Washington — Physically demanding jobs such as those in construction and extraction occupations have higher proportions of synthetic opioid overdose deaths co-involving psychostimulants such as methamphetamines or cocaine, results of a National Institutes of Health study show.
NIH researchers looked at 2022 mortality data for U.S. residents ages 15-64 in the National Vital Statistics System. Of the nearly 70,000 fatal synthetic opioid overdoses identified, 53.6% involved stimulants. Workers in construction and extraction jobs made up over 11,800 of the deaths. More than 55% of the deaths involved psychostimulants.
“One potential explanation for these patterns is that psychostimulants are better suited for counteracting opioid-involved lethargy in physically demanding occupations,” the researchers write. “Previous studies have observed that persons who use opioids report intentional co-use of methamphetamine to improve functioning in their fast-paced, manual occupations. Similarly, workers in construction and landscaping jobs report using methamphetamine to reduce pain associated with working in these labor-intensive jobs.”
The study was published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
