1 00:00:01,440 --> 00:00:07,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:14,160 Speaker 2: Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh, and there's 3 00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:16,119 Speaker 2: Chuck and Jerry's here too, and this is Stuff you 4 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:18,520 Speaker 2: Should Know, the Big Bummer Edition. 5 00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:23,079 Speaker 1: Yeah, not very joky, because we're talking about fentanyl. 6 00:00:22,760 --> 00:00:23,000 Speaker 2: And. 7 00:00:24,480 --> 00:00:27,960 Speaker 1: While a great pain killer, a very effective painkiller, it 8 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:30,240 Speaker 1: has sadly become the most deadly street drug in the 9 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:34,240 Speaker 1: United States. And we're going to tell you how that happened. 10 00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:39,279 Speaker 2: Yes, but there's slight silver lining. It is possible that 11 00:00:39,360 --> 00:00:43,159 Speaker 2: it is so deadly and so dangerous that it's actually 12 00:00:43,240 --> 00:00:46,560 Speaker 2: created a decline in its use. At the very least 13 00:00:46,720 --> 00:00:51,320 Speaker 2: a decline in deaths from it has taken place. So 14 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:54,520 Speaker 2: it is on the decline at least deaths, and we'll 15 00:00:54,520 --> 00:00:57,640 Speaker 2: talk about possibly why that is later on. But yeah, 16 00:00:57,680 --> 00:01:00,440 Speaker 2: we'll talk about the origin of fentanyl. For those of 17 00:01:00,440 --> 00:01:05,000 Speaker 2: you who don't know, it's a synthetic opioid. First, there 18 00:01:05,040 --> 00:01:07,720 Speaker 2: was morphine, which is I think basically one hundred percent 19 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:13,280 Speaker 2: processed natural opium. Heroin is a kind of a combo 20 00:01:13,480 --> 00:01:18,640 Speaker 2: hybrid between synthetic and natural, and then fentanyl is just 21 00:01:18,720 --> 00:01:22,200 Speaker 2: straight up like a like it just made up. It's 22 00:01:22,240 --> 00:01:26,559 Speaker 2: an analog and it's way more potent than anything anyone 23 00:01:26,600 --> 00:01:28,600 Speaker 2: had ever seen before when it came on the scene. 24 00:01:29,319 --> 00:01:32,720 Speaker 1: Yeah, like a hundred times more potent than morphine, fifty 25 00:01:32,760 --> 00:01:36,200 Speaker 1: times more potent than heroin. Created by a gentleman named 26 00:01:36,200 --> 00:01:39,680 Speaker 1: Paul Janson of the Jansen Company in Belgium, and it 27 00:01:39,760 --> 00:01:44,039 Speaker 1: was originally developed as an intravenous anesthetic, like for surgery. 28 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:49,720 Speaker 1: And they started out with a synthetic opioid as the 29 00:01:49,760 --> 00:01:55,400 Speaker 1: base called my paradine I guess, and that was developed 30 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:57,560 Speaker 1: in the nineteen thirties. And so they had this sort 31 00:01:57,600 --> 00:02:00,760 Speaker 1: of my paradiine as the base. They change it around 32 00:02:00,800 --> 00:02:03,480 Speaker 1: a little, I'll alter the chemical structure a little bit, 33 00:02:03,560 --> 00:02:07,080 Speaker 1: because what they wanted was something that had fewer negative 34 00:02:07,080 --> 00:02:10,960 Speaker 1: side effects, something that was safer to use, and they 35 00:02:11,080 --> 00:02:14,079 Speaker 1: were able to do that with fentanyl. I mean it, 36 00:02:14,880 --> 00:02:17,440 Speaker 1: you know, initially worked great. It was had a very 37 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:21,080 Speaker 1: fast onset, had a very high therapeutic index, which is 38 00:02:21,080 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 1: how they measure like the ratio between how effective a 39 00:02:24,360 --> 00:02:27,400 Speaker 1: dose is and how how you could get to a 40 00:02:27,400 --> 00:02:30,480 Speaker 1: toxic dose. So if you've got a high number and 41 00:02:30,560 --> 00:02:32,960 Speaker 1: a greater difference, then that's good. 42 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:35,959 Speaker 2: Right, And one of the things. I just want to 43 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:39,639 Speaker 2: say that they messed around with molecularly to make fentanyl. 44 00:02:40,320 --> 00:02:44,080 Speaker 2: They increased its fat solubility, which sounds like who cares, 45 00:02:44,600 --> 00:02:47,919 Speaker 2: But that has two really important effects that make fetanyl 46 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 2: what it is. One, it allows the drug to cross 47 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 2: the blood brain barrier faster, which means fentanyl has a 48 00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:58,960 Speaker 2: much faster onset than heroin or morphine. Right, it just 49 00:02:59,040 --> 00:03:03,360 Speaker 2: hits you much fast, and then it crosses back through 50 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:06,800 Speaker 2: the blood brain barrier more quickly, so the duration of 51 00:03:06,840 --> 00:03:10,040 Speaker 2: the high that you get lasts a shorter time. So 52 00:03:10,320 --> 00:03:14,840 Speaker 2: just that one little tweak fat solubility made this drug 53 00:03:14,919 --> 00:03:18,960 Speaker 2: what it is, because faster onset makes it addictive. Shorter 54 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:21,040 Speaker 2: duration means that you need to do more. 55 00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:23,920 Speaker 1: Yeah, And then I don't think I've mentioned, but it 56 00:03:23,919 --> 00:03:26,680 Speaker 1: was nineteen sixty was when it first came on the scene. 57 00:03:27,440 --> 00:03:30,239 Speaker 1: Europe starting using it in sixty three. Came to the 58 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:34,000 Speaker 1: US in sixty eight and approved by the FDA only 59 00:03:34,520 --> 00:03:39,920 Speaker 1: by combining it with a tranquilizing drug called draperidol, because 60 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:42,920 Speaker 1: they said, you know that combination makes it even a 61 00:03:42,960 --> 00:03:45,240 Speaker 1: lower potential for abuse, so you have to use it 62 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:47,640 Speaker 1: with that. But over time, that kind of waned, and 63 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:50,960 Speaker 1: those limitations were lifted little by little until we got 64 00:03:50,960 --> 00:03:54,280 Speaker 1: to the mid nineteen eighties when they had, you know, 65 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:58,880 Speaker 1: cheaper generic versions available, and it was pretty commonly used 66 00:03:58,920 --> 00:04:03,160 Speaker 1: in surgery, like post surgical recovery with like skin patches 67 00:04:03,200 --> 00:04:05,560 Speaker 1: and lozenges and stuff like that for pain management. 68 00:04:05,920 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think still today it's the most common opioid 69 00:04:09,360 --> 00:04:14,560 Speaker 2: used for anesthesia during surgery. And that just sounds like 70 00:04:14,720 --> 00:04:19,359 Speaker 2: madness when you're familiar with fentanyl, the street version, but 71 00:04:19,520 --> 00:04:23,880 Speaker 2: in the hands of like a really well trained anesthesiologist 72 00:04:23,960 --> 00:04:28,560 Speaker 2: with hospital great equipment, it's actually very safe. It's the 73 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:30,880 Speaker 2: fact that the stuff that you buy in the street 74 00:04:31,240 --> 00:04:37,560 Speaker 2: has a very uneven like dosages means that's why it's 75 00:04:37,640 --> 00:04:41,440 Speaker 2: just so deadly because you're not a trained anesthesiologist, you're 76 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:44,480 Speaker 2: not using hospital grade equipment. You're shooting up something that 77 00:04:44,520 --> 00:04:48,040 Speaker 2: some dude sold you, and it's just it's just not 78 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:50,640 Speaker 2: trustworthy and it can kill you because it takes such 79 00:04:50,640 --> 00:04:53,200 Speaker 2: a small amount to create a toxic dose. 80 00:04:53,839 --> 00:04:59,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, it will produce relaxation, feelings, pleasure, sleepiness. You can 81 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:06,679 Speaker 1: also get nauseous, dizziness, confusion, vomiting, uritary retention, breathing issues, 82 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:09,600 Speaker 1: as we'll see later on. That's you know, basically why 83 00:05:09,640 --> 00:05:14,480 Speaker 1: you usually od, it's because of breathing issues, and besides 84 00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:17,880 Speaker 1: the overdose risk, which is great, you could also have 85 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:22,680 Speaker 1: a heart attack, heart failure, mood disorders, immune system problems. 86 00:05:23,640 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 1: For all these reasons. It's a schedule two narcotic with 87 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:27,719 Speaker 1: a high potential for abuse. 88 00:05:27,960 --> 00:05:31,240 Speaker 2: Just a reminder marijuana's Schedule one. 89 00:05:31,480 --> 00:05:35,800 Speaker 1: Yeah, exactly. And most of what we're going to be 90 00:05:35,800 --> 00:05:39,560 Speaker 1: talking about is sort of the illegal, illicitly produced market. 91 00:05:40,200 --> 00:05:43,320 Speaker 1: But there are fentanyl users that do get like the 92 00:05:43,360 --> 00:05:46,200 Speaker 1: real stuff from I'm not sure how they get it, 93 00:05:46,240 --> 00:05:49,560 Speaker 1: whatever connection they have, and they'll just have to you know, 94 00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:51,240 Speaker 1: it's not like in a pill or a powder, so 95 00:05:51,279 --> 00:05:53,200 Speaker 1: it'll be like a patch or something that they might 96 00:05:53,279 --> 00:05:56,560 Speaker 1: freeze and hold in their mouth, or they might remove 97 00:05:56,640 --> 00:05:58,919 Speaker 1: the gel and then eat it or inject it or 98 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:02,200 Speaker 1: something like that. But usually what we're talking about, the 99 00:06:02,200 --> 00:06:05,440 Speaker 1: really dangerous stuff is the powders and the pills that 100 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:08,359 Speaker 1: are being made illegally and either brought into this country 101 00:06:08,880 --> 00:06:10,920 Speaker 1: or being made in this country, but usually brought into 102 00:06:11,000 --> 00:06:11,520 Speaker 1: this country. 