Late August, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the painkiller OxyContin for use in young kids aged 11 to 16 years of age.
It is well known that prescription opioids like OxyContin are “addictive” and could lead to heroin use, as the National Institute on Drug Abuse previously shared. So is this just another method of hooking a young demographic on pharmaceutical drugs when other tried and true methods have shown natural forms of pain alleviation? (Cannabis, anyone?)
This pharmaceutical drug is a powerful prescription opioid that essentially blocks pain receptors in the central nervous system. OxyContin is an extended-release form of oxycodone, therefore it requires fewer and less frequent doses to effectively manage pain. This function is seen by Herz as “useful” for its new pediatric use.
In a Q&A with the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER), FDA official Sharon Hertz stated that the agency asked the manufacturer Purdue Pharma to study the use of OxyContin for pediatric patients under the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act of 2002.
The results of a study in which OxyContin was prescribed to pediatric patients who had suffered from “extensive trauma” or who were recovering from “major surgery” was reviewed. The FDA then decided to approve the use of the medication for 11 to 16 year-old children, mandating that they must be able to tolerate a dose equivalent to 20 mg of immediate-lease oxycodone per day before taking the extended release drug. 
As The Daily Beast reports, when pharmaceuticals like OxyContin are taken recreationally to produce a high, they can be very dangerous and sometimes deadly.
In fact, in the US, opioid painkillers contributed to nearly 17,000 deaths in 2011, a threefold increase from 2001. Young men are reportedly much more likely to overdose than young women. A big concern is, even one dose larger than necessary can cause serious breathing problems and even death.
In addition, figures show than one in 30 high schoolers has abused Oxycontin. As InfoWars dimly conveys, the FDA’s decision will now ensure that Oxycontin is available to more teenagers who may choose to pass on or sell the drug to their friends.
The author notes that there is a time and a place for prescription drugs, especially when it comes to emergency medicine and needing to diffuse pain. But with countless studies proving the benefits of cannabis oil and holistic modalities of treatment for remedying the root cause of most modern-day diseases of affluence, the approval seems an error on part of the FDA and parents who allow their children to consume the addictive opioid.
What are your thoughts on this news? Do you think OxyContin should be dispersed to 5th graders? Comment below and share this article.
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