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In the United States, drug overdose has been one of the leading causes of death with over 52,000 drug overdoses in 2015. The two major groups that abuse drugs, more specifically opioids, are women and adolescents. Due to the fact that women are more likely to be prescribed painkillers as well as them becoming dependent on opioids quicker than men, make women an easier target for opioid abuse. Adolescents have also been a major problem with opioids as the number of young adults taking opioids has doubled from 1994 to 2007. Claims have been made that the opioid epidemic is a widely “American” problem. However, this is an epidemic that has been affecting other nations as well. Countries across the Atlantic are now discovering that they too have had an increase in the number of opioids that are being distributed in their countries. Many countries outside of the United States do not have heavy regulations on the number of drugs that doctors can prescribe so the epidemic in those countries is growing. For example, Nordic countries have low rates of cancer-pain, but they also have an increasing number of opioids being distributed as well.

WOMEN

The opioid epidemic affects women and men differently, For instance, women are more likely than men to develop a substance use disorder. Women are also more likely to suffer chronic pain than men are. There are also many more situations in which women are to receive pain medicine. In cases of domestic abuse and rape, women are prescribed pain medicine more than men. Along with that during pregnancy women may use prescription opioids to help with pregnancy pain, especially with post-pregnancy pain. Since women are more likely to be prescribed opioids, they are more likely to become addicted to these opioids which is what makes them a target to the opioid epidemic. The number of women that have died from opioid pain relievers has increased 5 times from what it was in 1999 in 2010. To help stop the spread of opioid abuse in women, it is advised that women are educated on the drugs that they are taking and the possible risk of addiction. Additionally, alternatives should always be used when possible in order to prevent addiction.

Adolescents

Teens are also another category of people that can become easily hooked on opioids. For teens the use of opioids usually does not start as a pain management drug, teens will engage in drugs as recreational drugs. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that for every opioid death of a teen there are 119 emergency visits and 22 treatment admissions related to opioid abuse. Easy accessibility to these opioids is another reason why these drugs are becoming popular. If family members are taking opioids for pain or have taken them in the past and did not dispose of them correctly, it can make it easy for adolescents to get their hands on them. Education on opioid use and opioid disorders is important to keep children away from these drugs.

Limited Treatment

The continued prevalence of the opioid epidemic in the United States can be traced to many reasons. For one, there is a lack of appropriate treatments and treatment centers across the nation. Big cities like New York City are lacking in treatment services and health offices as well as small rural areas. Another reason that the opioid epidemic is hard to combat is that housing is limited to recovering addicts. Having limited housing makes it easy for recovering opioid users to return to old environments that promote drug abuse. Along with housing, jobs for recovering addicts can be difficult to find as well. Addicts with criminal records are not able to find jobs once they leave recovery. Having to combat job insecurity can lead to stress, which can push someone to relapse. The fact that “wraparound services”, or programs that provide services for patients that have just come out of rehabilitation centers, are non-existent is also a reason why the opioid epidemic has gone on for so long.

Public Policy Response

The public reaction that has made the first step in ending the opioid epidemic was the lawsuit that the state of Oklahoma put up against Purdue Pharma. The state of Oklahoma argued that Purdue Pharma helped start the opioid epidemic because of assertive marketing and deceptive claims on the dangers of addiction. One of the marketing strategies was to redefine “substance use disorder” as “pseudo addiction". The Purdue Pharma agreed to settle and pay 270 million dollars to the state of Oklahoma that would go towards addiction research and treatment. The settlement could indicate a win for other states that have taken legal action against similar opioid manufacturers. Specifically, States like California are raising similar claims that Purdue Pharma market the drug Oxycontin as a safe and effective treatment, which led to the opioid crisis leaving thousands dead in California due to opioid overdoses.

Alternative for Opioids

Alternative drug options for opioids include ibuprofen, Tylenol, Aspirin and steroid options, all of which can be prescribed to patients or provided to them over the counter. Along with drug alternatives, many other alternatives can provide relief through physical activities. Physical therapy, acupuncture, injections, nerve blocks, massages, and relaxation techniques are physical activities that have been found to help with chronic pain. New pain management drugs like Marijuana and Cannabinoids have also been found to help treat symptoms of pain. Many treatments like cancer treatments are using these drugs to help control pain.

Signs of Addiction

People that are addicted to opioids can have many changes in behavior. Some of the common signs or symptoms of addiction include spending more time alone, losing interest in activities, quickly changing moods, sleeping at odd hours, getting in trouble with the law, and financial hardships. If you notice any of these behaviors in a peer or in oneself, a physician should be consulted with.