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Thursday, June 14, 2018

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With Synthetic Drugs, What You Don't Know Really Could Hurt You ...
src: news.utexas.edu

Many urban legends and misconceptions about drugs have been created and circulated among young people and the general public, with varying degrees of honesty. This is usually repeated by organizations that oppose all drug use, often causing the actual effects and the dangers of drugs to be misunderstood and under-researched. The most common subjects of false beliefs are LSD, marijuana, and MDMA. This misunderstanding includes misinformation about adulterers or other black market problems, as well as alleged effects of pure substances.


Video Urban legends about drugs



LSD

Some of the strange urban legends described are about lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), a powerful psychedelic drug that gained popularity in several countries in the 1960s and 1970s, and experienced a brief rise in the mid to late 1990s before declining from 2000 and so on. The drug relationship with the 1960s counterpart is probably part of the reason for the legend.

Attempted murder

"Anyone caught selling LSD can be charged with attempted murder." It is a common urban legend that the psychotropic effect of LSD is an extreme danger to human life that the seller can face charges of attempted murder or murder. This myth may stem from stories of long prison sentences for the ownership or sale of LSD, which may be comparable to the punishment given to those convicted of murder.

Babysitter puts baby in the oven while using LSD

This is an unverifiable narcotics story dating from the 1960s to a nanny girl girl who puts a baby in an oven and turkey in a basket. This has been disputed by Snopes.com. This myth is parodied in The Secret War episode of The Simpsons The Secret War of Lisa Simpson, "where children go on a school field trip to the wax museum" fear straight "at the local police station. One exhibit contains a hippie lady's candle doll feeding a sandwich with a baby in it. Chief Wiggum said, "That's right, he's got a snack for a California Cheeseburger!"

In May 2009, some of these legends may have occurred when a tall Ohio man on PCP allegedly tried to put his 28-day-old son into a conventional oven, only to be stopped on time by the child's mother. Also, in March 2010, a Kentucky man put his five-week-old baby in an oven (without turning it on, and unscathed) during a drunken and intoxicated marijuana (that he smoked earlier that night) that he made allegations he felt strange and suspected of being poisoned with different drugs that make him hallucinate; he is also tired of working. In 2005, China Arnold killed his nearly-month-old baby with a microwave oven, but admitted he was under the influence of alcohol, not LSD.

There have been a number of reported cases where infants were admitted into microwaves, although these cases were not known to involve any medication. This is often a case of intentional infanticide. However, there has not been a known case of babies doing microwave (or roasting) involving LSD specifically, or other psychedelic drugs (including cannabis) alone. However, there are many cases of psychotic abuse reported under the influence of PCP (see below). PCP is not associated with LSD.

Bad LSD

A "bad ride" is easily caused by the hope or fear of adverse effects, which can later be blamed on "bad acids". This legend became famous at the 1969 Woodstock Festival, when concert audiences were warned to stay away from "chocolate acids," which were allegedly bad.

One reason people may believe they have "bad acids" can be because they only sell doses that are much higher than normal, which is unusual due to the lack of quality control of illegal drugs. The stronger the dose, the stronger and potentially more anxiety that travel can get.

However, the drug described as LSD in the 1970s sometimes actually contains PCP, amphetamines, or other drugs that have very different effects from LSD. There are now many research chemicals (DOB 2C-I, DOC, DOI, etc.) that are almost indistinguishable from the original LSD before use, and thus can easily be confused with "bad acids." Some of these, like 25I-NBOMe are even strong enough for a psychoactive dose to fit on ink paper, and can sometimes be sold as LSD when the latter is rare. The idea of ​​ forging LSD with this chemical, however, does not actually have a known basis.

"Bananadine" LSD

The false claim states that it is possible to synthesize LSD or some similar hallucinogenic drugs called "bananadine" from banana peels or household food and other common chemicals. The actual synthesis of LSD usually requires advanced knowledge and experience in organic chemistry and requires expensive laboratory equipment and precursor chemicals that are costly and carefully controlled.

Derived from a recipe originally published as a hoax at Berkeley Barb in March 1967, variants of this legend often circulated on the Internet and popular on BBSs long before the wide availability of Internet access via William Powell "The Anarchist Cookbook." Books It claims " Musa sapientum Bananadine" is a mild psychoactive drug found on banana peel. The term slang "mellow yellow" and "saffron" (for skin color) were borrowed from Donovan's 1966 song, "Mellow Yellow," perhaps because the phrase "electric banana" is mentioned on one of its lines. According to The Rolling Stone Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll, Donovan claims he actually refers to a banana-shaped vibrator. The song itself, though "psychedelic" felt, was written about Donovan's bout with hepatitis (which causes jaundice).

Blue star Tattoo

One of the popular legends is the legend of blue star tattoos. These legends often appear in American primary and secondary schools in the form of photocopies that have been photocopied through many generations, distributed to parents by the school officials concerned. It also became popular on mailing lists and Internet websites. This legend states that temporary tattoos licked on LSD and made in the form of blue stars, or popular children's cartoon characters, are being distributed to children in the area to get them addicted to LSD. This leaflet contains an inaccurate description of the effects of LSD, some attribution (usually to either a well-respected hospital or a vague "presidential adviser"), and instructs parents to contact the police if they find a blue star tattoo. There is no real case of LSD distribution to children in this way that has ever been documented. LSD is not addictive, and does not seem to be abused by an unconscious user. Therefore, there is no reasonable motivation for drug dealers to distribute LSD in this way.

