Rainbow Fentanyl Fears Proven False as No Kids Given Deadly Halloween Candy

Two months prior to Halloween, parents were cautioned about an "emerging trend of colorful fentanyl available across the United States" that has been made to look like children's candy. However, days after the festive period, there have been no reports of children being given the deadly drug.

In late August, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) issued a press release warning of brightly colored fentanyl that had been found in circulation.

"Dubbed "rainbow fentanyl" in the media, this trend appears to be a new method used by drug cartels to sell highly addictive and potentially deadly fentanyl made to look like candy to children and young people," the press release said.

DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said: "Rainbow fentanyl—fentanyl pills and powder that come in a variety of bright colors, shapes, and sizes—is a deliberate effort by drug traffickers to drive addiction amongst kids and young adults."

"The men and women of the DEA are relentlessly working to stop the trafficking of rainbow fentanyl and defeat the Mexican drug cartels that are responsible for the vast majority of the fentanyl that is being trafficked in the United States."

Fears surrounding this colorful drug finding its way into children's candy baskets became a new concern for parents ahead of Halloween.

The concerns followed high-profile seizures of fentanyl disguised as candy. On October 26, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva told parents concerned about fentanyl ahead of Halloween to check the candy children collect and throw away anything that looks suspicious. He added that there is no evidence of fentanyl being packaged and passed off as candy to kids but there is evidence of fentanyl being disguised in bulk candy boxes for smuggling purposes.

Speaking to Newsweek, Joseph J. Palamar, an associate professor at New York University Langone Medical Center's Department of Population Health, reflected on why the chances of children getting fentanyl from strangers for Halloween was unlikely in the first place.

"I haven't heard of any incidents of kids receiving fentanyl pills for Halloween. Fentanyl pills cost money—a lot more than a piece of candy. I'm not saying it was never possible for someone to give away pills to trick-or-treaters as a sick joke, but such a joke would be expensive, and potentially deadly. It's just too far-fetched," he said.

"What's more likely is that fentanyl winds up mixed into your college kid's cocaine.

"I think there were two reasons for all the media panic. First, I think many people were legitimately worried. From my conversations, these tended to be people who don't know much about drugs. Second, scary coverage about drugs—especially before Halloween—gets a lot of attention."

Palamar added that while fentanyl has been a concern over the years, there has also been a rise in the seizure of the drug.

"We found that not only have fentanyl seizures been increasing, but the proportion of pills seized to overall fentanyl seizures has been increasing. The proportion of pill seizures increased from 14 percent in early 2018 to 29 percent in late 2021."

Kelly Elaine Dunn, an associated professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, also spoke to Newsweek and highlighted that the DEA's press release and spokespersons have not warned the threat towards children consuming rainbow fentanyl increases at Halloween.

Dunn referred to a Fox News interview with Milgram and the comments she made.

Milgram said: "We have not seen any connection to Halloween and I want to be very clear: if we see it—I promise you have my commitment—any credible evidence, we will come out and we will tell you."

"What we do see is social media. We see fake pills like the blue oxys that you just showed. We see rainbow pills, a new tactic being used by the cartels, and here's what we worry about.

"We have middle schoolers and high schoolers who are dying of fentanyl poisoning. We have 12-year-olds, 13-year-olds, and 14-year-olds who are dying. And so we are not seeing it in elementary school. We have not seen it with Halloween candy, but the bottom line is that this is all over social media."

Newsweek has contacted the Drug Enforcement Administration for comment.