103 00:06:11,880 --> 00:06:15,840 Speaker 2: Yes, and there's different kinds of different analogs of fentanyl 104 00:06:17,040 --> 00:06:19,800 Speaker 2: that everybody just kind of puts under the umbrella of 105 00:06:19,839 --> 00:06:22,640 Speaker 2: fentanyl when you're talking about illicit fentanyl. But two of 106 00:06:22,680 --> 00:06:26,480 Speaker 2: them that stand out that aren't actually illicit, but they're 107 00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:30,520 Speaker 2: used in the drug market as car fetanyl, which is 108 00:06:31,040 --> 00:06:34,080 Speaker 2: used there's no use for it in humans. They use 109 00:06:34,080 --> 00:06:38,960 Speaker 2: it to sedate rhinoceroses and elephants, and I think it's 110 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:42,720 Speaker 2: something like ten thousand times more potent than morphine. You 111 00:06:42,760 --> 00:06:45,680 Speaker 2: can get that on the street apparently, although I think 112 00:06:45,720 --> 00:06:48,280 Speaker 2: it's fairly rare. And then sue feentanyl is five to 113 00:06:48,320 --> 00:06:52,440 Speaker 2: ten times stronger than fentanyl. So if you like people 114 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:54,720 Speaker 2: aren't like it's car fetanyl or sue fentanyl, you're talking 115 00:06:54,760 --> 00:06:55,560 Speaker 2: about fentanyl. 116 00:06:56,440 --> 00:06:58,960 Speaker 1: Yeah, exactly. It doesn't necessarily mean it's the same exact 117 00:06:59,080 --> 00:07:04,359 Speaker 1: chemical structure. It's just sort of a catch all like pitbull, sure, 118 00:07:05,279 --> 00:07:09,000 Speaker 1: the singer no no, no pitbull the dog breed, which 119 00:07:09,040 --> 00:07:10,119 Speaker 1: isn't really a dog breed. 120 00:07:10,560 --> 00:07:11,240 Speaker 2: I didn't know that. 121 00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:14,960 Speaker 1: Yeah, there's all kinds of terriers that people just call pitbulls. 122 00:07:17,440 --> 00:07:21,600 Speaker 2: Well, speaking of umbrella terms in different names, I think 123 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:25,600 Speaker 2: we should talk about some of the names. The DEA 124 00:07:25,680 --> 00:07:28,640 Speaker 2: says that this is called and the only one I 125 00:07:28,680 --> 00:07:30,600 Speaker 2: could corroborate is the last. 126 00:07:30,320 --> 00:07:32,520 Speaker 1: One, Tango and cash. 127 00:07:32,600 --> 00:07:37,440 Speaker 2: Yeah, so apparently that's fetanyl and cocaine mixed together, and 128 00:07:37,840 --> 00:07:41,320 Speaker 2: or fetanyl and methamphetamine some sort of speed that's a speedball, 129 00:07:41,760 --> 00:07:43,920 Speaker 2: And as we'll see, that's actually proving to be a 130 00:07:43,960 --> 00:07:47,320 Speaker 2: really big problem that's created like a new wave of 131 00:07:47,360 --> 00:07:48,720 Speaker 2: opioid deaths. 132 00:07:49,160 --> 00:07:52,840 Speaker 1: Yeah. Well, speaking of waves, there have kind of been three, 133 00:07:52,920 --> 00:07:54,920 Speaker 1: and this is just sort of an overview of the 134 00:07:54,920 --> 00:07:57,760 Speaker 1: opioid addiction crisis in the US that's been going on 135 00:07:57,840 --> 00:08:02,640 Speaker 1: for you know, ten fifteen years. The first wave was 136 00:08:02,680 --> 00:08:06,880 Speaker 1: in the nineties, and that's when you got prescription opioids 137 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:11,840 Speaker 1: from your doctor. Those really rose dramatically because they do 138 00:08:11,880 --> 00:08:14,760 Speaker 1: a really good job. But that's also you know, in 139 00:08:14,840 --> 00:08:18,560 Speaker 1: lockstep with fatal opioid overdoses. They doubled between ninety nine 140 00:08:18,600 --> 00:08:22,240 Speaker 1: and twenty ten. And twenty ten was when things started 141 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:25,360 Speaker 1: to change for a second wave because the government was like, 142 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:28,400 Speaker 1: you can't be writing all these prescriptions like this to 143 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:32,920 Speaker 1: doctors and to manufacturers, like you got to change your formulas, 144 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:36,199 Speaker 1: Like this stuff is way too readily abuse, So you 145 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:37,160 Speaker 1: got to do something. 146 00:08:38,160 --> 00:08:42,120 Speaker 2: Yeah, and this is really well portrayed in the limited 147 00:08:42,240 --> 00:08:45,320 Speaker 2: series Dope Sick. I can't remember if it was on HBO. 148 00:08:45,400 --> 00:08:47,480 Speaker 2: I want to say you saw it right now. 149 00:08:47,480 --> 00:08:48,120 Speaker 1: I didn't see that. 150 00:08:48,160 --> 00:08:50,520 Speaker 2: Oh man. It is really good, but it's about the 151 00:08:50,559 --> 00:08:55,880 Speaker 2: Sackler family and Purdue Pharma essentially purposely hooking America on 152 00:08:56,080 --> 00:09:00,520 Speaker 2: oxy contin. Yeah, and it's a really good series that 153 00:09:00,600 --> 00:09:02,520 Speaker 2: just punches you in the gut. But it's really well 154 00:09:02,559 --> 00:09:06,960 Speaker 2: done and it covers all that period. The problem was 155 00:09:07,400 --> 00:09:09,319 Speaker 2: this is covered a little bit too towards the end. 156 00:09:09,960 --> 00:09:14,200 Speaker 2: When you take people's OxyContin away and they're hooked on 157 00:09:14,240 --> 00:09:17,920 Speaker 2: OxyContin and opioid, they're going to a lot of them 158 00:09:17,960 --> 00:09:21,800 Speaker 2: are at least turned to whatever opioids are available, and 159 00:09:21,840 --> 00:09:24,680 Speaker 2: that meant that a lot of people who otherwise would 160 00:09:24,679 --> 00:09:28,200 Speaker 2: have never tried heroin took up heroin because they couldn't 161 00:09:28,240 --> 00:09:29,480 Speaker 2: get OxyContin anymore. 162 00:09:30,120 --> 00:09:33,440 Speaker 1: Yeah, and that was the second wave, and fatal overdoses 163 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:39,160 Speaker 1: of heroin because of that largely quadruple between twenty two 164 00:09:39,200 --> 00:09:42,480 Speaker 1: and twenty thirteen. The third wave is the one we're 165 00:09:42,559 --> 00:09:44,600 Speaker 1: kind of mainly going to be talking about that started 166 00:09:44,640 --> 00:09:50,359 Speaker 1: in about twenty thirteen and mainly centers around illegally illicitly 167 00:09:50,440 --> 00:09:55,000 Speaker 1: produced fentanyl and all the various harmful ways that can 168 00:09:55,040 --> 00:09:58,560 Speaker 1: find your way into your body, even sometimes even if 169 00:09:58,600 --> 00:10:00,280 Speaker 1: you don't want to be taking fentanyl. 170 00:10:00,600 --> 00:10:05,920 Speaker 2: So yeah, So that third wave, the fentanyl opioid death 171 00:10:05,960 --> 00:10:10,959 Speaker 2: wave or fentanyl driven wave, that is that vastly outstrips 172 00:10:11,080 --> 00:10:13,640 Speaker 2: the death rate from the first two waves. 173 00:10:13,960 --> 00:10:14,440 Speaker 1: Yeah. 174 00:10:14,520 --> 00:10:18,640 Speaker 2: So I think in nineteen ninety nine, so this is 175 00:10:18,679 --> 00:10:22,440 Speaker 2: when people are starting to take opioid prescriptions, there were 176 00:10:23,320 --> 00:10:27,320 Speaker 2: two opioid overdose deaths per one hundred thousand people in 177 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:31,560 Speaker 2: the United States. Yeah, that was nineteen ninety nine. Twenty thirteen, 178 00:10:31,760 --> 00:10:35,520 Speaker 2: the second wave is going on, that was up to eight. 179 00:10:36,360 --> 00:10:38,680 Speaker 2: By twenty twenty two, when the third wave is in 180 00:10:38,720 --> 00:10:42,560 Speaker 2: full swing, it was twenty five people per one hundred 181 00:10:42,559 --> 00:10:45,960 Speaker 2: thousand people in the United States that were dying of 182 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:47,760 Speaker 2: overdose deaths from fentanyl. 183 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:51,360 Speaker 1: Yeah. In twenty twenty two, deaths from fentanyl alone were 184 00:10:51,559 --> 00:10:55,160 Speaker 1: seventy six two hundred and twenty six people, or sixty 185 00:10:55,240 --> 00:10:59,320 Speaker 1: nine percent of total overdose deaths and ninety percent of 186 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:00,840 Speaker 1: the opioid overdose deaths. 187 00:11:01,040 --> 00:11:01,439 Speaker 2: Yeah. 188 00:11:01,480 --> 00:11:03,439 Speaker 1: Apparently it was the problem. 189 00:11:03,559 --> 00:11:06,240 Speaker 2: For sure, And apparently I was like, well, what else 190 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:10,040 Speaker 2: is anybody oding on? And it seems that meth has 191 00:11:10,160 --> 00:11:13,680 Speaker 2: created a new epidemic of overdose deaths that everybody's like, 192 00:11:13,720 --> 00:11:14,679 Speaker 2: what the hell's going on? 193 00:11:15,480 --> 00:11:18,280 Speaker 1: Yeah, well, Fintanel has hit such a high that it's 194 00:11:18,320 --> 00:11:24,200 Speaker 1: actually had a real impact on US life expectancy. It 195 00:11:24,280 --> 00:11:26,880 Speaker 1: takes a lot to change a number like that, but 196 00:11:27,200 --> 00:11:29,480 Speaker 1: Fintanel seems to have done it. And twenty twenty two 197 00:11:30,080 --> 00:11:34,920 Speaker 1: only opioid related deaths resulted in three point one million 198 00:11:35,000 --> 00:11:38,160 Speaker 1: years of lost life because a lot of these users 199 00:11:38,160 --> 00:11:40,319 Speaker 1: are young. And if you ode it twenty two, they 200 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:44,240 Speaker 1: calculate the average lifespan and do the subtraction and that's 201 00:11:44,240 --> 00:11:47,720 Speaker 1: your number. So that you know, a lot of middle 202 00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:53,040 Speaker 1: age white people without a college degree are the victims. 203 00:11:53,559 --> 00:11:56,760 Speaker 1: So much so, and this is startling. But from that class, 204 00:11:56,840 --> 00:11:59,600 Speaker 1: middle aged white people without a college degree, they are 205 00:11:59,679 --> 00:12:03,719 Speaker 1: dying earlier on average than their parents did. Yes, that's 206 00:12:03,760 --> 00:12:04,760 Speaker 1: not how it's supposed to work. 207 00:12:04,840 --> 00:12:07,760 Speaker 2: That's just not how it has worked, unless the United 208 00:12:07,800 --> 00:12:12,199 Speaker 2: States is at war essentially. Yeah, and you know, we're 209 00:12:12,240 --> 00:12:14,760 Speaker 2: talking a lot about the US, but the UK and 210 00:12:14,880 --> 00:12:20,760 Speaker 2: Europe sorry, UK tracks fairly closely. Although the numbers are lower. 