Legally insane

There is an urban legend that someone who has been using LSD more than seven times automatically declared mad legally. The same claim is often suggested with large doses, the difference being that the person is considered psychotic only during the trip. The extension of this legend is that someone who performed LSD more than "X number of times" was permanently disqualified from the military as a result "legally insane," a version that might have been inspired by the delusion of thinking using the concept of dodgers drugs in the 1960s. However, there is no such law, at least not in the United States.

This version of the legend is repeated as fact in the Dragnet TV series in 1967, in an episode that revolves around the use of LSD before it is made illegal. The script describes a shipment containing "a pound of LSD [tab], enough to turn an entire Los Angeles resident into a dangerous psychotic" on the premise that one dose makes someone legally insane because of the recurrence of a completely unexpected flashback across the user's life after one dose.

LSD causes a genetic mutation

Beginning in 1967, the study raised concerns that LSD might produce genetic damage or developmental abnormalities in the fetus. However, this preliminary report is based on study in vitro or uncontrolled and has not been proven. In the study of chromosomal changes in human users and in monkeys, the balance of evidence suggests no increase in chromosomal damage. For example, white blood cells of people who have been given LSD in a clinical setting are examined for visible chromosomal abnormalities; overall, there seems to be no lasting change. Several studies have been conducted using illicit LSD users and provide a less clear picture. Interpretation of this data is generally complicated by factors such as unknown chemical composition of the LSD pathway, concurrent use of other psychoactive drugs, and diseases such as hepatitis in the sample population. It seems likely that a small number of genetic abnormalities reported on LSD road users are coincidental or related to factors other than toxic effects of pure LSD. The 2008 medical review concluded, "Available data indicate that pure LSD does not cause chromosomal abnormalities, spontaneous abortions, or congenital malformations." However, this refusal has not stopped this eternal legend from being told, nor does it stop jokes about "mutations" as allegedly disrupt the children of Baby Boomers.

Permanently a man thinks it's a glass of orange juice (or thinks he's orange) Police involuntarily drink LSD

In this legend, which began in 1970, a police officer (or customs officer) pulled a driver believed to have been drinking, saw that the driver had a bottle of water, and demanded that taste to see if it contained alcohol. The clerk did not feel any alcohol, so the driver would go down altogether or just get a speeding ticket. Shortly afterwards, the officer began to stumble very hard and stared into space, because the "water" that he took actually contained many "hits" from LSD. In some versions of the legend, officers consume enough LSD to actually go crazy. According to Snopes.com, there are no verifiable reports about this that ever happened, even decades after the legend was first notified, and therefore considered false. However, there are recent reports of officers being locked up at work.

LSD retention in spinal fluid

This legend may have a foundation in the fact that chronic use can produce flashbacks and perceptual disturbances of hallucinogens (HPPD). There is no consensus on the nature and causes of HPPD or flashbacks. A study of 44 HPPD subjects who previously swallowed LSD showed EEG abnormalities. Given that some symptoms have environmental triggers, it may be a failure to adjust visual processing to change environmental conditions. There is no explanation as to why few people develop HPPD. The explanation in which LSD is physically left in the body for months or years after consumption has been discounted by experimental evidence.

LSD is metabolized by the liver, and has an elimination half-life of about 2.5 to 4 hours.

Strychnine

Anti-drug educators often tell their students some variants about the inevitable theme of strychnine intoxication through the use of LSD, for example, strychnine is usually sold as a cheaper substitute for LSD by unscrupulous drug dealers; the strychnine is a by-product of LSD synthesis; that the body produces strychnine as a result of LSD metabolism; or strychnine is used as a preservative to prevent the decomposition of LSD quickly and naturally, allowing it to be stored; or that strychnine is somehow required to tie LSD to the ink paper. None of this is true. This claim is even believed and distributed by the drug user itself. In fact, most hallucinogens cause some degree of mental or physical discomfort after the "journey" ends. This is an indirect effect of drugs, not strychnine or other adulterers. In addition, strychnine is one of the most bitter substances known. The bitterness can be detected at 1 part per million, which is well below the toxic level. Finally, dangerous strychnine doses are too high to fit in an ink box, even if the entire square is composed of toxins.

Strychnine is rarely found mixed with LSD and other drugs in some of the samples found by law enforcement agencies, but these are all found in murder or attempted murder committed where someone is specifically targeted for poisoning, and not related to the use of recreational LSD.

A related myth is that this new type of gang initiation requires initiates to combine LSD and strychnine mixtures on as many payphone buttons as possible. This, too, is denied by the urban legend website Snopes.com.

Sungazing when tripping

A popular legend dating from the 1960s, it has been claimed that some people take LSD and look at the sun, being blinded as a result. This myth appeared in 1967 at the Dragnet police event, and twice in the mainstream news media. This legend is deemed unfounded, because in 1968 the source of the lie, Norman M. Yoder, Blind Office commissioner at the Pennsylvania State Department of Welfare, admitted that he had fully composed the story because "his attention was more than the illegal use of LSD by children." After seeing the sun on the LSD story widely published, a small number of case reports were published in the medical literature depicting this phenomenon temporarily. In one case, the patient was a teenage girl described as having a "hysterical personality" who heard warnings about staring at the sun under LSD at an anti-drug lecture school and thought this would be a neat thing, and in other cases the patient had schizophrenia paranoid.

Think they can fly and jump out the window/fall off the cliff

There are rare cases of people falling to their deaths while stumbling on LSD; However, these incidents are most likely suicides or accidents caused by disorientation or misjudgment of distance, rather than attempts to "fly." This myth may have started from a death published in 1969 from Diane Linkletter, now considered a suicide unrelated to LSD.

