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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WJW) — Ohio officials are continuing to warn people of the dangers of street drugs, as more are being found to be mixed with fatal substances.

Ohio Narcotics Intelligence Center (ONIC) released a public bulletin Monday explaining that since January testing labs across the state have found 17 drug samples mixed with carfentanil, which officials describe as a far more potent fentanyl.

The Ohio Department of Public Safety reported 56% of drug overdose deaths from 2017-2021 included mixture of drugs.

FILE - A bag of 4-fluoro isobutyryl fentanyl which was seized in a drug raid is displayed at the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Testing and Research Laboratory in Sterling, Va., on Aug. 9, 2016. China on Friday, July 7, 2023, insisted it is up to the U.S. to “create necessary conditions” for anti-drugs cooperation, following complaints from Washington that Beijing has ignored its calls for a crackdown on precursor chemicals for the highly addictive painkiller fentanyl. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)
FILE – A bag of 4-fluoro isobutyryl fentanyl which was seized in a drug raid is displayed at the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Testing and Research Laboratory in Sterling, Va., on Aug. 9, 2016. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)

“Without sophisticated tests, it’s impossible to know exactly what you’re ingesting or how it will impact your body,” Cynthia Peterman, ONIC Executive Director, said in a statement. “There is no quality control for illicit drugs, which is why no one should ever take a liquid, pill, or powder that was given to them by anyone other than a licensed health care provider.”

Here are the drugs most commonly found to be mixed into other substances in Ohio:

  • Fentanyl
  • Carfentanil
  • Methamphetamine
  • Cocaine
  • Xylazine and medetomidine, which are Veterinary sedatives and most likely found mixed with fentanyl

Naloxone, which reverses the effects of an opioid overdose, and fentanyl test strips can be procured for free through a state health services website found right here.

Those dealing with drug addiction can always call the National Drug Hotline at 1-844-289-0879. More information on the dangers of highly addictive fentanyl can be found at dea.org.