211 00:12:22,160 --> 00:12:26,720 Speaker 2: It seems to be following like a similar pattern. Although 212 00:12:26,760 --> 00:12:29,079 Speaker 2: I think in some countries. I think estonia is one 213 00:12:29,120 --> 00:12:32,040 Speaker 2: of them. Like you can't even get heroin anymore, everybody's 214 00:12:32,120 --> 00:12:34,280 Speaker 2: just doing fatanmol. Yeah. 215 00:12:34,320 --> 00:12:37,160 Speaker 1: Well, here's the deal though, is researchers have looked at 216 00:12:37,160 --> 00:12:41,280 Speaker 1: these numbers. I think they declared this a public health 217 00:12:41,280 --> 00:12:45,160 Speaker 1: emergency in twenty seventeen, and what they're finding is, and 218 00:12:45,200 --> 00:12:48,280 Speaker 1: this has been coroberated from other surveys and you know, 219 00:12:48,480 --> 00:12:52,000 Speaker 1: metadata studies and stuff, is there aren't more overdose deaths 220 00:12:52,080 --> 00:12:56,560 Speaker 1: because more people are using it. It's not just like, oh, 221 00:12:56,640 --> 00:12:58,679 Speaker 1: well more people are doing it, so more people are dying. 222 00:12:59,360 --> 00:13:02,160 Speaker 1: It seems like it's because this stuff is more dangerous, 223 00:13:02,160 --> 00:13:05,640 Speaker 1: it's getting in places that it shouldn't get because usage 224 00:13:05,720 --> 00:13:08,880 Speaker 1: has actually declined some over the past like eight years, right. 225 00:13:09,200 --> 00:13:11,880 Speaker 2: Yeah. I think the first two waves were driven by 226 00:13:12,280 --> 00:13:17,960 Speaker 2: larger numbers increases in people using prescription opioids and then heroin, 227 00:13:18,559 --> 00:13:21,080 Speaker 2: so that accounted for it. But when fentanyl came on 228 00:13:21,120 --> 00:13:24,400 Speaker 2: the scene, yeah, people stopped using it as much, but 229 00:13:24,679 --> 00:13:27,640 Speaker 2: their deaths just increased, which if you look at it 230 00:13:27,679 --> 00:13:31,679 Speaker 2: from just an outside perspective, like it's just because it's 231 00:13:31,720 --> 00:13:35,720 Speaker 2: so potent and it was rolled out or introduced to 232 00:13:35,760 --> 00:13:40,880 Speaker 2: the drug supply in a really horrific way, as we'll see. 233 00:13:41,040 --> 00:13:44,839 Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure. It also sort of goes in lockstep 234 00:13:44,920 --> 00:13:48,719 Speaker 1: with the income disparity in the United States and the 235 00:13:49,040 --> 00:13:51,480 Speaker 1: client in fortunes for a lot of people in this country. 236 00:13:52,440 --> 00:13:55,960 Speaker 1: Overdosing is basically what they call it is a disease 237 00:13:55,960 --> 00:14:01,800 Speaker 1: of despair. When people are destitute and when they're down 238 00:14:02,040 --> 00:14:05,680 Speaker 1: or depressed or having really hard times. A lot of 239 00:14:05,720 --> 00:14:09,920 Speaker 1: times drugs can be a distraction or if you are 240 00:14:10,120 --> 00:14:12,480 Speaker 1: a casual drug user, it could get worse during that time. 241 00:14:13,360 --> 00:14:15,880 Speaker 1: And they found in twenty seventeen they study counties in 242 00:14:15,880 --> 00:14:19,960 Speaker 1: the US and found that those with the lowest social capital, 243 00:14:20,400 --> 00:14:23,560 Speaker 1: meaning networks that can help people, you know, with financial 244 00:14:23,560 --> 00:14:26,560 Speaker 1: security and achieving goals, they had the highest rate of overdose. 245 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:30,400 Speaker 2: Yes, so social capital is basically the size of your 246 00:14:30,440 --> 00:14:31,720 Speaker 2: local Kowanas chapter. 247 00:14:34,400 --> 00:14:35,920 Speaker 1: I knew you'd get a joke in theres. 248 00:14:36,680 --> 00:14:39,280 Speaker 2: So yeah, this is I mean, like this whole thing 249 00:14:39,400 --> 00:14:42,480 Speaker 2: kind of rose and lockstep. Opioid overdose sets rose and 250 00:14:42,520 --> 00:14:46,440 Speaker 2: lockstep with these financial crisis that the US found itself 251 00:14:46,480 --> 00:14:49,640 Speaker 2: in over and over again since two thousand and eight. 252 00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:54,520 Speaker 2: Job loss, aws of manufacturing jobs just all of the 253 00:14:54,560 --> 00:14:57,680 Speaker 2: hardship that the United States has gone through since then, 254 00:14:58,200 --> 00:15:01,000 Speaker 2: opioid debts kind of tracked with it, especially at first, 255 00:15:01,520 --> 00:15:05,160 Speaker 2: especially with people basically more people turning to that kind 256 00:15:05,200 --> 00:15:10,600 Speaker 2: of thing as a disease of despair, which is just sad. 257 00:15:10,760 --> 00:15:13,080 Speaker 2: It's just nuts that that's that you can kind of 258 00:15:13,920 --> 00:15:15,200 Speaker 2: connect those two things. 259 00:15:17,280 --> 00:15:19,520 Speaker 1: Should we take a break? Yeah, all right, we're gonna 260 00:15:19,560 --> 00:15:22,480 Speaker 1: take a break, and we're gonna talk about the rise 261 00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:55,760 Speaker 1: of fentanyl right after this. It's stuffish. So one reason 262 00:15:56,440 --> 00:15:59,560 Speaker 1: we've seen a surge in overdoses for something like this 263 00:15:59,720 --> 00:16:02,640 Speaker 1: is something called the iron law prohibition that was coined 264 00:16:02,680 --> 00:16:05,320 Speaker 1: in nineteen eighty six by an economist named Richard Cowan, 265 00:16:05,960 --> 00:16:08,480 Speaker 1: and it's basically saying that, hey, if you ban something 266 00:16:09,760 --> 00:16:12,440 Speaker 1: that people like doing, something's going to come along, and 267 00:16:12,480 --> 00:16:15,160 Speaker 1: it's probably going to be a stronger version. The reason 268 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:17,080 Speaker 1: they call it the law prohibition is because that's what 269 00:16:17,160 --> 00:16:19,320 Speaker 1: happened when people were like, all right, you're going to 270 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:20,880 Speaker 1: take our beer, We're going to start making gin and 271 00:16:20,920 --> 00:16:25,960 Speaker 1: our bathtubs and moonshine out in the woods, and the 272 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:28,480 Speaker 1: rise of crack in the nineteen eighties the same thing, 273 00:16:28,560 --> 00:16:30,920 Speaker 1: and they're basically saying fentanyl is basically the same deal. 274 00:16:31,320 --> 00:16:34,400 Speaker 2: Yeah, and not only more potent, but the fact that 275 00:16:34,440 --> 00:16:39,160 Speaker 2: it's more potent means that less of it can generate 276 00:16:39,320 --> 00:16:41,920 Speaker 2: just as much cash, which also means it's easier to 277 00:16:41,960 --> 00:16:45,520 Speaker 2: smuggle too. And like you said, fentanyl tracks exactly the 278 00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:49,280 Speaker 2: same way. It's really easy to make. I mean apparently 279 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:52,240 Speaker 2: you just basically, if you have the precursor chemicals, you're 280 00:16:52,280 --> 00:16:55,000 Speaker 2: just making a stew in a pot that you're stirring, 281 00:16:55,240 --> 00:16:56,720 Speaker 2: You dry it out, and there you got a bunch 282 00:16:56,760 --> 00:17:00,640 Speaker 2: of fentanyl. So it's easy to make. You don't require 283 00:17:01,520 --> 00:17:04,359 Speaker 2: tons and tons of agricultural workers and tons and tons 284 00:17:04,400 --> 00:17:07,680 Speaker 2: of acreage to grow poppies that you process into heroin. 285 00:17:08,240 --> 00:17:12,439 Speaker 2: And because the potency is so much more, there is 286 00:17:12,520 --> 00:17:19,240 Speaker 2: a huge cost benefit. Apparently it just accrues to the dealers. 287 00:17:19,280 --> 00:17:22,320 Speaker 2: Though there was a study in the journal Addiction from 288 00:17:22,320 --> 00:17:26,280 Speaker 2: twenty twenty that basically wanted to find out why was 289 00:17:26,280 --> 00:17:30,200 Speaker 2: fentanyl introduced. Was it users who are like, Hey, heroin's great, 290 00:17:30,240 --> 00:17:33,920 Speaker 2: but we need something way deadlier? Was it dealers who 291 00:17:33,920 --> 00:17:36,560 Speaker 2: are like, hey, heroin's great, but this stuff I can 292 00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:40,880 Speaker 2: cut heroin with and like, I'll make a lot more 293 00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:43,719 Speaker 2: money or was it a combination of the two. They 294 00:17:43,720 --> 00:17:46,600 Speaker 2: didn't say definitively, but they made a pretty good case 295 00:17:46,960 --> 00:17:50,000 Speaker 2: that it does seem to have been the dealers looking 296 00:17:50,000 --> 00:17:53,840 Speaker 2: to cut costs because those costs or those savings weren't 297 00:17:53,880 --> 00:17:55,640 Speaker 2: passed on to users. 298 00:17:56,200 --> 00:17:58,600 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's not like, hey, this, we're making the drugs 299 00:17:58,680 --> 00:17:59,800 Speaker 1: cheaper now, so we're just going to give you a 300 00:17:59,800 --> 00:18:03,440 Speaker 1: break this. There was one study that found between twenty 301 00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:07,399 Speaker 1: thirteen and twenty twenty one, the percentage of heroin that 302 00:18:07,440 --> 00:18:11,399 Speaker 1: had fentanyl rows from less than one percent to forty 303 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:17,360 Speaker 1: percent over what is that eight years? And of course 304 00:18:17,400 --> 00:18:19,560 Speaker 1: it's going to lead to a huge number of overdoses 305 00:18:19,600 --> 00:18:22,880 Speaker 1: because a you've got these batches that are coming out 306 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:25,600 Speaker 1: that the you know, the potency has got a pretty 307 00:18:25,680 --> 00:18:29,040 Speaker 1: dramatic range from one batch to another sometimes. Yeah, and 308 00:18:29,080 --> 00:18:31,560 Speaker 1: then people you know, for a long time, I think, 309 00:18:31,640 --> 00:18:33,720 Speaker 1: you know, the word is finally out now and we're 310 00:18:33,720 --> 00:18:35,199 Speaker 1: going to talk about that a little bit later. But 311 00:18:36,119 --> 00:18:38,720 Speaker 1: people that were heroin users thought they were getting heroin 312 00:18:38,880 --> 00:18:41,240 Speaker 1: and knew how much heroin to take safely. 313 00:18:41,480 --> 00:18:44,560 Speaker 2: Yeah, And one reason why is because these dealers were saying, 314 00:18:44,600 --> 00:18:48,920 Speaker 2: if I sell you heroin mixed with fentanyl, I have 315 00:18:49,000 --> 00:18:51,080 Speaker 2: to use less heroin because it's going to be just 316 00:18:51,119 --> 00:18:53,199 Speaker 2: a potent or more potent. But I can charge you 317 00:18:53,280 --> 00:18:56,320 Speaker 2: heroin prices even though I'm paying way less for the 318 00:18:56,359 --> 00:18:59,600 Speaker 2: fentanyl that I'm using here. And yeah, people were caught 319 00:18:59,640 --> 00:19:03,399 Speaker 2: by some prize. The fact that it was duplicitous is 320 00:19:03,480 --> 00:19:06,560 Speaker 2: just awful because it's like, hey, good luck getting acclimated 321 00:19:06,560 --> 00:19:09,159 Speaker 2: to this there. It's gonna be a rough transition. But 322 00:19:09,240 --> 00:19:11,320 Speaker 2: if you look at it from a business standpoint, the 323 00:19:11,480 --> 00:19:15,480 Speaker 2: rollout of fentanyl into the American and European drug supplies, 324 00:19:15,760 --> 00:19:18,479 Speaker 2: it had terrible marketing, like it had zero marketing. It 325 00:19:18,520 --> 00:19:20,879 Speaker 2: was just all of a sudden there people started dying 326 00:19:21,119 --> 00:19:23,520 Speaker 2: and it took the authorities investigating what the heck was 327 00:19:23,560 --> 00:19:26,360 Speaker 2: going on for people to figure out that it was fentanyl. 