Maps Urban legends about drugs



Cannabis

Many misleading urban legends about marijuana exist. As rumors of LSD, many were scattered during the 1960s and 1970s, and are believed to continue to circulate today. This widespread legend claims that it is easy to overdose smoked cannabis variants and that it is very dangerous and addictive when compared to alcohol and tobacco.

Withdrawal from heavy and chronic cannabis use usually does not exceed 3-4 days, but is potentially a psychological addiction. The withdrawal symptoms are generally mild - loss of appetite, insomnia, anxiety/anxiety, tension, abdominal pain, headaches and irritability are all common symptoms. There are studies that show no increase in actual cancer risk from smoking marijuana, even when the duration of use is extended for several years. In fact, some studies suggest THC has anticancer properties, with studies showing tumor reduction in mice.

Confusion with Jimson weed

Historically, and possibly related to the legend of "Reefer Madness", some people (especially Americans) have confused marijuana with Jimson weed ( Datura stramonium ). Jimson weeds, which grow wild in the United States and some other countries, are potent delusions that can cause the hallucinations and delusions that the user believes to be real, as opposed to pseudohalucinination and perception of distortion typically caused by marijuana. Confusion can be caused by the fact that the common name Datura contains the word "weed," which is also a slang term for marijuana, and the fact that both plants (as well as others) have been given locoweed moniker in the first half of the century 20th. In addition to these superficial similarities, the two plants are unrelated and have very little to do with each other, and thus should not be confused. Jimson weeds are highly toxic and can cause delirium, confusion, hallucinations, blurred vision, photophobia, dry mouth, urinary retention, hyperthermia, incoordination, hypertension, and rapid heartbeat among other effects. Overdose (or overdose overdose) of this substance is a medical emergency, as it may cause seizures, coma, or death from a heart attack.

"Flashback" due to the release of fat cells

Similar to one of the most enduring myths about LSD, and also somewhat related to the legend of "multi-day disorder" described further on this list, this legend claims that the remaining THC stored in fat cells will be released spontaneously into the bloodstream in sufficient quantities. to get that high again after the last use of marijuana, be it days, weeks, or even months later. This legend is usually accompanied by anecdotal evidence from people who experience "high" after doing some sort of exercise. While somewhat makes more biological sense than the LSD legend that is discredited due to THC fat-solubility, this phenomenon has not been scientifically proven. A 2009 study of mice involving injecting them with THC in large amounts (equivalent to 5-10 joints per day in humans) daily for ten consecutive days, then subjected them to simulate severe stress or food deprivation caused double the rate blood THC-COOH two days after the last THC exposure compared to mice that are not stressed or lack of food. If these results occur in humans, it is theoretically possible for chronic marijuana users to fail a drug test shortly after the usual detection time due to exercise, diet, or severe stress just before the test - and some anecdotal reports about this exist. However, there is currently no strong evidence that THC is active enough to be released to get "high" or cause a "flashback". We should also note that the flashbacks of psychoactive drugs in general are now known as psychological phenomena, and drug residues usually do not play an important role in their occurrence and recurrence.

As for anecdotes about exercise, they may experience "high runners" because their bodies release endorphins, which are endogenous opioid agonists, along with anandamide and other endogenous cannabinoid agonists. This flashback has also been reported after someone stretches or stands or lies down suddenly. In addition, some studies have found that the body produces endocannabinoids such as anandamide during exercise, which can also explain the effect because they activate the same receptor as THC.

George Washington sucks hemp

There is a general belief that George Washington (and/or other Founding Fathers like Thomas Jefferson) uses marijuana for psychoactive or drug properties. It has even made popular movies like Dazed and Confused .

Both Washington and Jefferson cultivated marijuana for producing hemp, and Washington used hemp fiber to make clothes for his slaves, but there was no direct evidence that Washington or Jefferson spent it on his psychoactive properties. Washington is often quoted as saying "Take advantage of Indian flax seeds, and sprinkle everywhere," often cited as a note to the gardener published in The Washington Papers. However, the closest phrase to this in The Washington Papers is in a letter to William Pearce - "I am very glad to hear that Gardener has saved so many seeds of St. foin, and Indian flaxseed. Maximize you can from both, by sowing them again in practice. [...] Rami can be sown anywhere. "

In The Papers of George Washington , "hemp" is defined as Cannabis sativa grown for fiber, and "Indian flax" usually refers to closely related Cannabis indica . While Washington grows marijuana for its fiber, both species are also cultivated for their psychoactive and drug properties.

When marijuana is grown for its medicinal or psychoactive properties, male plants are routinely separated from females to prevent pollination, as the undesirable female plants produce the most powerful and valuable flowering peak, known as sinsemilla (from Spain < i> "sin semilla" , meaning "without seed"). In order to produce sinsemilla , sex must be separated before pollination takes place. On August 7, 1765, Washington wrote in his diary "Begin to separate men from females in Do.- rather late." While this has been taken as evidence that Washington cultivated marijuana for its psychoactive or drug properties, The Straight Dope shows that the entry in Washington's diary shows that "it divides the plant because men make fiber stronger." while the female plants produce the seeds needed for the plants next year. "Two days after he wrote the previously mentioned entry in his diary, Washington wrote that he had" put some Hemp in Rivr. For Rot, "a technique called retting water used to produce hemp, not psychoactive marijuana.) The following month he wrote that he" Began Attracting Rami Seeds but that was not mature enough, "and three weeks later that" Hempseed seems to be in a good sequence to get - that's the right maturity. "

The preliminary editorial for the June 2010 edition of cannabinoids from the British Journal of Pharmacology says that "there are sources suggesting that chronic dental pain may have caused the first President of the United States, George Washington, to grow plants for medicinal purposes," although these sources not quoted. The cover of this edition features images of Washington and Queen Victoria placed on both sides of cannabis leaves.

