Drugs are sensitive substances that should not be toyed with under any circumstance. Doctors and pharmacists maintain that any medicine in the wrong hands is a potential poison.
Unfortunately that is usually the case in Nigeria. Anyone can lay their hands on any drugs so far they know where to access it.
Worried by the unregulated access to drugs, the National Chairman, Lagos state Chapter of the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria, Biola Paul-Ozieh , raised the alarm over the unusual demand for some classes of prescription drugs by teenagers in the country.
She said,” More young people are now abusing codeine and tramadol. They concoct these drugs to get high. The worst is the abuse of tramadol which is supposed to be a prescription drug. They ask for cough syrups that contain codeine and when you question them about it, they go to illegal drug stores in the neighborhood to buy it.”
Pharmacists who spoke to our correspondent say they have witnessed the same trend.
A pharmacist who has a drug store in Arepo area of Ogun State, Mr. Yomi Adesanya, told our correspondent that a 19- year-old- boy and his friends had come to buy a carton of a cough mixture that had codeine at the pharmacy last month.
“ I was shocked when he made this request because what will a 19- year –old –boy want with 40 bottles of cough syrup just because it has codeine. I sent them out of my store. Even though codeine in cough syrup can be sold over the counter, I refused to sell it.
“ Tramadol is meant to be sold with a prescription note from a doctor, a pharmacist should asked for your age before dispensing it.”
Adesanya blamed illegal drug stores operators for the unregulated access to these drugs and warned that if not nipped in the bud, more Nigerians may become victims of drug abuse.
He explained that tramadol, an opiod –like analgesic has been used to sedate rape victims and rob innocent Nigerians in recent times.
Adesanya said, “ Tramadol is an opiod –like analgesic that works on the central nervous system. It puts the brain to sleep so that its ingredients can relieve pain. It is actually meant to be a pain relief medication but rapist put it in drinks to put their victims to sleep.
“Codeine is an opiate and it has some ingredients that ease the nerves which make people feel good. So young people who can’t access hard drugs will buy four bottles and drink it like alcohol when they want to get high. Many have taken it and gone into coma.
“ A colleague of mine was killed in Niger State because he refused to sell codeine to a group of boys after they had made several attempts to buy at his store.”
The pharmacists called on government at all levels to address the chaotic drug distribution network in the country to ensure that unqualified persons are not handling the sale of medicines in the country.
Adesanya said,“Many operators of these drug stores or what many know as chemists, they just want to make profit so they have no standards because they are not even trained pharmacists. They know that these young people want to abuse these drugs yet they will sell it or why else will you sell four bottles of codeine to a young man?
“The government must wake up and address the sale, distribution and circulation of drugs in Nigeria. They must ask themselves, what is the education and qualification of those stocking and dispensing drugs in this country. The trend is alarming that is why regulatory agencies must help vulnerable Nigerians.”
Another pharmacist, Mr.Yinka Aminu, said this rise in abuse of opioids has been linked to the increase in the incidences of chronic illnesses such as liver and kidney problems.
Aminu also advised Nigerians to patronise drug outlets with the association’s emblem. According to him, this sign was a mark of authenticity used by members of the pharmaceutical body.
“Drug heals and cures, it however kills when it is misused or abused,” he added.
The world is battling with the abuse of synthetic drugs and psychoactive substances especially among teenagers who are still in their productive years.
The Executive Director, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Yury Fedotov, stated that much work needed to be done to address the many harms inflicted by the increasing use of illicit drugs to health, development, peace and security.
The UNODC boss in the 2017 World Drug Report said it’s been estimated that a minimum of 190,000 persons died prematurely due to the use of opioids.
The report also found that hepatitis C was the greatest health challenge among the estimated 12 million people who inject drugs worldwide.
“Out of this number, one in eight (1.6 million) is living with HIV and more than half (6.1 million) are living with hepatitis C, while around 1.3 million are suffering from both hepatitis C and HIV.
“Overall, three times more people who use drugs die from hepatitis C (222,000) than from HIV (60,000),” the report stated.
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