Drug overdoses now killing the equivalent of a classroom of high schoolers EVERY WEEK – and nine out of 10 are fentanyl

• Fentanyl kills about 30 teenagers and children every week, the equivalent of roughly one whole classroom
• In 2021, 94 percent of overdose deaths were caused by fentanyl, compared to just eight percent in 2012 
• READ MORE: Drug overdoses among teens DOUBLED from 2019 to 2021 as fentanyl fuels a nationwide crisis

By CASSIDY MORRISON SENIOR HEALTH REPORTER FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

Deadly fentanyl is killing the equivalent of an entire classroom of children every week, staggering figures show.

Fentanyl, a highly potent synthetic opioid that’s 100 times stronger than morphine, is ravaging America’s youth.

A recent study found that fentanyl was responsible for the death of 1,557 children in 2021 — the equivalent of 30 children every week.

Just two milligrams of fentanyl – imagine 10 to 15 grains of table salt – can prove fatal, and it is increasingly contaminating the illicit drug supply in the US because it is cheap, potent, and keeps many users coming back for more.