A recent memorandum sent by James Cole, with the United States Attorney General’s office, stated that marijuana is a hazardous drug and the ramifications for anyone caught distributing, growing or selling it are serious.
Read more about Federal Government against Medicinal Use of Marijuana
What happens when you hear words like “drug use” and “drug addiction” in news stories night after night for years on end? As with anything else, endless repetition of certain phrases tends to cause the mind to blur or gloss over what’s really being said or the intent of the message to begin with. Case in point is the touted War on Drugs, a worthy initiative that somehow never really accomplished what could be classified as a victory. And drugs on the street today are deadlier than ever, boasting concentrations that are higher than ever before. From various forms of heroin to marijuana to methamphetamine and other drugs, the pure and deadly drugs are all over our streets.
Read more about The Pure and Deadly: Concentrations Higher in Today’s Street Drugs
You can buy imitation crab meat and imitation vanilla. There are egg substitutes and margarines that claim to taste like butter. Now, there is synthetic cannabis, available in Australia for the past two years, which promises all the pleasurable effects of marijuana with none of the legal dangers. No legal danger that is, until very recently. Its name is Kronic, though it has also been called Purple Haze, Voodoo, and Kaos. Whatever name it goes by, it is a blend of legal herbs that has been sprayed with chemicals which mimic THC, the compound which gives marijuana its psychoactive element. It is the compound THC which makes marijuana illegal in most countries.
According to some reports, Kronic is 100 times stronger than regular cannabis and gives the same sensations of bliss and relaxation yet can’t be detected on any drug test. And why should it, when it is legal? Quite as legal as an energy drink. Until only recently a child as young as 10 years old could buy Kronic in Australia with impunity.
Just because users test clean on a drug test doesn’t mean that Kronic is devoid of risk however. Healthcare professionals warn that Kronic doesn’t only imitate cannabis in its pleasurable effects but in negative ones as well. The heart palpitations, delusions, hallucinations and even psychosis that can accompany marijuana use may also result from smoking Kronic. There is also research suggesting that withdrawal from its use could produce symptoms similar to that of heroin or cannabis withdrawal. The bottom line, health experts say, is that so long as all the ingredients of Kronic remain unknown, so does any certain knowledge of how it may affect users.
Kronic was initially created for the purpose of testing lab rats. Like other less potent cannabis synthetics, such as K2 and Spice, it has found its way into the public marketplace. Being synthetic, Kronic does not even smell like marijuana. In fact, it is offered for sale in flavors. Which leads one to wonder to whom the product is being marketed? Some say that Kronic is the current craze on college campuses while others maintain that the very fact that it is legal makes it less appealing to the young crowd. Others say that Kronic appeals to an older demographic, one who perhaps experimented with marijuana in the past. There has been news of rampant use of Kronic by miners as well as reports of use in the prison population. People who are interested in feeling “high” but who are sensible enough to want to avoid losing their job or having a police record are the target market.
Whenever a legal substance touts its similarity to an illegal substance, health officials say ‘buyer beware’. And until more is known about its ingredients and their documented effects, the Medical Association in Western Australia has convinced authorities to ban its sale and use. New regulations in that area now make it a crime to either sell or supply synthetic cannabis punishable by 25 years in jail or a $100,000 fine. Other parts of Australia are considering following suit.
Russia has a new, deadly drug called krokodil (aka crocodile) and it is killing young people in droves. Introduced in Siberia about a decade ago, it has made a splash in more populous areas in the past few years. Approximately fifty percent of all addiction and drug-related deaths in Russia can be directly attributed to crocodile.
Cocaine that has been contaminated with a de-worming drug commonly used by veterinarians seems to be causing a skin disorder in cocaine users. Purpura, a condition that causes crusty, purplish areas of dead skin that are extremely painful and can lead to severe infections, has been associated with contaminated cocaine in several cases.
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In what are sometimes described as "safe party houses," parents of teenagers are letting their teens and their children’s friends experiment with alcohol, believing that this is the approach that can help teach kids to consume alcohol responsibly.
Read more about Parents Who Allow Teens to Drink Sending Wrong Message, Says Study
Dr. David Stidham was a young, handsome graduate of Harvard Medical School when he moved his family to Tucson, Arizona, to become a partner in an eye surgery clinic for children. His patients and their parents adored him, and he was so successful that he planned to open a solo practice. On October 4, 2004, Dr. Stidham’s body was found in his office parking lot. He had been stabbed 16 times in what police believed was a random act of violence.
The substance that is ending more lives in the U.S. than even cocaine and heroin together can be found in many home medicine cabinets – prescription painkillers. The problem is generating new government attention with a five-year plan as “pill mills” continue to pop up in Florida – and the numbers of nationwide deadly overdoses, new addictions and car accidents related to the drugs’ abuse continue to escalate.
Read more about Federal Five-Year Plan to Aggressively Attack Prescription Painkiller Abuse
Read more about Paula Abdul Breaks Longtime Addiction to Pain Medications
Millions of patients are prescribed painkillers like Vicodin following a surgery or procedure, but the widely-used medication has serious long-term use risks, including addiction, dependence, and the potential for major health problems.