328 00:19:26,680 --> 00:19:29,240 Speaker 2: That's how it was introduced. It was just so reckless. 329 00:19:29,960 --> 00:19:33,879 Speaker 2: I mean, I'm talking about heroin dealers being even more 330 00:19:33,960 --> 00:19:37,280 Speaker 2: reckless than they normally are. That's what happened with fentanyl 331 00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:40,440 Speaker 2: being introduced. It just suddenly popped up. No one said 332 00:19:40,440 --> 00:19:41,480 Speaker 2: anything about it first. 333 00:19:42,200 --> 00:19:45,000 Speaker 1: Yeah, and by the way, when I said safely do heroin, 334 00:19:46,359 --> 00:19:49,879 Speaker 1: I'm hope unclear than that there's doing heroin is never safe. 335 00:19:50,280 --> 00:19:53,919 Speaker 1: I just met heroin users would know how much they 336 00:19:53,960 --> 00:19:57,080 Speaker 1: can take without overdosing, right, yeah, okay, I just wanted 337 00:19:57,080 --> 00:19:58,359 Speaker 1: to make sure people do what I was. 338 00:19:58,640 --> 00:19:59,760 Speaker 2: I think that was worth mentioning. 339 00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:03,159 Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, good. So the other you know, problems with 340 00:20:03,280 --> 00:20:06,760 Speaker 1: ventanyl is that it has a really intense rush when 341 00:20:06,800 --> 00:20:08,800 Speaker 1: it's first used. Apparently it's more of a head rush 342 00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:11,600 Speaker 1: than a body rush, so it can be a little 343 00:20:11,640 --> 00:20:14,359 Speaker 1: more you can be a little more active as a 344 00:20:14,440 --> 00:20:17,080 Speaker 1: user than maybe doing heroin and just like passing out 345 00:20:17,080 --> 00:20:20,440 Speaker 1: on your couch for hours and hours. It's also dangerous 346 00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:23,119 Speaker 1: because the high is only an hour or two, so uh, 347 00:20:23,560 --> 00:20:26,439 Speaker 1: you know, heroin high lasts longer, so that short duration 348 00:20:27,119 --> 00:20:29,960 Speaker 1: is gonna you know, have people using more frequently, and 349 00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:33,440 Speaker 1: every time you use ventyl it's just another chance to overdose. Basically. 350 00:20:33,560 --> 00:20:36,679 Speaker 2: Yes, it's a great point. Yeah, and that has to 351 00:20:36,720 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 2: do with that fat solubility. Again, I said it before 352 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:40,119 Speaker 2: and I'll say it again. 353 00:20:40,640 --> 00:20:43,000 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean it can happen like a fentanyl overdose 354 00:20:43,040 --> 00:20:44,399 Speaker 1: can happen in seconds, right. 355 00:20:45,119 --> 00:20:48,239 Speaker 2: Yes, because the onset is so quick, which makes it 356 00:20:48,359 --> 00:20:51,080 Speaker 2: that's another reason that it's so deadly too, is you 357 00:20:51,119 --> 00:20:53,120 Speaker 2: don't have time to be like, oh man, there's frau 358 00:20:53,160 --> 00:20:55,479 Speaker 2: through on my buddy's mouth. I better call nine one 359 00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:58,320 Speaker 2: one because there's good Samaritan laws in my state. It's like, 360 00:20:58,680 --> 00:21:01,200 Speaker 2: oh my buddy just injected fentanyl and now they're dead. 361 00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:04,760 Speaker 2: I mean, it's it's not that fast necessarily, but compared 362 00:21:04,760 --> 00:21:07,439 Speaker 2: to heroin, it is. And yeah, I think it's measured 363 00:21:07,440 --> 00:21:08,800 Speaker 2: in like seconds. 364 00:21:09,000 --> 00:21:12,159 Speaker 1: Yeah, it certainly can be. Another thing that makes it 365 00:21:12,200 --> 00:21:15,040 Speaker 1: more deadly is that people started changing how they used it. 366 00:21:15,720 --> 00:21:18,960 Speaker 1: Among people who died from illegal fentanyl overdoses, the portion 367 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:23,040 Speaker 1: who injected dropped forty two percent over just a two 368 00:21:23,080 --> 00:21:27,840 Speaker 1: year period between twenty and twenty twenty two, and they 369 00:21:27,960 --> 00:21:30,840 Speaker 1: generally started smoking it that jumped to seventy nine percent. 370 00:21:31,920 --> 00:21:36,679 Speaker 1: I believe people also can snort the powder, but just 371 00:21:36,760 --> 00:21:39,440 Speaker 1: the fact that people aren't injecting it as much kind 372 00:21:39,480 --> 00:21:43,680 Speaker 1: of you know, if you connect the dots, somebody might 373 00:21:43,720 --> 00:21:46,840 Speaker 1: dive into using it a little quicker, if they're like, hey, 374 00:21:46,880 --> 00:21:49,680 Speaker 1: just snort this thing instead of hey, shoot up this thing. 375 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:52,600 Speaker 2: Yeah, because that's a big barrier for a lot of 376 00:21:52,640 --> 00:21:56,320 Speaker 2: people who are like I like drugs, but I'm not 377 00:21:56,440 --> 00:21:58,840 Speaker 2: gonna stick a needle in my arm. That just seems 378 00:21:58,920 --> 00:22:01,679 Speaker 2: like such a a horrible road to go down that 379 00:22:01,760 --> 00:22:05,080 Speaker 2: it will give people second thoughts. But smoking something geez, 380 00:22:05,320 --> 00:22:08,040 Speaker 2: I like marijuana, I like smoking crack, I might as 381 00:22:08,040 --> 00:22:10,639 Speaker 2: well try smoking fentanyl. It's just much less of a 382 00:22:10,640 --> 00:22:11,680 Speaker 2: barrier to overcome. 383 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:14,919 Speaker 1: Yeah, And if you're smoking it or snorting it, it 384 00:22:14,960 --> 00:22:16,720 Speaker 1: doesn't stay in your body as long as if you 385 00:22:16,720 --> 00:22:19,639 Speaker 1: shoot it, so again, just another case of it wears 386 00:22:19,680 --> 00:22:22,879 Speaker 1: off quicker and you're gonna want to use it again, 387 00:22:22,960 --> 00:22:25,000 Speaker 1: and that's just another overdose opportunity. 388 00:22:25,119 --> 00:22:28,119 Speaker 2: Yes, yeah, I mean it's crazy if you think about it, 389 00:22:28,160 --> 00:22:31,600 Speaker 2: because most other drugs that you smoke you could conceivably 390 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:35,399 Speaker 2: overdose on. But fentanyl, even though you're smoking it and 391 00:22:35,440 --> 00:22:38,320 Speaker 2: not injecting it, there's still a really good chance that 392 00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:41,560 Speaker 2: you could overdose and die from just smoking it. That's 393 00:22:41,680 --> 00:22:43,800 Speaker 2: kind of mind boggling, but it's accurate. 394 00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:46,639 Speaker 1: Yeah, And you know, we're talking about smoking it and 395 00:22:46,680 --> 00:22:49,600 Speaker 1: snorting it and like powder and a bad kind of stuff. 396 00:22:50,200 --> 00:22:54,600 Speaker 1: But the real danger now, and the real problem all 397 00:22:54,640 --> 00:22:56,560 Speaker 1: of it is, of course, but the real, real scary 398 00:22:56,600 --> 00:23:01,280 Speaker 1: thing is the fact that these are generally sold and 399 00:23:01,640 --> 00:23:05,280 Speaker 1: the us CAS's pills. I think by late twenty twenty one, 400 00:23:05,280 --> 00:23:07,439 Speaker 1: more than a quarter of the fentanyl seized was in 401 00:23:07,520 --> 00:23:10,800 Speaker 1: pill form, And a lot of these pills are they 402 00:23:10,840 --> 00:23:14,879 Speaker 1: look like something else. You hear stories on the news 403 00:23:14,920 --> 00:23:19,119 Speaker 1: about a kid that did not want to take fentanyl, 404 00:23:19,240 --> 00:23:22,120 Speaker 1: that thought they were taking something else and it ended 405 00:23:22,200 --> 00:23:26,199 Speaker 1: up being either laced with fentanyl or largely fentanyl, and 406 00:23:26,280 --> 00:23:28,240 Speaker 1: they overdose without even knowing they took it. 407 00:23:28,560 --> 00:23:30,800 Speaker 2: Yeah, and it's kind of hard to wrap your head around, 408 00:23:30,840 --> 00:23:33,439 Speaker 2: like why would somebody send you that? Like how evil 409 00:23:33,520 --> 00:23:38,920 Speaker 2: could you be? But apparently fentanyl pills are very frequently 410 00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:43,800 Speaker 2: created to look like old OxyContin what are called M thirty's, 411 00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:47,480 Speaker 2: So it would be very easy for something to be like, 412 00:23:47,520 --> 00:23:51,840 Speaker 2: oh cool, here's an OxyContin. Fentanyl users know what they're doing. 413 00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:54,359 Speaker 2: But if you didn't, we're in a fentanyl user and 414 00:23:54,400 --> 00:23:57,520 Speaker 2: you just wanted an oxy contin. That's how you could 415 00:23:57,600 --> 00:23:59,919 Speaker 2: die of an overdose fairly quickly. And those are, like 416 00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:01,440 Speaker 2: you said, those are the stories that you hear on 417 00:24:01,520 --> 00:24:03,680 Speaker 2: the news. I don't think it's a very frequent thing, 418 00:24:03,760 --> 00:24:06,879 Speaker 2: but when it does happen, it's just horrific. 419 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:11,280 Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure. Or if you say you want to 420 00:24:11,560 --> 00:24:13,639 Speaker 1: use some cocaine. You're like, Hey, that's my thing. Do 421 00:24:13,720 --> 00:24:15,840 Speaker 1: it every now and then on a Saturday night, I'm 422 00:24:15,840 --> 00:24:19,119 Speaker 1: going to get some of that stuff. For the same reasons, 423 00:24:19,320 --> 00:24:21,840 Speaker 1: Heroin is cut with ventyl. Cocaine can be as well, 424 00:24:22,440 --> 00:24:26,400 Speaker 1: So that's not even the same kind of high. You're 425 00:24:26,440 --> 00:24:29,080 Speaker 1: looking for cocaine. You may never in your life have 426 00:24:29,160 --> 00:24:32,080 Speaker 1: taken anything like morphine or heroine, and all of a 427 00:24:32,080 --> 00:24:35,439 Speaker 1: sudden you're snorting fentanyl without knowing it and you're on 428 00:24:35,480 --> 00:24:35,919 Speaker 1: the floor. 