IOWA, USA — Aug. 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird says she's concerned with the trends her office is tracking when it comes to opioid overdoses in the state.
"As a mom it really worries me when I see what's going on with opioids targeting young people in the way that they're marketed through social media and the fact that they can look like candy," Bird said.
Bird says the way young people are finding illicit drugs has changed over the years.
"Drug dealers have turned to social media to market and to sell illegal drugs," she told Local 5. "And that includes all kinds of social media applications that kids would use."
According to the DEA, two milligrams of fentanyl is enough to kill someone.
"Just one pill can kill someone, even the first time they've used the drug," Bird said.
She adds fentanyl overdoses are now the leading cause of death for Americans 18 to 45 years old. Some Democratic legislators in Iowa have called for decriminalizing fentanyl test strips to help combat overdoses, though Bird does not support the idea.
"There is no safe way to use an illegal drug and I think that is the message that I want to drive home with people. There is no safe way to use an illegal drug."
She says if you have old prescriptions at home they need to be disposed of in a drug take-back box before they fall into the wrong hands.
"Studies show that when there are opiate prescriptions that are household it raises the risk of those residing household members becoming addicted to opioids," Bird said.
For help here in Iowa, call the YOUR LIFE IOWA hotline at 855-581-8111 It is free, confidential and runs 24/7. You can also text them at 855-895-8398.