Pubdate: Mon, 01 Dec 2014
Source: Standard-Speaker (Hazleton, PA)
Copyright: 2014 The Standard-Speaker
Contact:  http://www.standardspeaker.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1085
Author: Amanda Christman, Staff Writer
Page: A1

DEA SAYS SEEMINGLY HARMLESS DRUG IS ANYTHING BUT SAFE

Side effects include increased heart rate, sweating, increased blood 
pressure, hallucination and violent behavior.

But unlike a television commercial that warns of the results of 
taking medication, this one comes without an official government 
warning label because it's uncontrolled and unregulated. It's sold on 
the streets, in stores and through the Internet, both wholesale and retail.

It may seem harmless enough, with brand names like K2, spice and 
potpourri, or marketing that passes it off as herbal incense. Some 
brands are a little more telling with names like "Geeked Up," "AK 
47," "Avalanche" and "Psycho."

The buyer may rationalize that because it seems harmless it won't 
hurt them, but those working in law enforcement and in the 
health-care profession say it poses a great danger.

Its true name and identity is synthetic marijuana or synthetic 
cannabinoids, a mixture of organic materials sprayed with a synthetic 
compound, which are smoked for psychoactive effects, according to the 
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). There are no lawful 
commercial or medical uses for the substances, according to the DEA.

Produced by "garage chemists," Police Chief Frank DeAndrea said, it's 
sold to the public under the disguise of something innocuous, when in 
fact, he has seen the chemicals inside it cause long-lasting health 
problems well after the initial high has worn off.

Some of the shiny, eye-catching packages claim to be natural, while 
others do list a cautionary warning to keep it out of reach of 
children and pets, or state they aren't for human consumption. "Do 
not burn," some packages state, or "For fragrance purposes only."

Other packages are more deceptive; some even go so far as to say the 
contents are tested and certified. Others list chemical contents but 
because the sale of synthetic marijuana isn't legal, investigators 
caution that users can't know if the contents listed are the only 
ingredients in the bag.

As an officer opened a package of synthetic marijuana at the Hazleton 
Police Department, a greenish, organic-looking material emerged, 
similar in appearance to actual marijuana but without the pungent, earthy odor.

Barbara Carreno, a spokeswoman at DEA headquarters in Arlington, 
Virginia, said any "warning label" posted on the packages is not 
because the manufacturer cares about the user's quality of life, but 
its presence is the answer to a legal loophole aimed at providing a 
defense for the maker if they get caught.

Some distributors, Carreno said, even go so far as to provide 
retailers with a "laboratory certificate" that states the product 
doesn't contain any DEA-banned chemicals, when in all likelihood it 
does contain those chemicals and is, in fact, illegal to sell.

She said she asks those businesses one question when they tell her 
that: "Do you really want to place the future of your business on lies?"

Powder to make the drug, Carreno said, is purchased from China, where 
it is manufactured. Then the drug is mixed with acetone and sprayed 
on plant material. The acetone, used to remove nail polish, 
evaporates and leaves the drug residue behind, she said.

The DEA, she said, has seen the product mixed in bathtubs, cement 
mixers, animal feed troughs and on tarps in garages and storage units.

There are no factories with quality-control standards to ensure the 
product is being made free of contamination, she said.

Carreno said like many illegal drugs, it's all about making money. 
Manufacturers, she said, are not thinking of the consumer's best 
interest, nor do they have an overseeing body to force them to care 
by following health standards.

Synthetic marijuana, she said, has often been called "fake weed," but 
it's not marijuana, it only has been processed to look like the real 
thing. The research chemicals used to make synthetic marijuana were 
never intended for human consumption and were not tested on humans.

DEA labs, she said, find results for potency of synthetic marijuana 
"all over the place."

Its potency is as unpredictable as the effects of taking the drug, 
she said, getting back to the lack of quality standards during the 
manufacturing process. A branded package of synthetic marijuana 
bought by someone one week may have a different potency or even 
different chemicals in it than the same brand package purchased even 
a week prior.

A local undercover narcotics detective, whose name is withheld due to 
the anonymity involved in his work, said though heroin is still the 
drug of choice in the Hazleton area, synthetic marijuana is 
increasing in popularity and it, too, is dangerous, classified as a 
Schedule 1 narcotic by the DEA because of its potency. Carreno said 
the drug is popular throughout the United States.

The detective said the chemical substances in the drug are what make 
it illegal. They go by scientific names such as XLR 11, UR 144, PB 
22, THJ 2201 and NM 2201 and are classified as Schedule 1 controlled 
substances.