429 00:24:36,240 --> 00:24:39,359 Speaker 2: Yeah, just a reminder, speedballs are what killed not just 430 00:24:39,440 --> 00:24:43,480 Speaker 2: John Belushi, but Chris Farley as well. And apparently this 431 00:24:43,960 --> 00:24:46,800 Speaker 2: is that fourth wave that we were talking about of 432 00:24:47,480 --> 00:24:52,320 Speaker 2: speedball in fentanyl, with cocaine or with meth. And it's 433 00:24:52,359 --> 00:24:55,040 Speaker 2: not just where dealers are cutting it and not telling 434 00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:59,680 Speaker 2: their buyers, like buyers are seeking this out. And apparently 435 00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:03,880 Speaker 2: this fourth wave has kind of caught black Americans up 436 00:25:04,080 --> 00:25:06,960 Speaker 2: into it more than the other previous waves have. 437 00:25:07,640 --> 00:25:12,520 Speaker 1: Oh really, yeah, all right, Well, I guess we can 438 00:25:12,560 --> 00:25:15,240 Speaker 1: talk a little bit about where it comes from. A 439 00:25:15,240 --> 00:25:18,040 Speaker 1: lot of it that smuggled into the US was originally 440 00:25:18,040 --> 00:25:21,359 Speaker 1: made in China, but in twenty nineteen China said you 441 00:25:21,400 --> 00:25:25,600 Speaker 1: cannot produce her sell fitting all anymore, and some people 442 00:25:25,680 --> 00:25:29,080 Speaker 1: stop doing it, but a lot of manufacturers continued doing so, 443 00:25:29,920 --> 00:25:33,480 Speaker 1: sometimes through Legit means that you made it very easy 444 00:25:33,520 --> 00:25:36,160 Speaker 1: to ship, but then they also turned to the black 445 00:25:36,160 --> 00:25:39,399 Speaker 1: market to ship directly to customers in the US and Europe, 446 00:25:39,560 --> 00:25:44,320 Speaker 1: or hey, let's ship the stuff over to Mexico and 447 00:25:44,400 --> 00:25:46,760 Speaker 1: these cartels and they can just kind of put it 448 00:25:46,800 --> 00:25:49,680 Speaker 1: together there and work as the distributor for US. 449 00:25:50,080 --> 00:25:52,879 Speaker 2: Yeah. So the cartels are getting these precursors, they're turning 450 00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:57,040 Speaker 2: around and distributing the precursors to cooks who I read 451 00:25:57,080 --> 00:26:02,000 Speaker 2: like a Univision story, so they just I guess we're 452 00:26:02,119 --> 00:26:05,760 Speaker 2: interviewing some random ventanyl cook in Mexico. It was like 453 00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:08,800 Speaker 2: three twenty year olds who were just standing out in 454 00:26:08,800 --> 00:26:11,560 Speaker 2: the woods under a black tarp with a pot on 455 00:26:11,640 --> 00:26:13,600 Speaker 2: top of a fire, just stirring it like it was 456 00:26:13,880 --> 00:26:17,040 Speaker 2: really easy to make. And then that stuff goes back 457 00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:20,760 Speaker 2: to the cartels to smuggle across the border and sell. 458 00:26:22,119 --> 00:26:25,399 Speaker 1: Yeah. Another myth we can kind of bust here as 459 00:26:25,400 --> 00:26:29,080 Speaker 1: far as where it comes from, is that in recent years, 460 00:26:29,119 --> 00:26:32,560 Speaker 1: there have been politicians that have tried to link the 461 00:26:33,200 --> 00:26:36,520 Speaker 1: influx of fentanyl in the United States to illegal immigration, 462 00:26:37,359 --> 00:26:39,280 Speaker 1: And there was a poll in twenty twenty two that 463 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:43,240 Speaker 1: found that forty percent of Americans believed that most ventanyl 464 00:26:43,359 --> 00:26:47,920 Speaker 1: entering the country was being smuggled by illegal immigrants, basically, 465 00:26:49,040 --> 00:26:52,120 Speaker 1: and that's that's not true. The truth is is that 466 00:26:53,119 --> 00:26:55,800 Speaker 1: most of this drug comes through legal points of entry, 467 00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:59,480 Speaker 1: and when it does, it is smuggled in in a 468 00:26:59,560 --> 00:27:01,640 Speaker 1: vehicle driven by US citizens. 469 00:27:01,880 --> 00:27:05,480 Speaker 2: Yeah, most often American women. And I think the Cato 470 00:27:05,600 --> 00:27:08,640 Speaker 2: Institute did a study where they found eighty six point 471 00:27:08,800 --> 00:27:13,879 Speaker 2: three percent of convicted fentanyl smugglers are American citizens, So 472 00:27:13,920 --> 00:27:15,560 Speaker 2: that seems to be totally untrue. 473 00:27:16,240 --> 00:27:18,119 Speaker 1: Yeah, but apparently. 474 00:27:17,680 --> 00:27:19,600 Speaker 2: This is a I think this is a measure of 475 00:27:19,640 --> 00:27:24,080 Speaker 2: how how bad fentanyl is, because I mean, Chuck, we're 476 00:27:24,119 --> 00:27:27,159 Speaker 2: pretty fentanyl naive. I've never done feentanyl. I'm making a 477 00:27:27,160 --> 00:27:29,600 Speaker 2: pretty good assumption that you've never done fetanyl and kept 478 00:27:29,600 --> 00:27:34,159 Speaker 2: it a secret from me. So it's entirely possible that 479 00:27:34,240 --> 00:27:37,439 Speaker 2: within this whole thing, we've passed along some myth or 480 00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:41,320 Speaker 2: exaggeration without being aware of it. Yeah, and for that, 481 00:27:41,480 --> 00:27:45,600 Speaker 2: I'm sorry. The thing is, it seems that the overall 482 00:27:46,280 --> 00:27:51,200 Speaker 2: theme that fentanyl is incredibly deadly and on a level 483 00:27:51,640 --> 00:27:54,440 Speaker 2: unlike any other drug that's ever hit the US market, 484 00:27:55,840 --> 00:27:58,280 Speaker 2: so much so that it's like, just don't do drugs. 485 00:27:58,280 --> 00:28:01,440 Speaker 2: It's too dangerous because because of the presence of fentanyl. 486 00:28:02,720 --> 00:28:07,200 Speaker 2: I think that holds and I think this supports that thesis. 487 00:28:08,000 --> 00:28:13,560 Speaker 2: In Cineloa, the Cineloa Cartel has a ban on selling 488 00:28:13,640 --> 00:28:17,399 Speaker 2: fentanyl in Sineloa punishable by death. So if you're a 489 00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:20,399 Speaker 2: drug dealer in Cineloa and the Cineloa Cartel catches you 490 00:28:20,920 --> 00:28:25,800 Speaker 2: selling fentanyl in their state in Mexico where they're supplying 491 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:28,239 Speaker 2: the rest of the world with fentanyl, they'll kill you. 492 00:28:28,720 --> 00:28:30,639 Speaker 2: I think that says just about everything you need to 493 00:28:30,680 --> 00:28:31,520 Speaker 2: know about fentanyl. 494 00:28:32,200 --> 00:28:35,919 Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure. Should we take another break? All right, 495 00:28:35,960 --> 00:28:38,400 Speaker 1: We'll be back and talk about punishment and harm reduction 496 00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:51,880 Speaker 1: right after this. It's stuff. 497 00:29:12,560 --> 00:29:14,680 Speaker 2: So one of the things that's a little different about 498 00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:19,800 Speaker 2: the fentanyl epidemic is that it hasn't tracked closely or 499 00:29:19,920 --> 00:29:24,560 Speaker 2: identically to pass drug epidemics, where like the crack epidemic 500 00:29:24,800 --> 00:29:30,240 Speaker 2: or the cocaine epidemic, especially of like the nineties, where 501 00:29:30,440 --> 00:29:32,880 Speaker 2: or the eighties or nineties, where if you were caught 502 00:29:32,880 --> 00:29:35,440 Speaker 2: with it, especially if you're black, you're going to prison 503 00:29:35,560 --> 00:29:39,280 Speaker 2: for possibly the rest of your life. This time around, 504 00:29:39,360 --> 00:29:43,440 Speaker 2: it's been a little more there's been a little more 505 00:29:43,480 --> 00:29:46,720 Speaker 2: understanding that this is as much a public health crisis, 506 00:29:46,800 --> 00:29:49,520 Speaker 2: probably more of public health crisis than a crisis to 507 00:29:49,560 --> 00:29:54,080 Speaker 2: be addressed by law enforcement. And one of the more 508 00:29:54,120 --> 00:29:58,840 Speaker 2: cynical reasons why that's probable is because it's largely been 509 00:29:58,920 --> 00:30:02,840 Speaker 2: viewed publicly as a white issue, that it's mostly white 510 00:30:02,840 --> 00:30:05,600 Speaker 2: people who are overdosing and dying from ventanyl. 511 00:30:06,800 --> 00:30:10,720 Speaker 1: Well, let's say this. I don't remember anything growing up 512 00:30:10,760 --> 00:30:15,480 Speaker 1: in the eighties that said, let's help these people addicted 513 00:30:15,480 --> 00:30:15,840 Speaker 1: to crack. 514 00:30:16,400 --> 00:30:19,640 Speaker 2: No, you were just morally reprehensible and your kid was 515 00:30:19,640 --> 00:30:20,680 Speaker 2: probably screwed up. 516 00:30:21,080 --> 00:30:24,280 Speaker 1: Throw away the key is what you got. So yeah, 517 00:30:24,320 --> 00:30:27,040 Speaker 1: I don't think that's cynical. I think that's absolutely the truth. 518 00:30:27,840 --> 00:30:30,640 Speaker 1: So thankfully they're taking a little bit different approach. We've 519 00:30:30,680 --> 00:30:34,080 Speaker 1: gotten a little bit smarter about this stuff, and now 520 00:30:34,080 --> 00:30:37,160 Speaker 1: we're focusing. We're trying to focus on harm what's called 521 00:30:37,160 --> 00:30:40,320 Speaker 1: harm reduction techniques, basically trying to keep people from dying. 522 00:30:41,640 --> 00:30:43,720 Speaker 1: A bunch of different things have been tried, and a 523 00:30:43,720 --> 00:30:46,160 Speaker 1: lot of it has been fairly effective. As we're seeing 524 00:30:46,200 --> 00:30:50,560 Speaker 1: like the numbers going down in overdoses, but distributing test strips. 525 00:30:51,120 --> 00:30:53,640 Speaker 1: So if you buy a pill, or if you buy 526 00:30:53,720 --> 00:30:55,880 Speaker 1: cocaine or something, and you have a test strip, you 527 00:30:55,920 --> 00:30:59,080 Speaker 1: can test to see if that drug has ventanyl before 528 00:30:59,120 --> 00:31:02,280 Speaker 1: you use it, or maybe your dealer even offers that service. 529 00:31:02,640 --> 00:31:03,640 Speaker 2: That's really something. 530 00:31:04,400 --> 00:31:07,200 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, if you want to be a and 531 00:31:07,280 --> 00:31:11,080 Speaker 1: again I say reputable drug dealer with sort of scare quotes, 532 00:31:11,080 --> 00:31:13,440 Speaker 1: but I would imagine that's a good thing to do, 533 00:31:13,480 --> 00:31:15,680 Speaker 1: is say, hey, this stuff is pure. I got a 534 00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:17,640 Speaker 1: test strip here, and you can test it to make 535 00:31:17,680 --> 00:31:19,720 Speaker 1: sure that you can be a repeat customer and not 536 00:31:19,840 --> 00:31:20,720 Speaker 1: dead on the sidewalk. 