Drugs contaminated with nitazenes: advice on staying safe
Nitazenes are a type of NSO (New Synthetic Opioid). Synthetic opioids are made in labs and mimic the effects of natural opioids such as heroin. They are often hundreds of times stronger than heroin and at least as potent as fentanyl.
There have been accidental overdoses and deaths of people across the country from heroin and other drugs that have been mixed with nitazenes.
There is a higher risk of overdose than usual from the drugs you might take. Your drugs may look the same, even if they are contaminated with nitazenes.
Advice for staying safe
Go low and slow: Be extra cautious about the sources you get your drugs from, and about the drugs you are taking. Starting with a quarter hit of a new supply is safer.
Don’t use alone: Make sure someone you trust is present and has a couple of naloxone kits.
If using with others: It's best if only one person uses the drug first and uses a smaller dose, waiting for the peak effects to pass.
Don't mix drugs: Using more than one drug increases your risk of overdose, including mixing with alcohol.
Look after your friends: Look out for the signs of an overdose, e.g. loss of consciousness, shallow or absent breathing, ‘snoring’ or loud ‘rasping’, and/or blue or grey lips or fingertips.
Call for an ambulance immediately if someone overdoses and give them naloxone. When you use naloxone, you should see it start to work in 2-3 minutes. If the person has not responded after 2-3 minutes, give them another dose and wait for 2-3 minutes again. The effects of naloxone will last for 20-40 minutes, but after that, they will wear off and the person will begin overdosing again. It’s important that the person still gets medical help during this time.
Ask for nitazene testing strips: from your nearest Change Grow Live service or use the testing service available at www.wedinos.org.
If you use opioids every day your local drug treatment service can support you and prescribe alternatives such as methadone and buprenorphine. Even if abstinence isn’t your goal these alternatives can help keep you safe. You will know what you are taking and your risk of overdose may be reduced.
If you are already in treatment for opioid dependence and you don’t want to use on top, speak to your worker and make sure you’re getting the right dose.
You can also use WEDINOS Sample Testing to test your drugs if you can spare a bit, but it takes time to get the results back so go easy in the meantime.