Allergic reactions to molecules found in marijuana kill Bruce Lee

A number of rumors arose about the cause of death of action movie star Bruce Lee in 1973, one of which was that he had been killed by consumption of marijuana. Lee died of cerebral edema within hours of taking painkillers and relaxant muscle relaxants. His autopsy results show traces of the number of cannabis in his stomach, and he is known to use marijuana. However, a doctor at the coroner's trial was quoted as saying that marijuana in Lee's stomach "is not more important than if Bruce had been drinking a cup of tea that day."

Doctor Lee, Donald Langford, and Peter Wu, a doctor who had treated Lee for another edema ten weeks earlier, believed that lethal edema could be caused by a rare allergic reaction to alkaloids in cannabis, because a large amount of marijuana was removed from his stomach during edema before, and he has been warned not to use them again. Wu told the examiner he believed the death was due to hypersensitivity to both marijuana and comparable. However, Ronald D. Teare, a professor of forensic medicine at the University of London who was flown into chief expert in the coroner's report, said it was "irresponsible and irrational" to associate edema with marijuana, and concluded that fatal edema was caused by a reaction which rarely occurs on equagesic. Teare, who has overseen nearly 100,000 autopsies and provided evidence for nearly 20,000 examinations in 35 years of experience, is echoed by R. R. Lycette, clinical pathologist at Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Lycette told the trial that his death was unlikely to be caused by cannabis, and that Lee had died of edema caused by a reaction to one or both of the materials in the same way.

At the time in Hong Kong, Cannabis was seen in a very negative light - worse than opium - and "considered a foreign drug with evil and evil tones." Bruce Thomas, author of Bruce Lee: Fighting Spirit states that "this view has a major impact on official findings," and that the inclusion of cannabis as the cause of Wu's alleged death "reflects this culture and even political pressure." later said in a 1992 interview with Thomas:

"Professor Teare is a forensic scientist recommended by Scotland Yard, he was brought in as an expert, so we can not deny his testimony.The dose of kanabis is not right and unpredictable, but I never knew anyone died just from picking it up."

Although it can not be completely ruled out that marijuana causes edema, Teare's view is accepted by the coroner, and the official verdict is "accidental death" caused by a reaction to the equivalent. Cannabis was not included as a possible cause of Lee's death.

Cannabis today is 10-20 times stronger than in the past

The legend that is often repeated is that marijuana is currently at least an order of magnitude stronger than in the past (and with far more dangerous implications). THC levels are estimated to be 10, 20 or even 30 times higher than in the 1960s or 1970s. Although the level of potential has increased in some countries (such as the US and UK), actual increases are much simpler (almost triple from 1982 to 2007 in the US) and high potential strains always exist, due to various concentrated forms of marijuana. In addition, the potential of the seized samples was not tested before 1971, the leaves were not distinguished from shoots by the testers initially, and samples from before the early 1980s (when testing and storage procedures were changed) were often degraded, making the comparison far inaccurate. Non-representative cover is also a problem. Since most of the increase occurred after 2000, this legend can be regarded as an example of ostensi (people have made such claims as far back as the 1970s).

The related claims, especially in the UK, is that the ratio of cannabidiol/THC has declined over the last few decades, producing new and possibly more potent cannabis forms that never existed before (because the CBD is thinking to attenuate some side effects negative of THC). Although there is little or no reliable data before 2005 on such a ratio in the UK, making comparisons to the past is not possible, US data going back to the 1970s shows little or no clear trend, and there are always strains with a very low ratio. The ratio is also known to vary greatly between strains and methods of growing/harvesting.

Some versions of this legend claim that potential change is due to "genetic modification," a term that often evokes fear in popular consciousness, but there is no solid evidence that anything other than selective breeding and improved growth techniques are behind the change. "Genetic modification" as far as trying to emphasize the nature desired by selective breeding practices is standard practice in many areas of agriculture, including marijuana production. It is likely that the term "genetic modification" is used by people who do not understand that selective breeding is not the same as genetic engineering.

Multi-day damage

Another claim about marijuana is that smoking damage lasts a few days after using it, because THC is stored in fat cells, which leads to low-grade fogs long after the primary height disappears. This myth is based primarily on anecdotal evidence and the fact is known that urine drug tests remain positive at least a few days after use, and longer for regular users. But the test measures a non-psychoactive metabolite, not an active THC. And THC blood levels generally fall well below the psychoactive threshold within 2-4 hours of smoking (4-8 hours after oral use). Cannabis equivalent to hangover can occur in the morning after consuming high doses, but even that ends sooner than suggested by legend. Although smoking marijuana on Friday night is likely to be a positive test in urinalysis on Monday, no amount of psychoactive effects will be preserved at the time.

One possible origin of this idea is the fact that some (but not all) studies with airline pilots show a slight decrease in the ability of flight simulators up to 24 hours after using a potentially strong cannabis. In two of four studies (one of which was not placebo controlled) the ability of the pilot to safely navigate the simulated aircraft appeared to be somewhat disrupted 24 hours later, while the other two showed no damage beyond 4-8 hours. Although replication is not consistent, this study has led some experts to recommend testing drugs to people in safety-sensitive jobs (pilots, bus drivers, etc.). Conversely, no driving studies have found significant associated cannabis disorders that last beyond 2-6 hours.

It should also be noted that the same study group that performed three of four flight simulation studies on cannabis also conducted similar studies using alcohol. They found a hangover related disorder 14 hours after consuming enough alcohol to reach BAC 0.10, despite the fact that the BAC had returned to zero at the time.