537 00:31:20,840 --> 00:31:23,520 Speaker 2: Yeah. And I think that the test strips have helped 538 00:31:23,520 --> 00:31:26,120 Speaker 2: a lot of people, if not save their lives. The 539 00:31:26,480 --> 00:31:29,000 Speaker 2: problem with them that I've seen is that all they 540 00:31:29,040 --> 00:31:32,200 Speaker 2: do is show that there is fentanyl present. It doesn't 541 00:31:32,240 --> 00:31:35,600 Speaker 2: say whether it's a fentanyl analog like car fentanyl that's 542 00:31:35,640 --> 00:31:39,080 Speaker 2: one hundred times stronger than fentanyl. It doesn't say how 543 00:31:39,160 --> 00:31:41,400 Speaker 2: much fentanyl is in there, so is it just a 544 00:31:41,440 --> 00:31:44,320 Speaker 2: little bit or is it like a kill you sized dose. 545 00:31:44,680 --> 00:31:47,760 Speaker 2: But if you're like I don't do fentanyl, those test 546 00:31:47,800 --> 00:31:49,360 Speaker 2: trips are going to get quite a bit, like I 547 00:31:49,440 --> 00:31:53,320 Speaker 2: just want cocaine. Stop putting fentanyl in my cocaine. Those 548 00:31:53,360 --> 00:31:55,479 Speaker 2: test strips are going to help you, and they're going 549 00:31:55,560 --> 00:31:57,560 Speaker 2: to tick you off because I mean, I don't think 550 00:31:57,600 --> 00:32:00,560 Speaker 2: you can take cocaine back to the deal learn get 551 00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:02,760 Speaker 2: your money back because it had fentanyl in it. Although 552 00:32:03,120 --> 00:32:05,400 Speaker 2: who knows with kids these days. 553 00:32:06,120 --> 00:32:11,240 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean that these newer generations may demand return restitution. 554 00:32:12,840 --> 00:32:16,040 Speaker 1: So another thing that they can do is, you know, 555 00:32:16,080 --> 00:32:18,880 Speaker 1: they're safe places where people can go use the drugs 556 00:32:19,360 --> 00:32:22,520 Speaker 1: while people watch out for you. The drug users themselves 557 00:32:22,640 --> 00:32:25,640 Speaker 1: seem to have wizened up a little bit because of 558 00:32:25,680 --> 00:32:29,600 Speaker 1: all the news and probably seeing their friends die very sadly. 559 00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:32,240 Speaker 1: But they may take, you know, dip their toe in 560 00:32:32,240 --> 00:32:33,680 Speaker 1: the water a little bit at first and take a 561 00:32:33,680 --> 00:32:36,360 Speaker 1: smaller dose. Or they may if they're with a group 562 00:32:36,400 --> 00:32:39,760 Speaker 1: that's using stagger the doses so people can be standing 563 00:32:39,800 --> 00:32:42,000 Speaker 1: by with that narcan in case one of their friends 564 00:32:42,440 --> 00:32:43,040 Speaker 1: passes out. 565 00:32:43,160 --> 00:32:45,480 Speaker 2: I wonder if, like you, they draw straws to see 566 00:32:45,520 --> 00:32:49,800 Speaker 2: what order everybody does drugs in, Like, how do they 567 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:52,720 Speaker 2: how do they determine who's going to go last? 568 00:32:53,120 --> 00:32:57,560 Speaker 1: Any medium monuments? Okay, the age old the traditionally exactly, 569 00:32:58,520 --> 00:33:01,120 Speaker 1: But I did mention Narcan and that is the brand 570 00:33:01,200 --> 00:33:08,320 Speaker 1: name for naloxone or nelaxone, and that can redse reverse 571 00:33:08,320 --> 00:33:12,479 Speaker 1: an overdose. And like, I have only one anecdotal example. 572 00:33:12,480 --> 00:33:14,240 Speaker 1: I don't know if it always works this way, but 573 00:33:15,120 --> 00:33:18,040 Speaker 1: one day quite a few years ago, a car just 574 00:33:18,120 --> 00:33:21,040 Speaker 1: kind of pulled around the corner and parked across the street, 575 00:33:21,880 --> 00:33:24,920 Speaker 1: and this dude got out of the car and his 576 00:33:25,000 --> 00:33:26,960 Speaker 1: girlfriend was like passed out, and it was clear that 577 00:33:27,000 --> 00:33:31,520 Speaker 1: it was a drug thing. Luckily, my Cross Street neighbors 578 00:33:31,520 --> 00:33:33,960 Speaker 1: a nurse. She called nine one one. Immediately they showed 579 00:33:34,000 --> 00:33:37,120 Speaker 1: up with narcan and dude they injected that, and this 580 00:33:37,160 --> 00:33:41,600 Speaker 1: girl was walking around and like saying, can I get 581 00:33:41,680 --> 00:33:43,600 Speaker 1: Can we leave now? Like minutes later? 582 00:33:43,720 --> 00:33:47,440 Speaker 2: Wow, yeah, I mean it just reverses an overdose, right. 583 00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:50,160 Speaker 1: Yeah, but I do. I mean, I don't know what 584 00:33:50,320 --> 00:33:53,480 Speaker 1: happens after that. All I saw was this snapshot where 585 00:33:53,480 --> 00:33:55,560 Speaker 1: she was like, I want to get out of here, 586 00:33:55,640 --> 00:33:57,840 Speaker 1: and I don't know what the law the laws are 587 00:33:57,880 --> 00:33:59,440 Speaker 1: as far as that kind of stuff goes. But the 588 00:34:00,040 --> 00:34:02,280 Speaker 1: ambulance I don't think is allowed to call the cops 589 00:34:02,320 --> 00:34:06,200 Speaker 1: on you. If I'm not mistaken. I think they're just like, Okay, 590 00:34:06,240 --> 00:34:07,000 Speaker 1: I guess you can go. 591 00:34:07,320 --> 00:34:10,520 Speaker 2: Yeah. I don't know the law in Georgia or anywhere really, but. 592 00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:13,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, those laws are called something what is it, good 593 00:34:13,680 --> 00:34:16,239 Speaker 1: Samaritan laws? Oh okay, yeah, I guess that's it. 594 00:34:16,320 --> 00:34:18,319 Speaker 2: So you would be protected, but that wouldn't matter. It's 595 00:34:18,320 --> 00:34:20,239 Speaker 2: more like, if you're shooting up with your friend and 596 00:34:20,280 --> 00:34:22,760 Speaker 2: your friend overdoses and you have a bunch of heroin 597 00:34:22,840 --> 00:34:26,919 Speaker 2: or fentanyl on you, you can't be prosecuted for having that. 598 00:34:27,280 --> 00:34:31,480 Speaker 2: I mean, I'm sure to an extent because you just 599 00:34:31,520 --> 00:34:34,680 Speaker 2: because you called for help to help your friend and 600 00:34:34,800 --> 00:34:36,359 Speaker 2: the cops ended up showing up to you. 601 00:34:37,160 --> 00:34:39,440 Speaker 1: Yeah, and I didn't look this up, But can't you 602 00:34:39,480 --> 00:34:40,440 Speaker 1: just buy a narcan? 603 00:34:40,960 --> 00:34:45,520 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's getting much more widely available. Okay, Yeah, but 604 00:34:45,600 --> 00:34:49,200 Speaker 2: let's talk a little bit about overdoses because there's some 605 00:34:49,640 --> 00:34:51,480 Speaker 2: One of the telltale signs I think it's not just 606 00:34:51,520 --> 00:34:54,120 Speaker 2: with fentanyl, with heroin as well, or opioids in general, 607 00:34:54,640 --> 00:34:57,719 Speaker 2: is it can produce fluid in the lungs, so that 608 00:34:57,760 --> 00:35:01,560 Speaker 2: a telltale sign of an overdose is froth around the 609 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:04,439 Speaker 2: mouth or in the notes. Once that happens, you need 610 00:35:04,480 --> 00:35:08,040 Speaker 2: to act pretty quickly, and one of the things that 611 00:35:08,080 --> 00:35:11,160 Speaker 2: they say to do first is rub your knuckles on 612 00:35:11,200 --> 00:35:15,440 Speaker 2: their chests kind of hard, because it's a very uncomfortable 613 00:35:15,440 --> 00:35:18,240 Speaker 2: thing to have done to you, and it can snap 614 00:35:18,320 --> 00:35:23,200 Speaker 2: you out of a opioid stupor even that. But if 615 00:35:23,200 --> 00:35:26,440 Speaker 2: they don't respond, then it's you need to call nine 616 00:35:26,440 --> 00:35:29,280 Speaker 2: to one to one and or administered in the lockxown. 617 00:35:30,320 --> 00:35:32,360 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean in the brain stem, there are a 618 00:35:32,360 --> 00:35:34,719 Speaker 1: couple of regions, the medulla and the ponds, and they 619 00:35:34,800 --> 00:35:37,440 Speaker 1: control the depth and rate of breathing. But both of 620 00:35:37,440 --> 00:35:42,000 Speaker 1: those have a lot of opioid receptors. So if you 621 00:35:42,080 --> 00:35:45,040 Speaker 1: do fentanyl and they attach to those receptors, which they will, 622 00:35:45,560 --> 00:35:48,120 Speaker 1: they can change the behaviors of the cells such that 623 00:35:48,160 --> 00:35:51,160 Speaker 1: they just stop working and you just literally just stop breathing, 624 00:35:51,400 --> 00:35:52,520 Speaker 1: like it's that simple. 625 00:35:52,640 --> 00:35:55,359 Speaker 2: Yeah, And it's even worse than that, actually, because there's 626 00:35:55,360 --> 00:35:57,640 Speaker 2: also opio receptors in the parts of your brain that 627 00:35:57,719 --> 00:36:00,399 Speaker 2: control voluntary breathing. So like when you're like I need 628 00:36:00,400 --> 00:36:02,040 Speaker 2: to catch my breath and you take a deep breath, 629 00:36:02,120 --> 00:36:05,960 Speaker 2: or if you're meditating, when you purposefully breathe, that is 630 00:36:06,040 --> 00:36:10,640 Speaker 2: repressed as well, so you have involuntary breathing and voluntary 631 00:36:10,680 --> 00:36:15,279 Speaker 2: breathing or repressed, and this thing that detects rises in 632 00:36:15,400 --> 00:36:18,480 Speaker 2: CO two in your body that gets repressed as well. 633 00:36:18,560 --> 00:36:25,160 Speaker 1: Right, Yeah, So basically, if you want to take that 634 00:36:25,200 --> 00:36:27,440 Speaker 1: deep breath, if you've since like you're in trouble, I'm like, 635 00:36:27,480 --> 00:36:28,880 Speaker 1: oh man, I got to get a big breath of 636 00:36:28,920 --> 00:36:33,520 Speaker 1: air here. You just do that normally, But little small 637 00:36:33,560 --> 00:36:37,239 Speaker 1: increases in CO two are sensed, and thekarated body it's 638 00:36:37,239 --> 00:36:39,479 Speaker 1: a little small cluster of sales in the neck. They're 639 00:36:39,520 --> 00:36:42,040 Speaker 1: going to spur that increase in breathing to remove that 640 00:36:42,120 --> 00:36:45,759 Speaker 1: excess CEOs two. But if that's not working and that 641 00:36:45,840 --> 00:36:49,640 Speaker 1: emergency sort of fail safe is switched off, then again 642 00:36:49,719 --> 00:36:52,280 Speaker 1: you can't even get that big breath to save yourself. 643 00:36:52,400 --> 00:36:54,759 Speaker 2: Yeah, So breathing, I think you said early on that 644 00:36:55,640 --> 00:37:01,840 Speaker 2: typically is where fatal overdoses. It's just you just stop breathing, 645 00:37:02,160 --> 00:37:04,360 Speaker 2: stop being able to breathe. But there's other ways you 646 00:37:04,400 --> 00:37:06,640 Speaker 2: could die. I think you mentioned heart attack earlier too. 647 00:37:07,200 --> 00:37:10,839 Speaker 2: Another famous one with opioids is your gag reflex is suppressed. 648 00:37:11,480 --> 00:37:14,879 Speaker 2: So if you're basically knotted off and you throw up, 649 00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:18,600 Speaker 2: say you've been drinking as well, you're not going to 650 00:37:19,320 --> 00:37:22,320 Speaker 2: choke that stuff out or spit it out or throw 651 00:37:22,360 --> 00:37:24,399 Speaker 2: it up out of your mouth. It can just stay 652 00:37:24,400 --> 00:37:26,280 Speaker 2: in your mouth and it can go down your lungs 653 00:37:26,280 --> 00:37:29,160 Speaker 2: and you aspirate and or choke on your own vomit. 