25-Nbome Series Are Deadly Hallucinogens

September 28, 2014

25-Nbome Series Are Deadly Hallucinogens

N-Bombs are members of the NBOMe ‘family’ of drugs. These drugs are very powerful hallucinogens, similar to LSD. However the way a person feels may be different from what another feels after using LSD. LSD is said to be much safer than 25-NBOMe Series. These drugs when taken changes the way a person see objects and reality. A person will see things that are not even in existent. It is however very funny that these drugs are majorly abused by people simply because the make you hallucinate. When a person uses this drug he is taken on a trip. This trip involves moments when a person feels like he is supernatural, he sees things that are not normally seen, he feels like he has broken all the boundaries of his mind and begins to understand how certain things work the way they do. However the trip can be good or bad, bad trips may take too long and cause a person to behave abnormally which may force him to be taken to hospital. When in good trips a person sees things that make him feel on top of his world, he becomes very contemplative. The colors become strong and everything seems bright. A feeling of happiness and euphoria is common and a person may laugh a lot.

25-NBOMe

The alterations in the senses of a user differ greatly. At times the distortions may pleasant, but sometimes very frightening (these are called ‘bad trips’). It may also become hard for a person to tell whether something is in motion or not. Something may seem to be in high speed while in real sense they are not even moving. Color, sound and objects can get distorted and you can experience double vision. N-Bomb‘s are also related to the 2C ‘family’ of compounds.

In most countries the use of the N-Bombs is illegal and anybody who is found in possession of these drugs can be jailed for quite a long time. The drugs are classified as Class A drugs. This therefore means that their use is banned. The decision to ban the use of these drugs came up when it was known that unlike the LSD that was thought of as a friendly hallucinogen the N-Bombs had severe effects on the users and even caused death. This means that in many countries today, if the police arrest you in possession of N-Bombs, they’ll always take some action. This could include a formal caution, arrest and prosecution.

Sold As Blotters and Tabs

N-Bombs were often sold as tiny squares of paper. These tiny squares are commonly called “tabs” or “blotters”. Blotters can come in various sizes, shapes, colors and designs. They were also sold in spray, powder and liquid form. It is possible that they will continue to be available in these forms now that they are illegal. The sellers of these drugs are often determined to find ways that they can use to peddle these drugs without being caught by the authorities. Do not be surprised when you hear that they are now sold branded as ‘phone screen cleaner’ or any other funny name. They are looking for better ways to beat the authorities and continue to reap large in this business.

25i_nbome It is reported that N-Bombs don’t work if swallowed, so they are usually placed under the tongue or held in the cheeks, where they are absorbed by the lining of the mouth. They can also be sniffed if in their powder form or absorbed via the nose or mouth if a spray form is used. The longer it is kept in the mouth the better for those using it. Just like other hallucinogens there are a myriad ways through which it can be taken but there are cases that have been reported that snorting the drug is not so safe given that so many people who have been found killed by this drug had snorted it.

N-Bombs are very strong, with only a small amount needed to have an effect. The average dose of the N-Bomb 25I-NBOMe is between 0.00005 and 0.0001gram. Because of this it can be easy to overdose if you are using the powder or liquid forms of N-Bombs. The strength it has also makes it much cheaper as you will only need a smaller size of blotters compared to the size you would need to buy when using LSD.

When a person takes this drug the first feeling comes in at 15 minutes, with a sensation things have definitely changed. This vague feeling will lead to a heightening awareness and pupil dilation. Patterns are most visible. The stitching of your clothes, the veins on a leaf, the design of a ceiling tile. After 45 minute, it will have really set in. Edges will start gaining a fringe. At first it will be as if heat is distorting your vision, then the fringes gain color. There will be peaks and falls in between the first ten hours during a time that what you will see will be very difficult to tell to another person. The climax of these hallucinations will be marked by fractal patterns and pupil dilation. The use of these drugs has caused many deaths mostly because they are so strong that even a slight overdose leads to death. Needless to mention the doses are not easy to control.

Finally, Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced doctor who has been in the frontline fighting drug addiction. He runs a website that equips readers of better ways to overcome not only drug addiction but also serious health problems that have caused nightmares to the world population. Get in touch with her today and learn more.

25-Nbome Series Are Deadly Hallucinogens

Synthetic cannabinoid Receptor Agonists

September 27, 2014

Synthetic cannabinoid Receptor Agonists

Synthetic cannabinoid Receptor Agonists are also known as spice. These are a collection of herbs or plant material which has been sprayed with synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists, often referred to as synthetic cannabinoids, producing a cannabis-like effect when smoked. Today there are more than one type of cannabinoids that have been identified but they are all active as they mimic the psychoactive effects of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the active principle in cannabis. Most compounds come from the JWH chemical family, such as JWH-018.

For emphasis it is good to repeat that these synthetic cannabinoids are functionally similar to tetrahydrocannabinol often shortened as THC. THC is the most active principle of cannabis. Like THC, they bind to the same cannabinoid receptors in the brain and other organs as the endogenous ligand anandamide. More correctly designated as cannabinoid receptor agonists, they were initially developed over the past forty years as therapeutic agents, often for the treatment of pain. However, it proved difficult to separate the desired properties from unwanted psychoactive effects.

Synthetic cannabinoid

In the past years especially in the late 2008, several cannabinoids were detected in herbal smoking mixtures and incense as well as room odorisers. Typical of these were Spice Gold, Spice Silver and Yucatan Fire, but many other products later appeared. They do not contain tobacco or cannabis but when smoked, produce effects similar to those of cannabis. These products are typically sold via the Internet and in ‘head shops’. The spices are therefore as dangerous as cannabis and so should be avoided.

The fact that these spices are referred to as synthetic cannabinoids does not mean that they are similar to the real cannabinoids in all aspects in fact most of these synthetic cannabinoids are not related to the real cannabinoids in structure and hence though they can mimic the activities of the cannabinoids but they may work in a way that will cause more harm. The cannabinoid receptor agonists form a diverse group, but most are lipid soluble and non-polar, and consist of 22 to 26 carbon atoms. This therefore means that they would therefore volatilize readily when smoked. A common structural feature is a side-chain, where optimal activity requires more than four and up to nine saturated carbon atoms. The synthetic cannabinoids can be classified into seven major structural groups. These groups are;

Naphthoylindoles (e.g. JWH-018, JWH-073 and JWH-398).
Phenylacetylindoles (i.e. benzoylindoles, e.g. JWH-250).
Cyclohexylphenols (e.g. CP 47,497 and homologues of CP 47,497).
Classical cannabinoids (e.g. HU-210).

Other cannabinoid receptor agonists include substances such as oleamide. Oleamide is an endogenous substance that is also used in plastics manufacture. Another one is methanandamide. Oleamide and methanandamide are both related to anandamide in structure. Despite the similarities in structure with the anandamide the activities of these two synthetic cannabinoids have been questioned. It is thought that neither methanandamide nor other arachidonyl derivatives related to anandamide would be sufficiently volatile to be smoked. Certain fluorosulfonates exhibit agonist activity at cannabinoid receptors, as does naphthalen-1-yl-(4-pentyloxynaphthalen-1-yl)methanone, but the latter appears not to be psychoactive, at least when administered orally.

Physical state

SyntheticCannabinoids Most of these synthetic cannabinoids are either solids or oils as they exist in pure state. Smoking mixtures are usually sold in metal-foil sachets, typically containing 3 g of dried vegetable matter to which one or more of the cannabinoids have been added. Typically, a solution of the cannabinoids has been sprayed onto the herbal mixture to give it the drug effect. Just like any other business oriented producer you will find a number of plants listed on the packaging but the plants mentioned on the packaging may not even be present. This is utmost dangerous as you may be using these spices thinking you are safe based on the ingredients wrote on the packaging while in real sense you are using substances you do not even know. These spices are often sold while containing high amounts of Vitamin E which is purported to be used in masking the analysis of the most active cannabinoids. The producers of these spices will put more cannabinoids in the samples to confound the forensic chemical detection.

