarin duck is paddling in the water. /VCG Photo Male mandarin ducks have stunning pluamge. /VCG Photo A beautiful mandarin duck is paddling in the water. /VCG Photo Next This glamorously colored duck is native to eastern Asia, and it remains unknown how it manages to make its surprising appearance in the Central Park's pond.   Mandarin ducks are very common in China and Japan, and they are known for the males' vibrantly colored plumage. However, while the males' stunning plumage becomes a long-lasting inspiration for Asian artists throughout the history, the female mandarin ducks are surprisingly plain in their appearances. The mandarin ducks appear in pairs
Read more