The amount of opioids that are prescribed by doctors has affected our society for the worst. The epidemic has been spreading for years now, but could’ve been prevented if we had not turned to medications with the slightest feeling of pain instead of giving the body enough time to heal itself. If we used more natural remedies, then our bodies would not build the tolerance to pain medications. 

Due to its impact, an average of 130 people dies every year from overdosing on prescribed opioids, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Opioids include medicines such as pain relievers. The dosage of these pain relievers is so high that it is almost inevitable to become addicted. Granted, some believe that you will only become addicted if you abuse the medication given to you after a significant surgery, arthritis, etc. However, this is not the case, it only takes a few days to build a tolerance to these medications, which could trigger your ‘need’ for long-term use. Opioids will not only affect our society but on our trust with our doctors that we trust with our help. 

In my opinion, all medications are not needed to an extent. Opioids are a bomb that is ready to go off whenever it finds a host to latch on to. The options for all-natural pain relief and healing are proven to work better on your body and can benefit your overall health. Yes, the pain will be high, but that is because we were brought up knowing that if we were in shock, medication would always be there to ease it. Pills ruin your body. You see these commercials all the time on the different life-threatening side effects that will cause more harm than it will to help you. 

Addiction is a rising problem in the U.S., and the statistics show that at the rate we are at now, death rates will continue to rise. Most of these overdoses are accidental because they are just taking the medication that the doctor prescribed them, and they are unaware that they are becoming addicted. This epidemic could dramatically affect our lives