Reefer madness

Originating in the 1930s, this myth is the basis for films such as Reefer Madness, and is used by Harry Anslinger of the Federal Narcotics Bureau as a justification for banning marijuana. The charge is that even the most calm and most normal person can turn into a psychopathic killer or a rapist just because of smoking together. No relationship has ever been shown to associate the crime with acute intoxication of marijuana alone, and the psychological effects of marijuana tend to be more associated with pacifism and inactivity than aggression. For example, a Jamaican working class study showed no difference in the degree of crime between users and non-users of marijuana.

Smoking or "chasing" cannabis with high increase tobacco

In many places, marijuana is routinely mixed with tobacco when rolled into joints. In North America marijuana in any form is also often "pursued" with a tobacco cigarette, and hollow cigars filled with marijuana (abrasions) are also popular in several subcultures. Some users say that tobacco smoking increases marijuana high, and this is often associated with nicotine or additives such as menthol. To date, this is solely based on anecdotal evidence. There is at least some truth to this legend, because a 2005 study found that transdermal nicotine patches slightly increased subjective subjective "marijuana" relative to placebo patches - but only in men. Women actually see a slight decrease in subjective effects. The reasons for the improvement are not well understood, and this study appears to be the only one in 2010 that discovered the effect. However, other studies found a significant negative side to the practice. It appears that tobacco, known to be highly addictive, also increases the likelihood of developing symptoms of cannabis dependence when both substances are used simultaneously.

Some Lucky Strike cigarettes contain marijuana

It has been claimed that the Lucky Strike cigarette brand is so named because often, the consumer of the product will have a "lucky strike", finding marijuana in a carton of cigarettes. The rumor varies in how often a marijuana cigarette will be inserted, anywhere from one in every thousand cartons to one in each pack. It is not clear when this myth comes; Snopes.com claims to have been circulating for "many years." The Lucky Strike slogan "It's a toast" sparked confidence in the myth even further ('toast' being one of the slang terms for high marijuana). Despite the popularity of the myth, there are no reliable reports about any Lucky Strike cigarettes containing marijuana. The name "Lucky Strike," in reality, is merely a marketing tactic, which implies to customers that their brand is "Lucky Strike." The slogan "It's Toast" refers to tobacco baked goods, rather than drying them, making products that should be better tasted.

Another urban legend comes from this one. One explanation of the origin of reversing the "lucky" reverse cigarettes claimed the practice originated from Lucky Strike myth; it supposedly superstition arises from flipping a cigarette containing marijuana upside down to keep it for the last.

Commercial marijuana

A series of images have emerged and photographed via the internet that imply the presence of cannabis varieties from major brands of cigarettes (notably Camel and Marlboro), especially 3-4 similar Marlboro hard-pack images of green and white boxes labeled either "Blend No. 420" or "Cannabis , "containing green-filtered or white-filtered cigarettes stamped with the logo of green marijuana leaves. However, it is known to be nothing more than an image edited, manipulated, or altered and not an actual product of these companies. (Legalization of marijuana may in the future lead to the production of commercial cannabis cigarettes, but by early 2017 no major cigarette producers produced such a product.)

Popularity in the United States in the 1960s

Although the 1960s are generally regarded as the rampant usage time of marijuana compared to today, in 1969 Gallup polled only 4% of American adults have tried marijuana and 34% did not know the impact. In contrast, the Gallup poll then showed that the percentage of adults who have tried marijuana has increased to 33% in 1985 and 34% in 1999.

Cashman: Police suggest parents check candy for drugs | Boston Herald
src: www.bostonherald.com


MDMA (ecstasy)

The third most common illicit drug that is the source of urban legend is 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), better known as "ecstasy." In the United States, this substance was banned in 1985, and other countries also followed suit. Among American youths, the most popular MDMA in the 1990s and early 2000s, peaked in 2001 and declined thereafter. During this time the rather strange usage that many urban legends and misconceptions began to emerge and spread through the media, and not all of them came from anti-drug organizations.

Brain hole

The common legend that emerged around 2000 is that ecstasy can create holes in the brain, similar to Swiss cheeses, which are considered permanent. In fact, the only drug known to cause something similar to this is PCP and ketamine, which has been suspected to cause a small hole in the cortex known as Olney Lesions. However, structural changes are observed over time in the brain of methamphetamine users, and various other substances (eg, neurotoxins), although not 'holes' by any means, can still be significantly damaging.

The concept of "holes" is likely derived from misinterpretations of SPECT (and other) scans showing activity levels (or lack thereof) in certain areas of the brain, by measuring the use of glucose, blood flow, and other proxies for activity.. However, such scans do not , indicate the physical structure of the brain. This misconception is likely to be popularized by the MTV episode of True Life, "I'm on Ecstasy" (2000), which features former drug users (including MDMA use) whose brain scans show some very diminished activity areas.

MDMA_causes_Parkinson.27s_disease "> MDMA causes Parkinson's disease

Another legend, often mentioned along with the "hole in the brain" myths discussed above, is that MDMA causes Parkinson's disease, perhaps even with one night of exposure. This is partly based on studies in animals that find neurotoxicity to dopaminergic neurons after drug administration in monkeys. However, research has been recalled by researchers who do so because they inadvertently provide methamphetamine instead of MDMA to animals, given the same chemical name (MDMA stands for 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine). Ironically, it is now being investigated as a possible treatment for Parkinson's disease.

