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The ‘Flesh-Eating Drug’ Fear: What’s Really Happening in Vancouver’s Drug Crisis
In recent years, media outlets and social platforms have been reporting on a so-called “flesh-eating drug” spreading through Canada’s illicit drug scene, sparking concern among residents and public health officials alike. Much of this discussion centers around a veterinary tranquilizer called xylazine, an emerging adulterant in the unregulated drug supply that has drawn attention for its severe health impacts when mixed with substances like fentanyl.
What Is Xylazine
Xylazine is a non-opioid sedative and tranquilizer commonly used in veterinary medicine to sedate large animals such as horses and cattle. It is not approved for human use in Canada.
In the illicit drug market, xylazine is often mixed with fentanyl and other substances, usually without the user’s knowledge, because it can:
• Prolong the effects of fentanyl, which alone has a short duration of action.
• Increase the bulk or weight of the drug mixture, making it appealing to traffickers seeking profit.
Because xylazine isn’t an opioid, naloxone — the emergency overdose antidote — cannot reverse its effects.
Why the ‘Flesh-Eating’ Label
Reports and social media posts from communities, including those in Vancouver, have used terms like “flesh-eating drug” or “zombie drug” to describe the severe skin wounds and ulcers that can occur among people exposed to xylazine in contaminated drug supplies. These wounds can be deep, slow to heal, and prone to infection, especially for individuals injecting or otherwise using unregulated substances over time.
However, it’s important to stress that:
• Xylazine itself doesn’t literally “eat flesh” like an acid, but it has been associated with severe skin ulcers and infections that may appear as if the tissue is decaying.
• These wounds are often the result of multiple factors, including injection practices, poor wound care, immune suppression, and the toxic nature of contaminated drug supplies.
• Media framing using terms like “zombie drug” can increase stigma toward people who use drugs, potentially discouraging them from seeking medical help.
Is Xylazine Widespread in Vancouver?
Data from drug-checking programs and public health reports show that xylazine has been increasingly detected in Canada’s unregulated drug supply, including in British Columbia, though the prevalence in Vancouver is generally lower than in certain U.S. cities where it has been more prominent.
Public drug checking services in the Vancouver area and across BC have identified xylazine in a growing number of opioid samples, often alongside fentanyl. Because traditional drug testing tools sometimes miss low concentrations of xylazine, the true extent of its presence is not fully known.
The Broader Overdose Crisis
It’s critical to understand that xylazine is just one part of a wider toxic drug crisis in Vancouver and across Canada:
• The overdose crisis in BC continues with high rates of fentanyl-related poisonings and deaths.
• Police and health agencies have been seizing large quantities of illicit drugs, including fentanyl production labs and street distribution networks.
• Public health officials continue to emphasize that most overdose deaths in Canada are primarily driven by potent opioids like fentanyl, often mixed with other substances.
What Public Health Experts Say
Health authorities and harm-reduction advocates stress these key messages:
1. No illegal drug is safe — the contents and potency of unregulated substances are unpredictable.
2. Drug users may not know what’s in the drugs they take, which increases risk for overdose, respiratory depression, and other harms.
3. Naloxone should still be administered in suspected overdoses because even when xylazine is present, powerful opioids like fentanyl are usually involved.
4. Community supports like drug-checking services, wound care programs, and supervised consumption sites play a vital role in reducing harm.
Conclusion
The narrative of a “flesh-eating drug” sweeping Vancouver reflects real concerns about the evolving nature of the toxic drug supply, but it is an oversimplification rooted in sensational language. The core of the issue is the unregulated and unpredictable drug market, where substances like fentanyl and emerging contaminants like xylazine pose grave risks to public health.
Efforts to address this crisis require compassionate, evidence-based public health responses, expanded harm-reduction resources, and community engagement — not just headlines that amplify fear and stigma.
Attached is a news article regarding flesh eating drug taking over Canada Vancouver
https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/krokodil-hype-is-toxic-flesh-eating-street-drug-in-canada-1.2435122
Article written and configured by Christopher Stanley
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