654 00:37:29,480 --> 00:37:32,000 Speaker 2: That's another way you can die from an overdose as well. 655 00:37:32,840 --> 00:37:34,360 Speaker 1: I was waiting to see if you were going to 656 00:37:34,400 --> 00:37:37,080 Speaker 1: come up with like a fourth way to say pukey? 657 00:37:37,600 --> 00:37:38,960 Speaker 2: Did I say a bunch of different ways? 658 00:37:39,239 --> 00:37:41,440 Speaker 1: You said, like three, you like spit it up or 659 00:37:41,520 --> 00:37:43,719 Speaker 1: vomit it up or choke ers yeack it up. 660 00:37:44,239 --> 00:37:46,560 Speaker 2: I was like, we get it blow chunks it up. 661 00:37:47,640 --> 00:37:51,080 Speaker 1: Oh God. So as far as treatment goes, it kind 662 00:37:51,120 --> 00:37:53,320 Speaker 1: of goes and locks up with what they do for heroin. 663 00:37:53,360 --> 00:37:56,800 Speaker 1: It's called medication assisted treatment or MATT. That's kind of 664 00:37:56,800 --> 00:38:01,600 Speaker 1: the gold standard. We're talking about either methadone or how 665 00:38:01,600 --> 00:38:07,480 Speaker 1: do you say that, bupa norphine. If you get methadone, 666 00:38:07,520 --> 00:38:09,120 Speaker 1: it's going to be done at a clinic. It's not 667 00:38:09,160 --> 00:38:11,319 Speaker 1: like they just hand that out at the pharmacy, which 668 00:38:11,360 --> 00:38:12,759 Speaker 1: means you have to go to that clinic. You got 669 00:38:12,840 --> 00:38:14,759 Speaker 1: to wait in line a lot of times. You got 670 00:38:14,760 --> 00:38:18,040 Speaker 1: to do it there. The other one, I believe is 671 00:38:18,120 --> 00:38:20,120 Speaker 1: given in the form or I guess the brand name 672 00:38:20,960 --> 00:38:26,439 Speaker 1: subox Owne, and I think you can you can get 673 00:38:26,440 --> 00:38:29,319 Speaker 1: that prescribed. But a lot of people are like, hey, 674 00:38:29,880 --> 00:38:34,040 Speaker 1: you know, go to drug rehab and just quit doing 675 00:38:34,080 --> 00:38:36,279 Speaker 1: all this stuff because you're still on another drug. If 676 00:38:36,280 --> 00:38:38,840 Speaker 1: you're going to a methadone clinic every day, right. 677 00:38:38,960 --> 00:38:41,520 Speaker 2: A lot of people don't have access to the kind 678 00:38:41,560 --> 00:38:45,439 Speaker 2: of doctor that's going to prescribe that for them. There's 679 00:38:45,480 --> 00:38:48,799 Speaker 2: a lot, like even among medical professionals still believe it 680 00:38:48,880 --> 00:38:51,640 Speaker 2: or not, there's still a lot of stigma associated with 681 00:38:51,719 --> 00:38:57,239 Speaker 2: being an opioid addict. Yeah, which is pretty rich considering 682 00:38:57,280 --> 00:39:01,000 Speaker 2: the American physicians, a significant chunk of them got America 683 00:39:01,040 --> 00:39:04,000 Speaker 2: hooked on opioids in the first place. But that's neither 684 00:39:04,040 --> 00:39:07,200 Speaker 2: here nor there right now. So I think there was 685 00:39:07,239 --> 00:39:11,000 Speaker 2: a study from twenty twenty two that the CDC conducted 686 00:39:11,280 --> 00:39:14,360 Speaker 2: where they said that of the three point seven percent 687 00:39:14,800 --> 00:39:17,800 Speaker 2: of all adults in the United States who need medication 688 00:39:17,920 --> 00:39:22,239 Speaker 2: assisted treatment, I think only about twenty five percent of 689 00:39:22,280 --> 00:39:25,319 Speaker 2: that three point seven percent, we're able to get it. 690 00:39:26,080 --> 00:39:26,400 Speaker 1: Yeah. 691 00:39:26,440 --> 00:39:28,120 Speaker 2: One of the other ways that you can get off 692 00:39:28,160 --> 00:39:30,640 Speaker 2: of it is to go to prison where they are 693 00:39:30,719 --> 00:39:33,640 Speaker 2: just like, good luck drying out. 694 00:39:34,200 --> 00:39:36,160 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's that's no. 695 00:39:36,160 --> 00:39:38,480 Speaker 2: Way to kick no. And the problem with it, too 696 00:39:38,560 --> 00:39:41,160 Speaker 2: is not just like that's I can't imagine going through that. 697 00:39:42,080 --> 00:39:44,919 Speaker 2: But if you get out of prison or say you're 698 00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:48,120 Speaker 2: able to get heroin or something or fentanyl in prison 699 00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:51,759 Speaker 2: after you've kicked it, your tolerance has dropped. And we 700 00:39:51,800 --> 00:39:54,520 Speaker 2: talked about this in our Heroin episode in twenty twenty. 701 00:39:55,160 --> 00:40:00,239 Speaker 2: But your tolerance has dropped, and so your likelihoo of 702 00:40:00,280 --> 00:40:02,719 Speaker 2: an overdose is through the roof compared to what it 703 00:40:02,800 --> 00:40:06,280 Speaker 2: was before you kicked heroin the hard way or fatanyl. 704 00:40:05,920 --> 00:40:10,080 Speaker 1: The hard way. Yeah, so we busted the myth about 705 00:40:10,160 --> 00:40:14,279 Speaker 1: illegal immigrants smuggling this into the country. Earlier, there was 706 00:40:14,320 --> 00:40:18,319 Speaker 1: another myth apparently police departments kind of spread this one 707 00:40:19,040 --> 00:40:23,520 Speaker 1: that touching fentanyl at all or inhaling just trades amounts 708 00:40:23,560 --> 00:40:27,880 Speaker 1: can overdose you. Apparently that came from a twenty sixteen 709 00:40:28,040 --> 00:40:33,120 Speaker 1: US DEA advisory to claim that was possible. But this 710 00:40:33,239 --> 00:40:36,160 Speaker 1: is sort of annoying because it's not you know, generally 711 00:40:36,200 --> 00:40:38,680 Speaker 1: absorbed through the skin. They have those transdermal patches, but 712 00:40:38,719 --> 00:40:42,279 Speaker 1: it's not like helping someone like shaking somebody on the 713 00:40:42,280 --> 00:40:44,680 Speaker 1: ground or something can get it into your skin that way, 714 00:40:45,920 --> 00:40:50,640 Speaker 1: or inhaling enough to overdose you. Is like, there's no 715 00:40:50,719 --> 00:40:54,120 Speaker 1: way you would accidentally inhale enough to overdose. 716 00:40:53,760 --> 00:40:57,359 Speaker 2: Right, But there's cases of like first responders in paramedics 717 00:40:57,360 --> 00:41:03,239 Speaker 2: suffering from exposure two very small amounts of fentanyl and 718 00:41:03,239 --> 00:41:05,680 Speaker 2: people are like, what the heck's going on. The best 719 00:41:05,680 --> 00:41:09,800 Speaker 2: explanation is that it's it's what's called the culture bound syndrome, 720 00:41:10,160 --> 00:41:14,319 Speaker 2: this expectation that it can happen. It leads to a 721 00:41:14,360 --> 00:41:18,160 Speaker 2: nocebo effect where the person essentially freaks themselves out into 722 00:41:18,200 --> 00:41:22,040 Speaker 2: a panic attack, and it's it's they're like, I just 723 00:41:22,120 --> 00:41:25,400 Speaker 2: had I just odd on fentanyl, just from touching a 724 00:41:25,400 --> 00:41:29,360 Speaker 2: little bit of it. Yeah, that's the best explanation. It 725 00:41:29,400 --> 00:41:32,520 Speaker 2: makes sense. The point is is like, you like, interacting 726 00:41:32,520 --> 00:41:35,839 Speaker 2: with somebody who's odd on fentanyl. Isn't going to give 727 00:41:35,880 --> 00:41:37,480 Speaker 2: you a fentanyl high or overdose? 728 00:41:38,360 --> 00:41:41,759 Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure. Another myth, I guess the final myth 729 00:41:41,760 --> 00:41:45,520 Speaker 1: that we can bust is if you hear somebody saying, like, 730 00:41:45,560 --> 00:41:47,279 Speaker 1: you know, all these unhoused people in the streets, it's 731 00:41:47,280 --> 00:41:50,040 Speaker 1: all because of fentanyl. They're out they're they're homeless now 732 00:41:50,440 --> 00:41:54,279 Speaker 1: they're in your neighborhoods. And this is because of this epidemic. 733 00:41:55,440 --> 00:41:59,359 Speaker 1: I'm sure that has happened where people you know, can't 734 00:41:59,360 --> 00:42:01,279 Speaker 1: pay their rent and on the street because of an 735 00:42:01,280 --> 00:42:05,680 Speaker 1: addiction like that. Sometimes people turn to drugs after the 736 00:42:05,719 --> 00:42:08,319 Speaker 1: fact if they are in house. But if you look 737 00:42:08,320 --> 00:42:10,880 Speaker 1: at it on a macro level, the data shows that 738 00:42:11,080 --> 00:42:14,960 Speaker 1: the reason America has an unhoused crisis like we do 739 00:42:15,040 --> 00:42:18,279 Speaker 1: now is mainly because of the cost of housing. It's 740 00:42:18,320 --> 00:42:22,799 Speaker 1: not drug use, it's not mental illness, it's not unemployment, 741 00:42:22,880 --> 00:42:25,080 Speaker 1: even all those things are a factor, not saying they 742 00:42:25,120 --> 00:42:26,920 Speaker 1: don't count, but it's the cost of housing. 743 00:42:27,080 --> 00:42:30,640 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's crazy. Look at all the morality we associate 744 00:42:30,680 --> 00:42:34,719 Speaker 2: with drugs, Like it's brought in by illegal immigrants, drug 745 00:42:34,840 --> 00:42:40,319 Speaker 2: users accidentally create overdoses, and first responders and paramedics trying 746 00:42:40,320 --> 00:42:44,600 Speaker 2: to help them. It's the reason for homelessness, Like it's all. 747 00:42:45,000 --> 00:42:48,680 Speaker 2: There's all moral judgments associated with all of those things. Yeah, 748 00:42:48,719 --> 00:42:51,360 Speaker 2: and you're associated with the drug. And anybody who doesn't 749 00:42:51,600 --> 00:42:55,040 Speaker 2: do that drug and loves first responders, doesn't like illegal immigrants, 750 00:42:55,080 --> 00:42:57,600 Speaker 2: and doesn't like homeless people, is going to hate that drug. 751 00:42:57,640 --> 00:42:58,480 Speaker 2: From that point on. 752 00:42:59,239 --> 00:43:01,880 Speaker 1: Yeah, the drug, it was okay by the FDA, and 753 00:43:01,920 --> 00:43:05,200 Speaker 1: that you know, wealthy pharmaceutical families in this country's got 754 00:43:05,280 --> 00:43:06,040 Speaker 1: rich off of Yeah. 755 00:43:06,080 --> 00:43:09,120 Speaker 2: Well, let's just say again, fentanyl is perfectly safe in 756 00:43:09,640 --> 00:43:12,560 Speaker 2: like a medical setting in the hands of the trained professional. 757 00:43:12,600 --> 00:43:17,320 Speaker 2: It's just outside of that when when cartels become involved 758 00:43:17,320 --> 00:43:20,839 Speaker 2: and it's it becomes a huge problem. But I said, 759 00:43:20,840 --> 00:43:23,200 Speaker 2: at the outset, there is a silver lining or at 760 00:43:23,280 --> 00:43:27,279 Speaker 2: least some hope because they're the use is well. First 761 00:43:27,280 --> 00:43:30,040 Speaker 2: of all, opioid deaths are declining. I think they peaked 762 00:43:30,040 --> 00:43:33,000 Speaker 2: in twenty twenty two with one hundred and eight thousand 763 00:43:33,080 --> 00:43:37,560 Speaker 2: opioid overdose deaths in the United States, and the numbers 764 00:43:37,560 --> 00:43:41,120 Speaker 2: aren't in for twenty twenty four, but they think the 765 00:43:41,400 --> 00:43:43,640 Speaker 2: estimate is that it's going to be anywhere between a 766 00:43:43,680 --> 00:43:49,160 Speaker 2: fifteen to twenty percent drop in overdose deaths from fentanyl. 