MPTP neurotoxicity was first hinted in 1976 after Barry Kidston, a 23-year chemistry graduate student in Maryland, synthesized MPPP (synthetic opiates associated with pethidine and prodines) with MPTP as the main impurity, and self-injected results. Within three days he began to show symptoms of Parkinson's disease. The National Institute of Mental Health found traces of MPPP, MPTP, and other pethidine analogues in its laboratory. They tested the substances in mice, but because of the rat tolerance for this type of neurotoxin nothing was observed. Parkinsonism Kidston was successfully treated with levodopa but he died 18 months later from cocaine overdose. After autopsy, destruction of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra is found.

In 1982, seven people in Santa Clara County, California were diagnosed with Parkinsonism after using MPPP contaminated with MPTP. Neurologist J. William Langston worked with NIH to track MPTP as the cause, and its impact on primates was investigated. Eventually motor symptoms of two of the seven patients were successfully treated at the University Hospital of Lund in Sweden with a fetal tissue nerve grafting.

Like MDMA, MPPP is a designer drug, but the effect is more similar to morphine or other opiates. Although the similarity of names, MDMA and MPPP are not related and should not be combined.

MDMA spends spinal fluid

This myth seems to have originated from a study in 1994 in which serotonin cleavage products were measured in spastic liquids of ecstasy users. However, it is a researcher , not a drug, which drains fluid (for testing purposes). Nevertheless, this (and related legend damaging spinal cord and/or spinal cord, also false) was popularized in 2000 by Eminem songs "Drug Ballad" and "The Kids."

"Stack" - - Single, double, triple etc.

Many ecstasy users describe the potential of various ecstasy pills in terms of their stacks such as double stacks or three pile pills. This claim is doubtful because there is no way to verify the potential objectively without proper testing. The term "pile" is not intended to measure the potential of ecstasy pills, but is used as a measure of mass. One pile weighs at 0.20 grams, doubles at 0.40 grams, and triples at 0.60 grams. Furthermore, a high percentage of what is sold as "ecstasy" may contain a combination of MDMA and one or more other substances or may not actually contain MDMA at all. For this reason, the "stack" system of force descriptions should not be reliable - as is the case in the underground drug market.

Top 10 Most Dangerous Street Drugs - YouTube
src: i.ytimg.com


Methamphetamine

Although initially there were not many urban legends about methamphetamine ("crank", "crystal meth," "ice"), the "meth epidemic" in the late 1990s and early 2000s (especially in the US) caused some novelty. legend.

Pulmonary damage due to recrystallization

Perhaps the most famous of the meth legends refers to the administrative method in which the user will heat/melt the methamphetamine crystals and inhale the resulting methamphetamine vapors. Legend states that the drug, once inhaled, will re-crystallize in large quantities in the lungs, damaging them in the process. This is a false claim because the crystallized methamphetamine is always in the form of a salt (usually methamphetamine hydrochloride), which is highly soluble in water, and hydrophilic, and directly absorbed into the bloodstream of the user through the alveoli.

However, intravenous use of methylphenidate (Ritalin) produces a type of lung damage commonly known as "Ritalin lung". The methylphenidate tablet is destroyed and dissolved into solution for IV injection. Tablets contain talc and other particulates that can be stored in the lungs (talcosis) and produce severe emphysema that affects all lung lobes. The "Ritalin Lung" effect could be the source of the possibility of how rumors about methamphetamine damage the lungs can appear.

Strawberry Quik

Another meth legend is that sellers sell colorful and candy-like shimmings (often with names like Strawberry Quick , derived from the idea that dealers will mix drugs with strawberry Nesquik flavor) to attract children to buy I t. It was first reported in 2007 in the western United States, and the children allegedly swallowed it by thinking it was candy, and ended up in the ER. According to Snopes.com there is no strong evidence, in October 2008, that the meth that was given the flavor was being distributed at school, or the children misconstrued meth as candy.

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Heroin

Cotton fever

Cotton fever is a high fever that is said to be caused by the injection of cotton fibers into the bloodstream when shooting heroin. Cotton is sometimes used as a raw filter for particulates before IV injection. Other commonly blamed substances include fiberglass if cigarette filters are used (cigarette filters do not contain fiberglass), or dirt if Mexican heroin is injected. In general, cotton fever refers to a fever that the user believes is caused by dead matter of particulate matter injected into the bloodstream. In fact, the particles that cause cotton fever are bacteria due to the lack of sterile techniques. Most cases of cotton fever disappear when the body clears the infection. Users will often seek medical attention when cotton fever continues. Persistent cotton fever is often an infective endocarditis. Although endotoxin spilled by the bacteria Enterobacter agglomerans, which colonize the cotton plant, has been implicated as a cause of cotton fever, most clinical cases show a positive blood cultures for skin and fecal bacteria.

"Cheese"

"Cheese" or "Tylenol with Smack" is a heroin-based recreation drug that pays attention to media inside and outside the United States after a series of deaths among teenagers at the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex between 2005 and 2007. Commonly reported as a mixture of heroin and Tylenol PM (combination of acetaminophen and diphenhydramine OTC) or its generic equivalent, in various ratios.

Apparently this concept was originally made as a joke, and after a low cut heroin seizure with paracetamol (acetaminophen) "validated" the claim, DEA issued a warning. Although the source of the original lie is missing, newspapers and media continue to reference each other without mentioning the primary source, perpetuating the cheese myth as a "heroin starter" for children. However, there may be some of these legends in 2007 involving several individuals in Texas.

Overdose

Similar to other opiates, heroin overdose is somewhat rare, and the most frequently reported overdose occurs either because of combination with other sedatives, such as benzodiazepines and ethanol, or after a person has fasted for some time and then use them. Their tolerance level will decrease but users do not often calculate abstinent and overdose time or as suicidal actions. Heroin overdose is also reversible within minutes by administering Naloxone opioid antagonists.

