Users of legal highs should be informed that these drugs purchased online may contain illegal substances and can therefore be prosecuted if found in possession. 27 Users cannot be sure of the actual content or purity of the drug, so actual dosage and exposure vary widely. For example, when MDAI (methylenedioxy-2-aminoindane), known as a spark (a brownish granular powder), is snorted or bombarded, it has a similar effect to ecstasy, which causes mood enhancement and hallucinations. The start of the action usually occurs within the hour and the effect is then almost immediate, maybe a minute or two. The high lasts about six hours with a peak of two hours. It can cause hyperthermia, paranoid thoughts, and panic attacks.2 Unlike traditional illicit drugs like heroin and marijuana, NPS drugs use substances made from a range of legal chemicals, medical equipment, and even plant extracts. They are marketed as “legal highs” and are intended for social use and can be purchased in entertainment venues or through online retail channels. This is the street name for substances containing synthetic cathinone stimulants, such as methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) and mephedrone.11 The components of bath salt act synergistically at the dopamine transport site, and increased dopamine transfer may increase the potential for abuse. MDPV is used with other illegal drugs. It is the main ingredient of “bath salts”. As a synthetic derivative of cathinone, it produces an effect similar to that of cocaine or methamphetamine. It can be administered orally, by nasal insufflation, smoking, intravenously/intramuscularly or rectum, and intoxication lasts for several hours. Phenylalkylamine analogues such as amphetamine are often abused, and due to their simple structure, hundreds of amphetamine analogues have been introduced for decades.
That`s why so many legal highs are available. Amphetamine (phenylisopropolamine), a well-known central nervous system (CNS) stimulant, has effects that last for several hours after ingestion. Methamphetamine is closely related to amphetamine and ephedrine (a mixed-action sympathomimetic). Ephedrine and pseudoephedrine (often used to relieve nasal congestion) are oxidized to methamphetamine or methcathinone. As with methamphetamines, methcathinones can easily be “cooked” in the laboratory and hence the term “synthetic”. Although “legal highs” are commonly referred to as bath salts, they are not Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) or other water softeners in the usual sense. In many cases, chemical ingredients are changed without the consumer`s knowledge, making risks unpredictable. Some legal highs contain active ingredients that fall under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (United Kingdom). As a result, anyone found in possession of these products would be prosecuted and punished with the associated penalties, even if they do not know they have purchased a controlled drug. However, claiming that a product is “not intended for human consumption” can potentially circumvent the entire legal process. Drug users are already skillfully exploiting the law and are well ahead of criminalization efforts. Moreover, the irony of prohibition is that the supply and collapse of the cocaine and ecstasy market in 2009 led individuals to resort to untested and untested substances that are now readily available online.
24 25 According to a local lead investigator who spoke to VICE, most of the store`s high legal inventory was quickly sold for $1 [$1.50] a bag to the drug trafficking company, a family known in the area for selling a range of drugs such as crack cocaine and heroin. (Sanjay Asal, owner of Smoker`s World, denied selling his shares to drug dealers, though he admitted the family had already bought him in bulk.) New psychoactive substances (NPS) are a growing problem in the UK. Commonly referred to as “legal highs,” they are a heterogeneous group of synthetic compounds designed to mimic the effects of illicit drugs. Like illicit compounds, these novel substances can be classified into broad categories of stimulants, hallucinogens and tranquilizers with several subclasses, which are described in detail elsewhere.1 In this case, we present a patient who had repeated relapses of schizophrenia while taking NPS “el blanco”, a stimulant believed to contain ethylphenidate and benzocaine.8 It shows the psychoactive effects of this drug and illustrates the problems with high legal use in psychiatric patients. New psychoactive substances (NPS) or `legal highs` are increasingly being used as recreational substances in the UK. Their clinical effects are poorly known and vary considerably from one substance to another.