The cannabinoid receptor agonists mimic the effects of THC and anandamide by interacting with the CB1 receptor in the brain. Several research studies have shown that some synthetic compounds bind more strongly to this receptor than THC as measured by the affinity constant Ki. All of the cannabinoids found in smoking mixtures have, like THC (Ki = 10.2nM), high affinity to the CB1receptor although small variations in Ki values occur between different publications. The substance HU-210 has a particularly low value of Ki (0.06nM), and it binds over 100 times more tightly to the CB1 receptor than THC.

However, little is known about the detailed pharmacology and toxicology of the synthetic cannabinoids and few formal human studies have been published. It is possible that, apart from high potency, some cannabinoids could have particularly long half-lives potentially leading to a prolonged psychoactive effect. In addition, there could be considerable inter-and intra-batch variability in smoking mixtures, both in terms of substances present and their quantity. Thus, there is a higher potential for overdose than with cannabis.

Finally, Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced doctor who has been in the frontline fighting drug addiction. He runs a website that equips readers of better ways to overcome not only drug addiction but also serious health problems that have caused nightmares to the world population. Get in touch with her today and learn more.

Synthetic cannabinoid Receptor Agonists

New and re-emerging Abused Drugs

September 27, 2014

New and re-emerging Abused Drugs

Prescription-Drug-Abuse The greatest challenge for physicians today is to be up to par with the new and remerging drugs of abuse. The problem is the law enforcers have declared certain drugs that were perceived to have medicinal qualities into illegal drugs. Most of these drugs are those used in cooling pain. Having these drugs classified as illegal has led to many street doctors to adopt ways through which they can continue using such drugs without being at loggerheads with the law enforcers and that has led to mixing certain substances with these drugs in a bid to conceal what the real contents of the drugs are. They have also branded this drugs with strange names all in a in a bid to hide them from the law enforcers. The packages of these drugs are written as ‘not for human consumption’ among other strange names that has been given to these new and re-emerging drugs of abuse to enable them trade safe. Emerging drugs of abuse are forever changing and involve manipulation of basic chemical structures to avoid legal ramifications. The structural changes are important to those dealing in these drugs as they help them evade forensic chemical tests hurdles. The names given to these drugs may not even have a relation to their contents and so not as important as understanding the classes of these drugs. Most of the synthetic new drugs of abuse result in psychoactive and sympathomimetic effects.

For emphasis this needs to be repeated many of these drugs are marketed as “legal highs despite being labeled “not for human consumption” to avoid regulation. The availability of these substances over the Internet and in “head shops” has led to a multitude of emergency department visits with severe complications including deaths worldwide. Today there are still new drugs of abuse that are not yet known by physicians. The drugs are not easy to tame since even the slightest alterations of the basic chemical structure of substances create an entirely new drug no longer regulated by current laws and an ever-changing landscape of clinical effects. The purity of each substance with exact pharmacokinetic and toxicity profiles is largely unknown hence very dangerous to the users. Some of these drugs that are being abused greatly today hence not very easy to tame are piperazines.

Piperazines

Piperazines have often been referred to as failed pharmaceuticals. This is because some had been evaluated as potential therapeutic agents by pharmaceutical companies but never brought to the market .One piperazine that has been commonly used as NPS is 1-benzylpiperazine (BZP) though other piperazine derivatives have also been reported to be useful in medicine. These include among others 1-(3-chlorophenyl) piperazine (mCPP), 1-(3-trifluoromethylphenyl) piperazines (TFMPP), 1-benzyl-4-methylpiperazine (MBZP), 1-(4-fluorophenyl) piperazines (pFPP) and 1-cyclohexyl-4-(1,2-diphenylethyl) piperazine (MT-45).