767 00:43:49,440 --> 00:43:52,719 Speaker 2: And they say, okay, well, Chuck, why why are these 768 00:43:52,760 --> 00:43:55,359 Speaker 2: fentanyl deaths finally subsiding? What's the deal? 769 00:43:56,520 --> 00:43:59,200 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean there could be. It's it's probably most 770 00:43:59,280 --> 00:44:01,880 Speaker 1: of these things combined. When you look at it on 771 00:44:01,920 --> 00:44:05,840 Speaker 1: a bird's eye perspective. A lot of people say, the 772 00:44:06,200 --> 00:44:09,200 Speaker 1: testing strips have made a big deal, that narcan has 773 00:44:09,239 --> 00:44:12,799 Speaker 1: made a big difference, that MATT treatment has made a 774 00:44:12,800 --> 00:44:17,640 Speaker 1: big difference. One reason is because drug users have gotten 775 00:44:17,680 --> 00:44:20,399 Speaker 1: a little bit smarter. Like I mentioned earlier, some people 776 00:44:20,440 --> 00:44:23,920 Speaker 1: are trying to avoid it altogether. Some people are, like 777 00:44:23,960 --> 00:44:25,719 Speaker 1: I said, dipping their toe in the pond or making 778 00:44:25,719 --> 00:44:29,320 Speaker 1: sure their friends don't overdose. One of the saddest possible 779 00:44:29,360 --> 00:44:32,399 Speaker 1: factors is that so many people have died off there 780 00:44:32,440 --> 00:44:35,200 Speaker 1: just aren't as many active users anymore for that reason. 781 00:44:35,320 --> 00:44:39,880 Speaker 2: Yeah, there was. Yeah, you were saying that, like younger 782 00:44:39,920 --> 00:44:42,600 Speaker 2: generations might have been scared away from it. 783 00:44:43,800 --> 00:44:44,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's another reason. 784 00:44:44,760 --> 00:44:47,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, apparently I thought you said that. So apparently gen 785 00:44:47,320 --> 00:44:52,759 Speaker 2: Z is unlikely or less likely to use drugs. I 786 00:44:52,800 --> 00:44:56,000 Speaker 2: think like sixty seven of twelfth graders said that they 787 00:44:56,120 --> 00:44:59,400 Speaker 2: abstained from drugs, meaning that they hadn't taken any drugs 788 00:44:59,600 --> 00:45:02,279 Speaker 2: in the last thirty days. And I was like, I 789 00:45:02,320 --> 00:45:04,279 Speaker 2: wonder what that is compared to gen X back and 790 00:45:04,760 --> 00:45:05,920 Speaker 2: when we were in high school. 791 00:45:06,239 --> 00:45:07,319 Speaker 1: Oh my god, And I. 792 00:45:07,239 --> 00:45:09,680 Speaker 2: Was like, this is this is gonna be crazy. It 793 00:45:09,760 --> 00:45:11,840 Speaker 2: is crazy, but it's the opposite way you would think 794 00:45:12,360 --> 00:45:16,280 Speaker 2: the I think I can't remember what US agency conducts 795 00:45:16,280 --> 00:45:20,080 Speaker 2: this every year, but in nineteen ninety three, high school 796 00:45:20,080 --> 00:45:23,319 Speaker 2: seniors said that eighty one point seven percent said that 797 00:45:23,360 --> 00:45:26,040 Speaker 2: they had abstained from drugs in the last thirty days. 798 00:45:26,200 --> 00:45:28,839 Speaker 2: So gen Z is on way more drugs than gen 799 00:45:29,040 --> 00:45:30,960 Speaker 2: X was, which is very surprising to me. 800 00:45:32,040 --> 00:45:35,160 Speaker 1: Or gen X is a generation of liars. 801 00:45:35,320 --> 00:45:38,120 Speaker 2: That's entirely possible too, are you Narkman. 802 00:45:39,800 --> 00:45:41,719 Speaker 1: Yeah, I don't know. I mean, I was a good 803 00:45:41,719 --> 00:45:44,480 Speaker 1: boy growing up, but I certainly I feel like all 804 00:45:44,520 --> 00:45:45,720 Speaker 1: my friends were doing all the drugs. 805 00:45:45,760 --> 00:45:49,040 Speaker 2: I wonder if it really is there is it's just 806 00:45:49,080 --> 00:45:51,440 Speaker 2: a lot more prevalence of drug use because it's so 807 00:45:51,640 --> 00:45:54,200 Speaker 2: easy to get it on the internet, and it used 808 00:45:54,200 --> 00:45:56,040 Speaker 2: to be hard back when we were in high school 809 00:45:56,560 --> 00:45:58,440 Speaker 2: for people maybe drugs in high school. 810 00:45:59,239 --> 00:46:04,080 Speaker 1: Well, I mean, there's definitely improved international cooperation between the 811 00:46:04,160 --> 00:46:07,360 Speaker 1: United States and other countries just to reduce the supply. 812 00:46:07,520 --> 00:46:10,319 Speaker 1: That US of Mexico has gotten together, and they've been 813 00:46:10,320 --> 00:46:13,560 Speaker 1: working together for a while now trying to intercept those 814 00:46:13,640 --> 00:46:16,560 Speaker 1: drug shipments and trying to you know, mess up the 815 00:46:16,560 --> 00:46:20,560 Speaker 1: cartel and what their activities, what the cartel is doing. 816 00:46:21,440 --> 00:46:24,480 Speaker 1: I think in twenty twenty four. Last year, the Mountain 817 00:46:24,480 --> 00:46:27,560 Speaker 1: of Fitnel crossing that border dropped by about twenty percent. 818 00:46:27,719 --> 00:46:28,680 Speaker 1: So that's pretty good. 819 00:46:29,480 --> 00:46:31,359 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean that's pretty significant. 820 00:46:31,840 --> 00:46:33,839 Speaker 1: What else I got? Nothing else? 821 00:46:34,320 --> 00:46:36,960 Speaker 2: Well, I guess we should probably say before we end 822 00:46:36,960 --> 00:46:41,520 Speaker 2: the episode, Chuck, if you do fentanyl in your addicted 823 00:46:41,560 --> 00:46:45,200 Speaker 2: to fentanyl, please seek as whatever help you can find 824 00:46:45,280 --> 00:46:47,560 Speaker 2: to get off of it. And if you haven't tried 825 00:46:47,560 --> 00:46:49,960 Speaker 2: it yet, probably you shouldn't start. 826 00:46:50,880 --> 00:46:53,040 Speaker 1: Yeah, i'd say not even probably, let's say definitely do. 827 00:46:53,200 --> 00:46:57,000 Speaker 2: Okay, Well, since Chuck corrected me from probably to definitely, 828 00:46:57,440 --> 00:46:59,520 Speaker 2: as was foretold in two thousand and eight, he is 829 00:46:59,640 --> 00:47:00,680 Speaker 2: just god listener. 830 00:47:00,719 --> 00:47:07,040 Speaker 1: Now, all right, there's another two part around disaster movies, 831 00:47:07,640 --> 00:47:10,120 Speaker 1: because we heard from two African American listeners, because I 832 00:47:10,200 --> 00:47:15,480 Speaker 1: specifically asked, like, how mad are you about the fact 833 00:47:15,520 --> 00:47:18,400 Speaker 1: that black people get killed in movies and horror movies 834 00:47:18,640 --> 00:47:21,879 Speaker 1: and disaster movies routinely and that's just such a well 835 00:47:21,880 --> 00:47:25,680 Speaker 1: known trope, And we heard from a couple of faithful listeners. Hey, guys, 836 00:47:26,160 --> 00:47:28,520 Speaker 1: you asked if it's still a thing amongst black people 837 00:47:28,560 --> 00:47:30,560 Speaker 1: about being the first to die in scary movies. Yes, 838 00:47:30,600 --> 00:47:33,080 Speaker 1: it is still a running joke, of course, but there's 839 00:47:33,120 --> 00:47:35,520 Speaker 1: more to it now I found. I'm finding as an 840 00:47:35,560 --> 00:47:38,560 Speaker 1: African American and avid movie watcher, the new thing is 841 00:47:38,600 --> 00:47:41,279 Speaker 1: the black person often dies in sacrifice of something or 842 00:47:41,280 --> 00:47:43,880 Speaker 1: someone else. So yes, we still may go first in 843 00:47:43,920 --> 00:47:46,719 Speaker 1: the film, but often for a noble cause. I guess 844 00:47:46,760 --> 00:47:51,040 Speaker 1: that makes it more palatable. Lol. That is from Serena 845 00:47:51,440 --> 00:47:54,120 Speaker 1: and then this is from Kevin. First of all, I'm 846 00:47:54,120 --> 00:47:57,480 Speaker 1: a casual fan of this subgenre, enjoy the exciting thrills 847 00:47:57,480 --> 00:47:59,800 Speaker 1: that come with it. For years, it's become common knowledge 848 00:48:00,000 --> 00:48:03,200 Speaker 1: black people will rarely lead or survive to the end 849 00:48:03,239 --> 00:48:05,360 Speaker 1: of those movies, as well as other genre movies like 850 00:48:05,400 --> 00:48:09,759 Speaker 1: horror or romcom in mainstream Hollywood. It doesn't make me mad, though, guys, 851 00:48:09,800 --> 00:48:11,719 Speaker 1: because at the end of the day, I just want 852 00:48:11,760 --> 00:48:13,520 Speaker 1: the escapism of the movie. I don't want to think 853 00:48:13,520 --> 00:48:18,160 Speaker 1: about the socio economics behind everything. But I understand that 854 00:48:18,239 --> 00:48:20,680 Speaker 1: Hollywood has catered to a white audience since the beginning, 855 00:48:21,120 --> 00:48:23,440 Speaker 1: as they figure that this is a safe bet financially 856 00:48:23,920 --> 00:48:27,799 Speaker 1: and minorities are expendable. My movie watching friends pretty much 857 00:48:27,880 --> 00:48:30,840 Speaker 1: know who will survive and who will hook up, and 858 00:48:30,920 --> 00:48:33,080 Speaker 1: we just want to enjoy the show. But I am 859 00:48:33,080 --> 00:48:34,879 Speaker 1: glad to live in a time where we are having 860 00:48:34,880 --> 00:48:38,319 Speaker 1: more representation behind the scenes to pull more strings in 861 00:48:38,360 --> 00:48:40,520 Speaker 1: our favor. Keep up the good work and that is 862 00:48:40,640 --> 00:48:42,680 Speaker 1: again Kevin and then Serena. 863 00:48:42,760 --> 00:48:46,120 Speaker 2: Awesome, thanks Kevin and Serena. That reminds me of a 864 00:48:46,160 --> 00:48:48,360 Speaker 2: point online to make that I didn't have a chance 865 00:48:48,400 --> 00:48:53,879 Speaker 2: to in Earthquake. Richard Rowntree aka Shaft, he was in that. 866 00:48:54,080 --> 00:48:56,520 Speaker 2: He made it to the end, and he was also 867 00:48:56,600 --> 00:49:01,400 Speaker 2: one of the heroes helping save Jenna Vie. M my 868 00:49:01,480 --> 00:49:02,480 Speaker 2: saying your name correctly. 869 00:49:03,360 --> 00:49:05,600 Speaker 1: I don't know, but I know that Richard Rowntree is 870 00:49:05,960 --> 00:49:07,400 Speaker 1: almost always the hero. Yeah. 871 00:49:07,400 --> 00:49:10,840 Speaker 2: So yeah, he was like a motorcycle stuntman, so he 872 00:49:10,960 --> 00:49:14,360 Speaker 2: was sadly an exception, but he definitely did make it 873 00:49:14,400 --> 00:49:14,919 Speaker 2: to the end. 874 00:49:14,840 --> 00:49:17,680 Speaker 1: Which was great. Yeah. Nice work, Nice. 875 00:49:17,480 --> 00:49:19,799 Speaker 2: Work, Richard Rowntree. And if you want to be like 876 00:49:19,880 --> 00:49:22,319 Speaker 2: Kevin and Serena and want to share your thoughts with us, 877 00:49:22,320 --> 00:49:24,480 Speaker 2: we love that kind of thing. You can send us 878 00:49:24,480 --> 00:49:29,880 Speaker 2: an email of the Stuff podcast at iHeartRadio dot com. 879 00:49:30,080 --> 00:49:32,960 Speaker 1: Stuff You Should Know is a production of iHeartRadio. For 880 00:49:33,040 --> 00:49:37,239 Speaker 1: more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 881 00:49:37,360 --> 00:49:39,200 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows,