Drug use among young people is on the rise. Not only has there been a 61 percent increase in drug use among eighth-graders between 2016 and 2020, but around half of the teenagers have admitted to missing drugs at least once. This is causing alarm, and we need to stay on top of trends that could increase drug abuse in 2022.
Snapchat Drugs
By now, adults are well aware of the potential dangers of the Internet and social media, especially for young people. Social media has been a breeding ground for scammers and predators for years, and now drug dealers are using Snapchat and other social media networks to sell drugs. While nobody is going to just be offered drugs out of the blue on social media, those who know how to find a dealer can usually find one without much trouble. It’s been said that buying drugs online through social media is as easy as ordering a pizza; you make a payment or payment arrangements, and the drugs are shipped directly to your house.
Unfortunately, there is no way to know what is in the drugs that are being bought on Snapchat. Young people are taking counterfeit Xanax and Percocet that has been laced with fentanyl, and some of them have died as a result.
Marijuana Laced with Fentanyl
Recent reports have shown that fentanyl is starting to show up in marijuana. While marijuana isn’t physically addictive, it can become that way when it is mixed with fentanyl. Fentanyl can be deadly, and it has already been found in marijuana by a Connecticut lab this past November. It stands to reason that more fentanyl-laced marijuana will turn up in 2022.
Paint
Recent reports say that a new street drug called “paint” has been found in a California high school. Paint is a highly addictive psychedelic pill that is sold for prices as low as $5 a pill. So far, it has only been found in California, and not much is known about it. Early reports describe the pills as clear with reddish-brown dust. Paint is something of an unknown quantity right now, but it stands to reason that it could become more popular this year.