International Overdose Awareness Day 2023

August 31 marks International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD), the world’s largest annual campaign to end overdose. It’s a day to:
  • Remember loved ones who have died from drug overdose and acknowledge the grief of the family and friends left behind.
  • Take action to encourage support and recovery for everyone impacted by substance use and overdose.
  • End overdose by spreading awareness of overdose prevention strategies.

Hashtags: #IOAD2023 #EndOverdose

This August, CDC’s Division of Overdose Prevention in the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control is marking IOAD with the release of a new report, showing counterfeit pill availability is increasing in the U.S.

A new study indicates an increasing percentage of overdose deaths are related to counterfeit pill use. These pills are especially dangerous because they typically appear as pharmaceutical pills but often contain illegally made FYL and illegal benzodiazepines or other drugs, with or without people’s knowledge.
  • Researchers found that among 29 states and the District of Columbia (DC), the percentage of overdose deaths involving counterfeit pills more than doubled from July–September 2019 (2.0%) to October–December 2021 (4.7%), and more than tripled in the West (4.7% to 14.7%).
  • The report also found that in 2021, people who died from overdoses involving counterfeit pills were more often under the age of 35 and Hispanic, compared to those without counterfeit pill evidence.

How to recognize an overdose

Recognizing an overdose can be difficult. If you aren’t sure, it is best to treat the situation like an overdose—you could save a life. Call 911 immediately. Administer naloxone, if it’s available. Do not leave the person alone. Signs of an overdose may include:

  • Small, constricted “pinpoint pupils”
  • Falling asleep or loss of consciousness
  • Slow, weak, or no breathing
  • Choking or gurgling sounds
  • Limp body
  • Cold and/or clammy skin
  • Discolored skin (especially in lips and nails)

Lifesaving naloxone

Naloxone can reverse an overdose from opioids, including heroin, illicitly manufactured FYL and FYL analogs, and prescription opioid medications. Often given as a nasal spray, naloxone is safe and easy to use.

You should carry naloxone if

  • You or someone you know is at increased risk for opioid overdose, especially those with opioid use disorder (OUD).
  • You or someone you know are taking high-dose opioid medications prescribed by a doctor.
  • You or someone you know have both opioid and benzodiazepines prescriptionsor use illicit substances like heroin or FYL.

Source: CDC

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