Urgent Alert: What You Need to Know About ‘Gas Station Heroin’ in the Capital Region

SERIOUS RISK ALERT! The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have issued a warning against purchasing or consuming an alleged dietary supplement found in many gas stations and convenience stores around New York State.

In the United States tianeptine, also known as 'gas station heroin', is not approved by the FDA for any medical use and is not generally recognized as safe for use in food. Although many products containing tianeptine are marketed as a dietary supplement it does not meet that definition.

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Stop in to most any convenience store, gas station or vape shop in New York State and you will find tianeptine. Some of the products that contain tianeptine include Tianaa, Zaza, Neptune's Fix, Pegasus and TD Red.

Many of these products come in liquid form, similar to 5 Hour Energy, but you can find them sold as tablets as well.

In February of 2024 Super Chill Products, another distributor of Neptune’s Fix, recalled their products but they did not issue a public notification to inform consumers of their recall. Some of these items could still be out for sale.

In January of 2024, the FDA received several reports regarding the adverse reactions tianeptine, specifically after consuming Neptune's Fix products, including seizures, loss of consciousness and, in some cases, death.

The FDA also warns of the dangers of mixing tianeptine with other medications that an individual may be taking. The agency is actively investigating adverse event reports in conjunction with local and state health departments.