Why is it important to administer rescue breaths to someone who is overdosing?

Opioid overdoses happen when concentrated amounts of opioids or combinations of opioids and other drugs are in the body so that the victim is not responsive to stimulation and/or breathing is inadequate. This happens because opioids fit into specific receptors in the brain that also affect the drive to breathe. If someone can not breathe or is not breathing enough, oxygen levels in the blood decrease and lips and fingers turn blue. Eventually, a lack of oxygen eventually stops vital organs like the heart, then the brain, which may lead to unconsciousness, coma, and then death. Within 3-5 minutes without oxygen, brain damage may occur, soon followed by death. With opioid overdoses, the difference between surviving versus dying wholly depends on breathing and oxygen, which is why rescue breathing is so important. Narcan will block opioids from binding with receptors in the brain but will not assist in getting oxygen to the brain during an overdose, which is why rescue breathing can save someone’s life, and should be administered whenever Narcan is.