BZP itself was initially developed as a potential antidepressant drug, but was found to have similar properties to amphetamine and therefore liable to abuse. In the 1980s, it was used in Hungary to manufacture piberaline, a substance marketed as an antidepressant. This substance was later withdrawn since it was thought liable to abuse as well. In the late 1990s, BZP emerged in New Zealand as a ‘legal alternative’ for MDMA and methamphetamine. In Europe, its use was first reported in Sweden in 1999, but it only became widespread as a NPS from 2004 onwards until controls over the substance were introduced in 2008, in the European Union. mCPP was developed during the late 1970s and is used as an intermediate in the manufacture of several antidepressants, e.g. trazodone and nefazodone. TFMPP is almost always seen in combination with BZP to produce the entactogenic effects of MDMA.

Neither BZP nor any other piperazines are under international control, although several (BZP, TFMPP, mCPP, MDBP) were pre-reviewed by the WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence in 2012. Several countries have introduced national control measures over piperazines. The control measures are however still challenged as those dealing in these drugs are adopting ways to beat the authorities in this trade. Piperazines are frequently sold as ‘ecstasy’. Some of the generic names for these substances include; pep pills, social tonics or simply as party pills.

These drugs are mostly used recreationally and two groups of these drugs feature here and these are benzylpiperazines and phenylpiperazines. Most of the pills sold as ecstasy and amphetamines have been found to contain components of Piperazines or its substitutes. They can also come as mixtures of more than one piperazine (such as BZP/TFMPP) or in combination with other drugs of abuse. Today Piperazines are some of the most common active substances found in Internet purchased drugs and they are majorly abused by young people.

Can adversely affect the users

Piperazines have been found to act as stimulants as a result of dopaminergic, noradrenergic, and predominantly serotoninergic effects produced in the brain. The majority of pharmacological studies of piperazines has focused on BZP and have indicated that it produces toxic effects similar to amphetamine and other sympathomimetics. According to animal studies, its effects are less potent than amphetamine, methamphetamine and MDMA. TFMPP, used in conjunction with BZP, has been reported to produce some of the effects of MDMA, but with a lower potency, while mCPP has been indicated to produce similar stimulant and hallucinogenic effects as MDMA.

In New Zealand, toxic seizures and respiratory acidosis after the use of BZP alone or in conjunction with other drugs were reported from three patients. Another study of 61 patients reported toxic effects of BZP, with two cases presenting life-threatening toxicity. Hyperthermia, rhabdomyolysis and renal failure associated with BZP ingestion have also been reported. In the United Kingdom, self-terminating grand mal seizures after the use of BZP have also been reported. All these findings prove how fatal the use of these drugs is and so should be avoided at all costs.

Finally, Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced doctor who has been in the frontline fighting drug addiction. He runs a website that equips readers of better ways to overcome not only drug addiction but also serious health problems that have caused nightmares to the world population. Get in touch with her today and learn more.

New and re-emerging Abused Drugs

Ketamine Intoxication Abuse Could Lead To Dependence

September 26, 2014

Ketamine Intoxication Abuse and Dependence

Ketamine Intoxication Any drug when taken for non-medical purposes then it is termed abused. Today there are very many drugs that are being used for sheer feeling of euphoria the users derive from them. These drugs are common in streets needless to mention some of the drugs that are used in hospitals for medicinal purposes have also been abused greatly. When a particular drug is used for quite a long time for non-medical purpose it becomes very toxic to the body. Substance abuse is a vice that needs to be fought at all costs and from all fronts as it has opened avenues through which lives have been lost. The problems that a person can suffer from long-term drug abuse spring from all the dimensions of a person’s health be it psychological health, mental health, physical health as well as his social relations. A person who is a victim to drug abuse may fail to cater for family needs, school obligations and even fail to have peace within him as he will be having lots of personal and interpersonal conflicts. Drug and substance dependence is commonly known as addiction. Drug or substance dependence is characterized by change in behaviors of a person. Most common behavior being the need to use more quantities of the substance. When a person is dependent on a given substance his life begins to revolve around it and it seems rather hard for him to live without using the substance. The person often suffers such symptoms as withdrawal among other symptoms associated with drug abuse and dependence.

Drug abuse and dependence are dangerous for an individual; however when a person has just began using a particular substance he may be easily helped to quit the habit than when he has used it for so long that he has become dependent on the drug and has begun showing those side effects that are associated with drug dependence. It is also good to note that a person may become dependent on a drug without abusing it. It is also good to note that person may abuse substance for quite a long time without ‘graduating’ to drug dependence.

