SO WHAT HAPPENED?

In a moment of peer pressure, Connor decided to try this synthetic drug, also known as Spice or K2, (synthetic drugs go by a wide variety of different names), as so many other teens and young adults have done in towns and cities across our nation. However, shortly after just taking that one hit of Spice, Connor didn’t feel well and laid down to “sleep it off.” He never woke up again.

HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN?

Synthetic drugs, may seem legal and safe. They can be sold at your local smoke shop or convenience store alongside other items we use every day. They can be packaged with happy cartoon characters and look like candy. It can be marketed as “synthetic marijuana,” “fake pot,” or a “legal” substitute…but these synthetic drugs are not safe and they are not some sort of alternative to marijuana. How could they be harmful? Not only are they not safe, they can be deadly and cause severe side effects.
 

SO WHAT IS A SYNTHETIC DRUG?

First of all, synthetic drugs, (or NPS’s–New Psychoactive Drugs as they are known) are really poisons. They are not made in some white-coat laboratory. These NPSs are being fabricated by underground chemists and sold to our youth. There’s no regulation and inspection of the chemicals and compounds of synthetic drugs. Each synthetic drug packet varies in strength and the types of chemicals being used can be totally different from packet to packet even within the same brand name. For example, one packet can cause severe side effects, including death, while another packet from the same batch may have milder effects. Additionally, since each person’s brain chemistry is different, the same packet can have significantly different effects from person to person. There is no “reliable” or “safe” brand of synthetics and no amount taken can be considered safe.  



Source: DEA