

The increasing availability of benzo-dope is cause for concern given that when taken together, the combined effects of benzodiazepines and opioids can result in overdose and death.

In this context, there are significant public health issues that need to be considered. The data seem to suggest we should be prepared for the unregulated drug supply to adjust to a new normal. Since benzodiazepines are sedatives, combining them with another type of depressant, like opioids, significantly increases the risk of overdose.Īs researchers in substance use, we questioned whether the increasing supply of benzo-dope in the unregulated drug market would saturate the opioid supply in a similar way fentanyl did to heroin years ago. They are drugs from the benzodiazepine class that are neither prescribed nor used in medicine in Canada, meaning they may possess unknown strengths or side-effects.

However, what is being detected in opioids in Canada are not pharmaceutical drugs.