One of the drugs that are being abused today is the Ketamine. Ketamine is one of the drugs that are very useful in hospitals. It is a perfect example that even some drugs that help us in gaining good health can also be abused. Ketamine is a medication that has been used to treat many illnesses. It is used in medical procedures with humans and other animals and that means it is an accepted medication in hospitals hence can be easily accessed by medical practitioners such as nurses and doctors. In hospitals it is mainly for starting and maintaining general anesthesia especially in scenarios where the patient is to go through intense pain. It also has other uses and these include sedation in intensive care, as a pain killer. It is however commonly used as a painkiller in emergency cases when the patient is allergic to other known drugs used in suppressing pain such as opiate drugs. This drug can be used as treatment of bronchospasm, and as a treatment for complex regional pain syndrome.

Ketamine has been found to work better since its administration does not affect the Respiratory function. For this reason it has become a very valuable anesthetic. However one of the known side effects often associated with administration of ketamine is agitation.

Ketamine is a NMDA noncompetitive Receptor antagonist

Ketamine is an arylcyclohexylamine derivative of phencyclidine. It is also a non-competitive NMDA antagonist. Scientist, Lodge and his colleagues the first showed that ketamine, phencyclidine, related arylcyclohexylamines and congeners were antagonists of excitatory amino acids like aspartate and glutamate in 1983. The early history of the development of ketamine as an anesthetic agent was documented by McCarthy in 1981. Other scientists Corssen and Dundee reviewed the historical introduction of ketamine into human anesthesia and the term dissociative anesthesia in 1990. These scientists found that for ketamine to be used safely in clinical therapies, it had to be tamed.

Low doses of ketamine in humans do not necessarily alter perception in a negative way. Foster gave an IV infusion of three different sub anesthetic doses of ketamine (0.05, 0.1 and 0.2 mg/kg/h) to six patients with Alzheimer’s disease. The patients showed no drowsiness and their reaction times and digit span were unaffected by any of the doses of ketamine used. This study however is rather controversial. This is because NMDA receptors are involved in brain function, including arousal and memory, this study requires further research and explanation because one would have predicted exactly the opposite effects even with the small doses of ketamine used.

Ketamine Intoxication

Ketamine as nicotinic inhibitor

Initially the effect of ketamine blockade on niconitic receptors was unknown. But today after many researches and experiments scientists have shown that racemic ketamine and the isomers inhibits nAChRs and K channels in a concentration-dependent and reversible manner. In an experiment racemic ketamine inhibited nAChRs and K channels, with the anesthetic concentration inducing the half-maximal effect being 1.4 and 300 micrometer, respectively. Only inhibition of the nAChRs was stereo selective. The half-maximal concentrations were 0.8 and 3.6 micrometer for S (+) – and R (-)-ketamine. The K channels were 350 and 70 times less sensitive to the effects of S (+) – and R (-)-ketamine.

Ketamine at concentrations found during clinical anesthesia exerts stereospecific effects on human ganglionic nAChRs but not on voltage-dependent K channels. The results found from this experiment supports the view that ketamine impairs sympathetic ganglionic transmission. Nonspecific effects on voltage-dependent K channels may underlie psychomimetic side effects.

Finally, Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced doctor who has been in the frontline fighting drug addiction. He runs a website that equips readers of better ways to overcome not only drug addiction but also serious health problems that have caused nightmares to the world population. Get in touch with her today and learn more.

Ketamine Intoxication Abuse and Dependence

Dextromethorphan (DXM) As a Drug of Abuse

September 25, 2014

Dextromethorphan (DXM) As a Drug of Abuse

Dextromethorphan (DXM) As a known fact, most of the drugs that are now commonly abused began as clinical drugs. There are clinical drugs that might have recreational properties in that when a person takes more than recommended dosage he may experience some of the effects of the drug. These may include hallucination and euphoria. For this reason these drugs can be misused in large scale if measures are not taken to strictly regulate their use. Dextromethorphan is one of the drugs that have been used in clinical setup but are known to be rich in recreational properties.

