Key Takeaways

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) on Monday released a public safety alert for a sharp increase in fake prescription pills laced with fentanyl and methamphetamine. In 2021, more than 9.5 million fake pills have been seized so far, more than the last two years combined, according to the DEA.

These fake pills may contain increased potency of already dangerous drugs and contribute to the overdose deaths, which have hit a record high during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Methamphetamine is extremely potent in one drop,”Nora Volkow, MD,director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), tells Verywell. “Dealers are not going to be mixing methamphetamine with properly manufactured prescription medication, because they’re much more expensive—it would cost them a lot of money.”

Lacing Already-Harmful Drugs With More Harmful Drugs

Fentanylis most commonly found in fake pills, but meth contamination is also increasing, according to the DEA. Fentanyl is also a contaminant in some illegal meth drug sales, the combination of which can be increasingly lethal, Volkow explains.

“The moment that you add fentanyl into any of these drugs that are manufactured, you make it much more powerful,” she says.

According to DEA lab testing, two out of every five pills with fentanyl have a potentially lethal dose.

Experts Advocate for Wider Use of Academic Medicine in Overdose Prevention

The study also showed that American Indian and Alaska Native communities are most at risk for meth misuse. Public health approaches should be tailored to address the needs of underserved communities, Volkow adds.

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Ongoing Research for Overdose Interventions

Therapeutic strategies like contingency management,a type of behavioral therapy where people are positively reinforced for a changing behavior, can yield positive results, she adds. Unfortunately, this cannot save someone who is actively overdosing.

“If someone is in the emergency department with a methamphetamine overdose, we don’t have any medications to solve that,” Volkow says.

NIDA is currentlysupporting a studythat examines how well monoclonal antibodies could work against meth overdoses.The antibodies may block the drug from entering the brain of the user, thus stopping it from producing harmful physical effects and addictive qualities.

“If you have the antibodies, then you’re not going to feel anything,” Volkow says. “Importantly, your brain will learn that this drug is no longer decreasing your craving; it’s ineffective. As it learns more and more, it starts to shift from having that craving and the desire to seek out that drug.”

Similar studies are in place to see how well a vaccine could work against methamphetamine toxicity.The vaccine is similarly to the proposed antibody treatment, but it would teach the body to generate antibodies instead. When comparing the two methods, monoclonal antibodies may be able to induce a more robust response, Volkow says.

If the patients are not ready to pursue sobriety, they may gravitate towards a different drug or increase their meth use to try to feel “high,” which would be dangerous, she adds. As a result, the treatment may not be effective for someone who is not ready to end an addiction and should be taken voluntarily.

What This Means For You

6 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Drug Enforcement Administration.Sharp increase in fake prescription pills containing fentanyl and meth.Han B, Compton WM, Jones CM, Einstein EB, Volkow ND.Methamphetamine use, methamphetamine use disorder, and associated overdose deaths among US adults.JAMA Psychiatry. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.2588Hossain MK, Hassanzadeganroudsari M, Nurgali K, Apostolopoulos V.Vaccine development against methamphetamine drug addiction.Expert Rev Vaccines. 19(12):1105-1114. doi:10.1080/14760584.2020.1857738Trivedi MH, Walker R, Ling W, et al.Bupropion and naltrexone in methamphetamine use disorder.N Engl J Med. 384(2):140-153. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2020214Petry NM.Contingency management: what it is and why psychiatrists should want to use it.Psychiatrist. 35(5):161-163. doi:10.1192/pb.bp.110.031831ClinicalTrials.gov.Meth-OD: a study of IXT-m200 in patients with toxicity from methamphetamine overdose (Meth-OD).

6 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Drug Enforcement Administration.Sharp increase in fake prescription pills containing fentanyl and meth.Han B, Compton WM, Jones CM, Einstein EB, Volkow ND.Methamphetamine use, methamphetamine use disorder, and associated overdose deaths among US adults.JAMA Psychiatry. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.2588Hossain MK, Hassanzadeganroudsari M, Nurgali K, Apostolopoulos V.Vaccine development against methamphetamine drug addiction.Expert Rev Vaccines. 19(12):1105-1114. doi:10.1080/14760584.2020.1857738Trivedi MH, Walker R, Ling W, et al.Bupropion and naltrexone in methamphetamine use disorder.N Engl J Med. 384(2):140-153. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2020214Petry NM.Contingency management: what it is and why psychiatrists should want to use it.Psychiatrist. 35(5):161-163. doi:10.1192/pb.bp.110.031831ClinicalTrials.gov.Meth-OD: a study of IXT-m200 in patients with toxicity from methamphetamine overdose (Meth-OD).

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Drug Enforcement Administration.Sharp increase in fake prescription pills containing fentanyl and meth.Han B, Compton WM, Jones CM, Einstein EB, Volkow ND.Methamphetamine use, methamphetamine use disorder, and associated overdose deaths among US adults.JAMA Psychiatry. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.2588Hossain MK, Hassanzadeganroudsari M, Nurgali K, Apostolopoulos V.Vaccine development against methamphetamine drug addiction.Expert Rev Vaccines. 19(12):1105-1114. doi:10.1080/14760584.2020.1857738Trivedi MH, Walker R, Ling W, et al.Bupropion and naltrexone in methamphetamine use disorder.N Engl J Med. 384(2):140-153. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2020214Petry NM.Contingency management: what it is and why psychiatrists should want to use it.Psychiatrist. 35(5):161-163. doi:10.1192/pb.bp.110.031831ClinicalTrials.gov.Meth-OD: a study of IXT-m200 in patients with toxicity from methamphetamine overdose (Meth-OD).

Drug Enforcement Administration.Sharp increase in fake prescription pills containing fentanyl and meth.

Han B, Compton WM, Jones CM, Einstein EB, Volkow ND.Methamphetamine use, methamphetamine use disorder, and associated overdose deaths among US adults.JAMA Psychiatry. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.2588

Hossain MK, Hassanzadeganroudsari M, Nurgali K, Apostolopoulos V.Vaccine development against methamphetamine drug addiction.Expert Rev Vaccines. 19(12):1105-1114. doi:10.1080/14760584.2020.1857738

Trivedi MH, Walker R, Ling W, et al.Bupropion and naltrexone in methamphetamine use disorder.N Engl J Med. 384(2):140-153. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2020214

Petry NM.Contingency management: what it is and why psychiatrists should want to use it.Psychiatrist. 35(5):161-163. doi:10.1192/pb.bp.110.031831

ClinicalTrials.gov.Meth-OD: a study of IXT-m200 in patients with toxicity from methamphetamine overdose (Meth-OD).

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