Synthetic marijuana provides a cheaper, stronger high, he said, but 
it also produces paranoia and violent behavior, unlike the effects of 
a similar-sounding drug, marijuana. It's typically smoked through 
pipes or joints, the detective said. According to the DEA, it 
sometimes is made into an herbal tea.

After the inhale

The American Association of Poison Control Centers' website, 
www.aapcc .org, states synthetic marijuana can cause severe agitation 
and anxiety, nausea and vomiting, muscle spasms, seizures, tremors 
and suicidal or harmful thoughts.

The harmful effects from these products were first reported in the 
U.S. in 2009. Since then, the drugs have spread throughout the 
country. There were 6,958 calls for synthetic marijuana in 2011, 
5,230 calls about exposure to these drugs in 2012 and reports of 
2,668 exposures in 2013.

As of Oct. 31 they received 2,996 calls. The website states the 
figures are based on closed human exposure calls for synthetic 
marijuana as reported to poison control centers. Not all exposures 
are poisonings or overdoses, the website states.

Dr. Rajendra Gajula, a psychiatrist at Northeast Counseling Services, 
said users can continue to have psychosis after inhaling synthetic 
marijuana during long-term use. Despite the nasty side-effects, he 
said, people using it are at times unaware of the seriousness of 
their decision to use it. Synthetic marijuana, he said, is toxic to the brain.

"It's dangerous, can be lethal. Stay away from it," Gajula said bluntly.

He has seen patients become psychotic from using it, some needing 
hospitalization. There are more emergency room visits because of its 
toxic effects recently, too, he said. Coma and unconsciousness can 
also result from the use of synthetic chemicals.

He encourages people to research the adverse effects through credible 
websites and publications.

Gajula said he has seen patients use the drug recreationally, too.

Some people get defensive when he tells them of the dangers, saying 
they used it before and never had a problem, he said. But the fact 
remains that other people do have unpleasant experiences.

The undercover detective said buyers don't know what they're getting 
and even dealers of synthetic marijuana don't know exactly what they 
are selling because the product, like many illegal drugs, isn't 
regulated. Dealers, he said, will often tell officers that what they 
are selling is not illegal.

Most of the time, the officer said, what the dealer thinks isn't 
really illegal is "just word on the street." Most local busts of 
synthetic marijuana are in fact illegal, the detective said.

As the ingredients in synthetic marijuana keep changing, so do laws 
banning it. DeAndrea said legislators are changing laws to outlaw the 
new chemicals.

The work is frustrating, the detective said, but those in law 
enforcement are invested in stopping it.

He said a man was taken into custody recently with nearly 300 packets 
of synthetic marijuana in greater Hazleton that he was selling for 
between $2 and $5 a bag. Those packets of drugs were sent for testing 
and, once they were identified as illegal, the man was charged.

People can keep themselves safe, the detective said, by not taking 
the drug or any substance that looks suspicious or ingesting or 
inhaling anything they're not 100 percent sure of.

DeAndrea said people will see synthetic marijuana in stores and think 
it's OK to buy because it's being sold. He said they need to be 
educated that it isn't something safe to introduce to their body, 
despite its catchy name or flashy packaging.

It's still a "mind-altering and addictive" substance, DeAndrea said.

He said no one type of person is immune to synthetic marijuana, as 
people of all backgrounds and ages have fallen prey to it.

"We are not going to arrest our way out of this problem," he said.

The area needs more educational programs announcing the dangers of 
drugs geared toward children and their parents and more treatment 
facilities, he said, and there needs to be funding for those services.

The state needs to mandate drug awareness classes in schools, 
DeAndrea said, because communities are "falling apart at the seams" 
without one.

Addicts, he said, are often begging for help out of dependency.

"Someone needs to stop and say we need to find time and funding to do 
it," he said.

Gajula said the best way to treat an addict is to encourage them to 
get help and motivate them to stay clean. Sometimes, in the case of 
teenagers, hearing those messages from peers is more effective than 
hearing it from an adult, he said, so he advocates the work of peer 
support groups.

Prevention is also important, he said. But by the time many people 
come to the attention of law enforcement officials, they already have 
a problem, Gajula said.

[sidebar]

Anyone who knows someone who has taken synthetic marijuana is asked 
by the American Association of Poison Control Centers to call a local 
poison center at 800-222-1222.

Fifty-six poison centers around the country have experts on hand that 
can help the caller decide whether someone can be treated at home or 
whether they must go to a hospital. Centers also handle informational 
calls and are open 24-7.

However, the association advises to call 911 immediately if someone 
stops breathing, collapses or has a seizure.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom