Westlake Word

Why is drug overdose rising in women? The drug overdose death rates in US women rose 260% in 2 Decades and the rate of drug overdose deaths from opioids increased by an enormous 492% among women aged 30 to 64, Maggie Fox of NBC says.

 

Within this drug epidemic, the death rates in women from overdose are higher than ever. Yet, not many people are noticing this issue in society. Specifically for the opioid epidemic, Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association states, “the stereotype is a man who's addicted to drugs who's ODing on the street, and we know that that stereotype is clearly not complete. It's inaccurate.” In this situation, part of the problem is the stereotype of men overdosing on drugs.

 

Whilst men may be more likely than women to use plenty of illegal substances, women are more likely to to develop cravings and relapse. Jacqueline Howards of CNN reports, specifically, when researchers looked at overdose death rates in U.S., women ages 30 to 64 from 1999 to 2017, the rate was 6.7 deaths per 100,000 women in 1999. As if this number was not enough, the rate rose to 24.3 per 100,000 women in 2017, she adds. This means that the total overdose deaths rose from 4,314 deaths to 18,110 deaths.

 

Opioids, a specific class of drugs that include the extremely illegal heroin and prescription opioids “clearly were overutilized for more than a decade” states Dr. Michael Lynch, medical director of the Pittsburgh Poison Center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical center. According to Sara Miller’s article, "Drug Overdose Death Rates in US Women Rise 260% in 2 Decades,” the drug overdose death rates from opioids increased by 492% in women ages 30 to 64; from 2.6 deaths per 100,000 women in 1999 to 15.5 deaths per 100,000 women in 2017.

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Although the dream solution would be getting rid of drugs, this “solution” is extremely unrealistic. According to Howard, a more realistic approach towards a solution would be for people “‘who are prescribing medications to do a much better job of -- particularly when prescribing for women -- talking about the risks and the relative risk of addiction.’” Undoubtedly, people everywhere still need medication to live their lives, and simply taking it away from them is impractical. People need to be educated on the subject and know the risks; and for the people who overdose on purpose, a control needs to be put on illegal drugs.

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A drug epidemic is taking over the U.S and possibly many more areas around the world. It is as if substance abuse is not taken seriously or not as controlled. The drugs themselves cannot be blamed anymore, it is the people not taking control of their lives and using one too many of those “safe” medication.

 

Works Cited

Fox, Maggie. "Biggest jump in drug overdoses was among middle-aged women." NBC News, NBCUniversal, 10 Jan. 2019, www.nbcnews.com/storyline/americas-heroin-epidemic/biggest-jump-drug-overdoses-was-among-middle-aged-women-n957211. Accessed 7 Feb. 2019.

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Howard, Jacqueline. "Drug overdose deaths skyrocketed among women." CNN, Turner Broadcasting System, 10 Jan. 2019, www.cnn.com/2019/01/10/health/drug-overdose-deaths-women-cdc-study/index.html. Accessed 7 Feb. 2019.

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Miller, Sara G. "Drug Overdose Death Rates in US Women Rise 260% in 2 Decades." Live Science, Purch, 10 Jan. 2019, www.livescience.com/64466-drug-overdose-deaths-women.html. Accessed 7 Feb. 2019.

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"Opioids." National Institute on Drug Abuse, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/opioids. Accessed 7 Feb. 2019.