A commonly used drug is involved in more fatal accidents than alcohol, heroin or cocaine, according to a new report.
The annual drug safety advocate Penington Institute’s overdose report shows that there were 544 unintentional deaths involving benzodiazepines in 2021.
The drug is better known by trade names such as Xanax and Valium and is commonly used by one in 20 Australians.
With 554 accidental deaths, it is the second most common drug involved in accidental overdose deaths, with opioids taking the top spot.
A drug taken by one in 20 Australians leads to more accidental deaths than alcohol, according to the Penington Institute’s annual drug policy overdose report. A woman is depicted looking at a bottle of pills
The number of accidental deaths involving alcohol was significantly lower than benzodiazepines, with less than 400 deaths recorded over the same period.
Benzodiazepines are prescribed for anxiety, stress, insomnia and sometimes back pain, but deaths involving these substances usually occur in combination with other drugs, such as opioids and alcohol.
“We have a huge problem that we’re not tackling, because nobody is really activated by the toll of overdoses,” John Ryan, CEO of the Penington Institute, told Daily Mail Australia.
It is no exaggeration to speak of an overdose crisis. Overdose deaths in Australia have been exceeding tolls since 2014, and we see little to no action to demonstrably change this,” he said.
About 1.4 million Australians were prescribed 5.1 million scripts of benzodiazepines in 2020-2021, with many unaware of the dangers of combining them with other substances such as alcohol.
“Many of these deaths are preventable. And if we actually put our shoulders to the wheel, we can save lives,” says Ryan.
“The level of pharmaceutical use in the Australian community is quite high. We are a healthy and prosperous country with a long life expectancy, so it is generally good that we have access to health care.’
But benzodiazepines are far from risk-free drugs.
“Dependence is a very big problem with benzodiazepines because after you’ve been taking them for a long time it’s really hard to actually stop taking them and that has to be done under medical supervision,” he said.
“There are a lot of overdoses and I think that’s partly because they have such a long half-life (the time it takes for the amount of a drug’s active substance to drop in your body by half).
The number of accidental deaths involving alcohol was significantly lower than benzodiazepines, with less than 400 deaths recorded within the same period
About 1.4 million Australians were prescribed 5.1 million scripts of benzodiazepines in 2020-2021, with many unaware of the dangers of combining them with other substances or alcohol. Various pills are depicted
“And so they affect people’s breathing capacity long after people have felt the effects of those drugs, so they even forgot[taking them]but it still actually has an impact.”
Mr Ryan said mixing drugs can be deadly. “We have a terrible lack of knowledge about how drugs interact with each other and how they multiply and have a multiplying effect.
‘So if you use opioids and benzo separately, you run much less risk of an overdose than if you use them in combination. The combination enhances the effect of each drug.
“And so if you’re on benzos with alcohol and opioids, you’re really in trouble.”
He said that while Australian doctors are careful about prescribing medicines, patients can make mistakes and go against medical instructions.
“One of the mistakes is thinking, I’m stressed, I’m in pain and I just need to take a little bit more of what I’ve been prescribed… that’s one of the big risks.”
Mr Ryan said the public perception that a drug overdose is something that just happens to a heroin user on a city center street is not correct.
“The epicenter of the problem is actually the use of prescription drugs in suburban and regional and rural Australia.”
In addition to the number of prescription drug overdoses, there has also been an increase in the use of counterfeit versions of benzodiazepines such as Xanax.
“One of the patterns we’ve seen over the years is the increasing amount of synthetic drugs,” he said.
“There’s a good reason for drug traffickers to switch to synthetics instead of the old-fashioned, by growing it in the ground from coca or opium poppies, you know, cocaine or heroin.
“Now it is manufactured on weekends in an industrial factory, and so is fentanyl in the US.
“We have a huge problem that we don’t have to deal with because nobody really gets triggered by the toll of overdoses,” said John Ryan, CEO of the Penington Institute (pictured).
‘But in Australia we have seen a very significant increase in illicit benzodiazepines. So it has nothing to do with doctors and pharmacists, but everything with illegal supplies.’
Mr Ryan, some of those who use counterfeit benzodiazepines are ‘young people who are notorious for taking risks and not very good at thinking about the consequences.
“Then, of course, there are people who are desperately dependent and buy it on the illegal market,” he said.
Part of the reason governments aren’t taking action to address this is that they really need to think about pharmaceutical drugs that are legitimately accessed, illegal drugs that are accessed illegally, and alcohol, which is also a big part of it. of the overdose problem.
“So it really goes through all parts of the system and the community.”