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PCP

Embalming fluid

A common misconception is that phencyclidine (PCP, angel dust) is equal to (or synthesized from) embalming fluid. Some people, believing this myth, have actually tried to smoke or marijuana dipped in an embalming liquid (ie formaldehyde), which is highly toxic. In contrast, some PCP-powered cannabis users believe (and are often told) that it contains proper embalming fluid and not PCP, or that the term "dust" slang really means proper embalming fluid. Sometimes, the two substances are even mixed together, in further detail of this legend. Such herbs are often called "fry," "wet," "illy," "sherm," "worms," ​​"water-water," "amp," "dust (ed)," or other names.

Rodney King is on PCP at 1991 hitting and holding

The case of Rodney King's police beating in Los Angeles is the source of much controversy and anger, as well as urban legend. Because King refused the arrest, with some officers needed to subdue him, he was assumed to be at PCP at the time because the drug was notorious for inciting violent and unexpected behavior coupled with an inability to feel pain (often misinterpreted as "super-human"). However, toxicology results show that the only drugs found in the system are alcohol and marijuana traces.

Man cut his face and put it in a dog

One legend states that a man who, when under the influence of drugs, actually cuts pieces of his own face, including his eyes, to feed his pet dogs. Several versions of this story say he also suffered from permanent brain damage. This legend is very similar to what the character Mason Verger did in Thomas Harris 1999's Hannibal novel. The legend, however, dates back earlier than 1999, and can be traced to former New York detective killer Vernon J. Geberth, who writes about it in his Practical Investigations of Murder . According to Geberth, this really happened to a man named Michael, and that Geberth was one of the detectives who were summoned to the scene. "A 1989 book by Dr. Joseph Sacco also mentions this story, though with some differences in details.

Super human power

Some reports cite widely held beliefs that the PCP can give its users "super-human" power over its duration of influence, and there are some anecdotes that accuse this phenomenon. However, while PCP usually produces psychotic symptoms (for one degree or another) coupled with the inability to feel pain, thus making the user feel invincible and appear to have "super human" power, > not typically makes users significantly stronger in reality than they should be. The exception is when the user experiences delirium-a vibrant, severe and life-threatening reaction that sometimes results from the use of PCP as well as various stimulants such as cocaine and amphetamines. Vibrant delirium has also been reported to occur without drug use, and an increase in strength that results is most likely due to a large increase in adrenaline.

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Mushroom Psilocybin

Inspiration for Super Mario power-up

One of the popular legends among game and video game subcultures is that mushroom powerup in the game Super Mario is actually based on psilocybin mushrooms. However, there is no evidence to support that claim. According to Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of the series Super Mario, it was inspired by Lewis Carroll's Adventure Alice in the Wonderland, a story where eating a special mushroom causes one to resize.. In fact, Miyamoto decided to call it "Super Mushroom" instead of "Magic Mushroom" to avoid possible associations with psychedelic variations, which often goes by the last nickname. However, the fungus depicted in the game (white circle in red hat) has an appearance similar to Amanita muscaria, which has hallucinogenic properties, although quite different from the psilocybin mushroom ("magic mushroom"). There is a debate about whether Lewis Carroll is meant to draw a metaphor into psilocybin mushrooms or Amanita muscaria in his book.

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Desomorphine (Krokodil)

There are reports of "krokodil" - according to media reports, street names for desomorphine, semi-synthetic opioids that have drug-like strength and drug effects similar to heroin (diacetylmorphine) - appear with increasing frequency in Russia and should, more recently, in the United States. Krokodil, which has been linked to and indeed named after the severe side effects of its use, has been described as 'eating meat' or, as the name suggests, causing the meat to be 'greenish and/or scale like' in those who inject drugs. Reports of drug appearances and severe skin infections appear to have originated in Russia ten years before the recent rise in the Phoenix, AZ region of the United States, in the fall of 2013. It is also reported in Joliet, Illinois and McHenry, Illinois. in October 2013, but no laboratory tests confirm that desomorphine exists in the blood, urine, or tissue of coriodic patients admitted to the hospital. Instead, the Oct. 17, 2013 article in the Lawton Constitution quotes the Oklahoma Narcotics Bureau saying that the report on the use of krokodil on the Internet should be "taken with a grain of salt." The article suggests that previous cases of drug overdose in Oklahoma have been linked to krokodil, but toxicological tests do not show desomorphine in the victim's body, but morphine, which may appear in tissues as heroin metabolites. In Illinois, heroin is known to be very cheap and unbelievably pure, making it unlikely that drug users would make or buy krokodil. Furthermore, krokodil is a liquid, while heroin is a powder, and drug users will not be confused with each other. In the discussion group linkedin.com "Emerging Drugs of Abuse," with 2500 members in the United States and 43 other countries, toxicology, street drug pharmacies, medical experts, public health and law enforcement expressed doubts about the validity of the krokodil report after a wave of media stories about the emergence krokodil in the Chicago area poured from radio, television, and print sources. The group believes that the symptoms displayed by krokodil users in the United States are due to bacterial infections such as necrotizing faciitis, a "meat-eating" disorder that spreads through sharing dirty needles. This and the fact that krokodil has never been identified anywhere else in the world other than Russia reinforces the notion that this drug does not exist in the US.