Dextromethorphan (DXM) was used as a cough depressant in the past. Most of the over the counter cough medicines has it as an ingredient. It works in these drugs as an antitussive (cough suppressant) and expectorant in other words it works as an agent that promotes the removal of mucus from the respiratory tract. It also has other medical uses. These may include the temporary relief of sinus congestion, runny nose, cough, sneezing, itching of the nose and throat, and watery eyes caused by hay fever, allergies, cold, or flu (influenza). In fact most of the over the counter cough medication has DXM as the most active component. When the recommended dose is taken, DXM has few adverse side effects, and has a long history of safety and effectiveness. However when taken in huge doses beyond the description it has some serious side effects. It causes hazy images and poor vision plus it also causes hallucinations. This drug, owing to its hallucinatory effects has been highly abused.

Over the past few years, cases related to use of DXM for non-medical purposes has risen and still very many people are using this drug for all the wrong reasons. Experts opine that the rise in abuse of this drug is attributed to the ease of purchasing nonprescription cough drugs from drug stores and in the internet. The drug is also legal and so even those who use it for wrong purpose are not afraid of the authorities even if they are found to be in possession of DXM. This gives it a more reason to be used as opposed to other hallucinogens that are considered illegal in most states. The FDA approves the use of DXM for medicinal purposes basing on the fact that when it is used within the prescribed doses then it can not cause any health hazard. However, it can be a damaging substance. Recreational users intentionally exceed suggested doses to experience a sense of heightened perceptual awareness, altered time perception, and/or visual hallucinations. Also, users often abuse the drug in combination with other drugs. The interaction between DXM and other substances e.g., alcohol, acetaminophen, MDMA/ecstasy, and other OTC cough medicines. When DXM is used with other drugs for recreational purposes, it produces a synergistic effect that can be very dangerous. Ingredients of cough medicines other than DXM, like acetaminophen, are extremely hazardous when consumed in high doses and can cause liver damage, heart attack, stroke, and death. For these reasons it is very important to restrict oneself to the prescribed dosage to avoid all the other undesirable effects.

DXM as Sigma receptors agonists

This drug works in a number ways in suppressing coughs. Firstly it has pharmacodynamic similarities to the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist ketamine. It is used as a cough depressant as it has been found to be effective yet very safe when used within the required doses. However this drug does not bind on the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors only but also binds to sigma-1 (σ1) receptors, which are believed to be protein targets for a potential new class of antidepressant medications.

Due to its hallucinatory effects it has become abused in that instead being used for medicinal purposes people now use it as a recreational drug. When taken a person will experience visual hallucinations and radically altered states of consciousness, often experienced as pleasurable and illuminating. This intense feeling of happiness and euphoria is what make many people to abuse DXM. It takes a person to a mental trip where every boundary of the mind seems overcome. However in case of overdose with the good feelings of happiness and euphoria a person may get feelings of anxiety and revulsion after using DXM. However there are other side effects associated with it.

Dextromethorphan (DXM)

Dextromethorphan side effects

Every drug has a side effect when abused. However the drugs will induce different reactions in people. As for DXM, it is very safe when used within the prescribed doses. However when a person uses this drugs in higher doses he will have to go through certain problems that are induced by the drug. There is however an innocent unintentional overdose under which a person may suffer such symptoms as; difficulty breathing, swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat. When this happens, you should stop using dextromethorphan and call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects: severe dizziness, anxiety, restless feeling, or nervousness, confusion, hallucinations and slow, shallow breathing.

Apart from the unintentional overdose that may be termed accidental a person may overdose to get the feelings of euphoria and hallucinations from this drug. However this may result in serious health problems both short-term and long-term.

Finally, Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced doctor who has been in the frontline fighting drug addiction. He runs a website that equips readers of better ways to overcome not only drug addiction but also serious health problems that have caused nightmares to the world population. Get in touch with her today and learn more.

Dextromethorphan (DXM) As a Drug of Abuse

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