What Is Narcan?

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Narcan is actually a brand name for a drug whose scientific name is Naloxone. If you have opioids in your system, they like to sit on the opioid receptor - aptly named. The receptors are found on cells in your brain, spinal cord and other areas of your body. Opioids act on these receptors to make you feel less pain. And what it will do is if you've had too much, it's going to reduce breathing, um, respiration, etc.

The drug that brings people overdosing on opioids back from the brink of death in minutes just got approved for over-the-counter use. The Wall Street Journal’s Julie Wernau explains why she carries it with her everywhere she goes.

This episode was produced by Hady Mawajdeh, edited by Jolie Myers, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Paul Robert Mounsey, and hosted by Sean Rameswaram.

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