However, the rising popularity of krokodil may be related to the ability of ordinary people (with little or no training or chemical equipment) to chemically produce opiate drugs such as heroin, at home, using available solvents and 'recipes' available on the internet posted on drug forums and chat rooms. Using the hints that are available, though highly unreliable, users change the codeine of a much cheaper and more accessible drug, often available without a prescription or with an easily available recipe, into a much stronger desomorphine, opiate. With road prices for heroin or oxycodone much higher than the costs of codeine and chemicals, users make krokodil for cheaper and comparable prices. However, lacking the right tools, training, and test equipment, the user is so unlikely to produce desomorphine in pure form at home, and consequently ends up injecting a very impure mixture of codeine, desomorphine, and toxic chemicals used in crude oil. reactions such as alkali or acetone. While studies are not yet available from various samples of krokodil confiscated in different regions, it is likely that this drug is not a single chemical, prescription, or 'designer' drug, but a medical symptom caused by the injection of toxic chemicals. used in a variety of 'house-baked' drug synthesis methods, although traditionally such processes are used by methamphetamine home manufacturers.

Although there has been no detailed study of desomorphine in pure form available to the public, it is likely that it does not cause severe inflammation, necrosis, and the symptoms of krokodil meat eaters. Such damage is much more likely to be associated with toxic chemicals used in in-house synthesis than in the desomorphine itself. There is no indication that desomorphine - any one of hundreds of known opioids that differ primarily in strength and duration of action - has a unique 'quality' that would make it desirable for opiate users in pure form, or that in its pure desomorphine form would cause symptoms associated with krokodil.

Further research is needed to fully determine whether the krokodil is a drug or a collection of symptoms associated with toxic chemical injection by home-chemical drug products, but because desomorphine is one of hundreds of known opiates in chemical families without association with symptoms, it is much more likely that the drug is a set of symptoms associated with the injection of household chemicals, rather than the particular drug itself. Comparison can be done with the effects of methanol poisoning from alcohols that are illegally produced during the US ban. Methanol is sometimes added to distillate to increase the gain. Similarly, it is possible that the krokodil is not the drug itself, but rather the symptoms of injecting toxic chemicals used in the process and not disposed of due to the crude process and the lack of testing equipment.

There are many 'prescriptions' of home remedies that can, and may be, cause users to inject chemicals that are very impure, harmful, and toxic, causing the symptoms of krokodil. Although drawing attention to the dangers of trying to produce or change drugs using kitchen chemistry and internet 'recipes' is important and valuable, it is unprovable - and highly unlikely - that krokodil is a single drug, but rather a symptom, or symptom set, injecting non solvent -psychoactive, reactants, etc.

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Designer drug

The emergence of new illegal or semi-legal designer drugs intended as a substitute or alternative for illegal drugs has spawned several new legends as well.

Cannibalism of bath salts

In 2012, various drugs dubbed "bath salts" were involved in several violent attacks, including some cases of cannibalism. However, Miami's most famous cannibal striker, Rudy Eugene, tested negative for all drugs known as "bath salts" and any other psychoactive substances known except for cannabis. Toxicologist Dr. Bruce Goldberger notes that marijuana alone will not likely cause such behavior, and that there are many synthetic drugs available that are not always possible to test.

Despite its name, "bath salts" usually contain methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), mephedrone, and/or pyrovalerone, and these psychoactive substances have nothing to do with the actual bath salts used for non-psychoactive bathtub relaxation.

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General

In addition to legends about certain medicines, there are also some generic drugs that are often used for some types of drugs. Usually, these legends involve worse themes and/or targeted children, but some are told with more recklessness for humorous purposes.

Drugs smuggled in baby corpse

This legend, dating back to the early 1970s and first surfaced on the Internet in 1996, claims that drug traffickers smuggle drugs (usually cocaine) in dead babies that are perforated to avoid detection. Allegedly, the infants of the tourists were abducted, killed, dissected, filled with drugs, and sewn so that contraband could be more easily smuggled into the border. However, according to US Customs and other law enforcement agencies, there are no verifiable reports about this that have ever happened, and thus this myth is unfounded.

Candy or lollipop given medicines to schoolchildren

This legend, which appeared on the Internet in time for Halloween in October 2004, claimed that drug dealers lollipop mixed with drugs, usually a combination of THC and PCP, to unsuspecting children and causing them to be deeply hurt. Such suckers are supposedly referred to as "dro pops" or something to that effect, and cities across the country have their own version of legend. According to the US DEA, suckers containing THC and/or PCP have been found and confiscated in Chicago in the spring of 2004. They also reported that in 2003 and 2004 some psilocybin mushroom chocolate candy bars were seized near Amarillo, Texas, and with holes lollipops filled with heroin had been confiscated in New York City. The goal is to avoid detection by law enforcement by posing as candy. There is no evidence that this has ever been given to children, let alone that such children are disadvantaged, or even that such lollipops have been found outside this particular location or anywhere since early 2004. Thus, this legend may be considered to be in the same tone as the famous blue star tattoo legend.

Halloween related drug novels

With regards to the legend above, various drugs have also found their way to the more common and enduring legend of Halloween poison. Allegedly, unsuspecting tricks-or-treaters are given candy (or sometimes fruit) mixed with toxins, needles, razors, and drugs by strangers. However, almost all reports of this incident are now known as hoaxes, events unrelated to the Halloween candy, or non-random poisoning by relatives made for random looks. The latest manifestation of the drug-related Halloween legend is predicted by Sheriff Lee Baca from Los Angeles that marijuana edibles (from medical marijuana pharmacies) may end up in the hands of trick-or-treaters on Halloween in 2010. Read even to seize cannibals edibles from circulation in an attempt to prevent this from happening, and is shown on television two days before Halloween. Again, there is no evidence that cannabis-marked cannats were ever given to trick-or-treaters in 2010 or in any other year.

"Gnome" legend

Source of the article : Wikipedia

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