The Green Wave Gazette Winter 2016 | Page 11

W INTER 2016 P AGE 11 Fentanyl: A Dangerous Element in the Opioid Epidemic The deadly opiate is mixed with heroin Matthew Burbine Staff Writer According the Massachusetts State Police (as initially reported by WBURFM), Fentanyl the powerful and deadly synthetic opiate, was present in 336 of the people who died of an overdoes in the 12-month-period ending October 6, 2015; a 50 percent increase from the previous 12-month-period. potent than morphine. The National Institute on Drug Abuse warns that cutting heroin with fentanyl magnifies its potency and greatly increases the danger of an overdose. The CDC has determined that in 2014, Massachusetts had the second highest number of seizures due to illegally possessed fentanyl, which resulted in 630 confiscations of the drug. The fentanyl problem has become so serious that the CDC issued a nationwide health advisory outlining the dangers and recommending ways to prevent fentanylrelated deaths. Fentanyl is often mixed with heroin in order to create white heroin, according to masslive.com. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) states that fentanyl is prescribed to people with On November 24, Governor Charlie chronic pain associated with advanced Baker signed a law that made traffickcancer, and it is 50 to 100 times more ing in fentanyl a crime. According to masslive.com, “possession and distribution of fentanyl was already a crime, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The new law increases the penalty to 20 years in prison for someone distributing more than 10 grams.…” Fentanyl trafficking is a growing problem in this state. In October, a Massachusetts man was arrested for being connected to a major drug operation where 2,500 grams of pure fentanyl, more than 900 pills, two guns and over $73,000 in cash were seized by police (according to masslive.com). Opioid abuse is one of the most pressing health and public safety problems facing Massachusetts. Hopefully, this new legislation will deter fentanyl trafficking, and in turn, reduce the number of overdose deaths. Fentanyl patch packages from several german generic drug manufacturers. By Alcibiades (Own work) [Public domain via Wikimedia Commons] Winners Lose When They Use PEDs Devastating Effects on Reputation, Health and Wallet Bryson Andrews Contributor Based on his performance on the field, Barry Bonds was one of the best professional baseball players of all time. However, because it is widely believed that he used performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), he may have trouble getting voted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, and he is not the only one. Athletes who use, or may have used, illegal PED’s to increase their advantage on the playing fields, risk taking a very damaging hit to their reputations. According to an article by Dr. Benjamin Wedro in Emedicinehealth.com, “Anabolic steroids refer to hormones, taken either orally or by injection, that influence the body’s hormonal system to produce extra testosterone.” Athletes use this type of steroid to increase strength because they make muscles grow faster, but in reality they are destroying their hormone system by interfering with their cells’ homeostasis. It has very dangerous side effects on a person’s health, and most professional sports associations have banned them. They are also illegal without a prescription. According to an article written by Dan Peterson at LiveScience.com, “Anabolic steroids, perhaps the most commonly known PED, are synthetic derivations of the naturally produced hormone testosterone.” Testosterone helps to grow muscles and is involved in the onset of male puberty. Legally, steroids can help patients with low levels of testosterone and diseases like cancer or AIDS, but athletes use them to enhance the body’s natural muscle mass. When we lift weights heavier than usual, our muscle fibers tear and heal to make bigger and stronger muscles. Then, when the process is repeated, our muscles grow and grow. Using steroids does this at a faster pace, which is unhealthy. Steroids can cause many health risks including heart attacks, HIV, liver cancer and many other diseases. In men, steroids can cause infertility, and in women, sterility. Women can also experience excessive growth of body hair. Male pattern baldness can affect both sexes, as well as changes in secondary sexual characteristics. And, the legal ramificatio