Researchers published findings on U.S. adolescents' perceptions of fentanyl risk from the 2025 Monitoring the Future survey in JAMA Network Open on July 7, 2025. The study's results showed variations in how different age groups of teenagers perceive the danger of fentanyl use.

The 2025 Monitoring the Future survey included questions about the perceived risk of fentanyl use, categorizing it by frequency: experimental (once or twice), occasional, or regular. It found that 48 percent of 8th-graders, 64 percent of 10th-graders, and 70 percent of 12th-graders considered using fentanyl once or twice to pose a great risk. The percentage of respondents who perceived fentanyl as posing a great risk increased when asked about more frequent use compared to experimental use.

Across all grade levels surveyed, between 9 percent and 17 percent of adolescent respondents reported they were not familiar enough with fentanyl to assess its risk. Overall, nearly 4,000 students answered questions regarding fentanyl's risk in the 2025 Monitoring the Future survey. These respondents could also indicate if they did not know enough about fentanyl to assess its risk.

Fentanyl is up to 50 times more potent than heroin and can be lethal with a single use. It is involved in at least 75 percent of overdose deaths among adolescents in the United States. Drug poisonings and overdoses are the third leading cause of death for children and teenagers in the United States. The most common route of fentanyl exposure for adolescents is unintentional ingestion of counterfeit prescription drugs, which are commonly contaminated with fentanyl or made entirely of fentanyl.

The survey data highlights the varying levels of awareness among youth regarding synthetic opioids. Researchers noted that understanding these perceptions is critical for developing targeted prevention strategies. The publication in JAMA Network Open marks the latest release of data from the annual study, which has tracked substance use trends among students for decades.