Dear World
The following is an extract taken from our forthcoming book titled The Real Truth about SPICE.
Spice is synthetic cannabis.
Please read our blog presenting the real truth about Cannabis, also known as Marijuana – https://simplelivingglobal.com/the-raw-truth-about-marijuana/
K2 is the name given to Spice in the U.S.
Many of us may know of the drug called Spice but have no idea really what it actually is and what it does to the human frame.
SPICE IS NOT DESIGNED FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION.
It is a man-made drug that alters our natural state and creates extreme behaviour that we have not seen or felt before. In other words, we have taken this to another level.
Is it time to look at WHY anyone would want to take this intense drug?
Is it time we addressed our global drug epidemic, which is out of control?
Are we seriously considering the knock on effect of what this drug is doing?
Are we busy blaming or are we trying to find solutions, which are band-aids?
Are we ready to read what is being presented in this article and take note of the dangers of this harmfull substance?
Are we going to wake up and realise that our world is in deep trouble if some people are choosing to take this lethal drug?
Are we going to wait for more and more research to confirm what common sense is telling us right now?
Are we ever going to fund research to get to the root cause of WHY anyone chooses to take drugs in the first place, to alter their natural state of being?
What is Spice?
Spice is not a single drug but a range of laboratory-made chemicals that mimic the effects of THC – tetrahydrocannabinol which is the main psychoactive component of cannabis. Research suggests that Spice and other forms of synthetic cannabis is capable of producing much more intense and prolonged effects at much lower doses than natural cannabis.
This is because cannabis in its natural form reacts partially with the body and synthetic cannabis reacts far more fully.
To understand the biology behind the intense reaction to Spice, we need to look at the parts of the body’s central nervous system that react to cannabis – the cannabinoid receptors and the chemical part of the drug that reacts with the body – the “agonist”.
While THC is a “partial agonist” (it only partially reacts with cannabinoid receptors), synthetic cannabis is often a “full agonist”. In this way, the more adverse effects observed with synthetic cannabis use stem from its ability to completely saturate and activate all of the body’s cannabinoid receptors at a lower dose.
Although the consequences of long-term regular use are not well defined, experts believe that synthetic cannabis has the potential to develop, or cause a relapse of mental illness. (1)
Long-term side effects range from nausea and tooth loss to heart and lung problems. (2)
HELLO
WHY would anyone want to make a drug in a laboratory that mimics the effects of cannabis?
WHO on earth comes up with stuff that is more potent and harmfull to the mind and body?
Do we need experts to tell us or can we work it out, that synthetic cannabis is going to cause some form of mental illness because of the very nature of what it is?
For those who are choosing this drug, are they even bothered about the long-term side effects?
Where does Spice come from?
In late 1980’s scientists discovered that THC in cannabis affects humans by stimulating those receptors in the brain and nervous system that process sensation, appetite, mood and memory.
Once this had been established, chemists researching new medicines were able to synthesise compounds specifically to target these receptors and went on to create them in their hundreds.
Just as drugs such as MDMA (ecstasy) had before these, gradually seeped out of the lab and onto the street. (3)
2008
First synthetic cannabinoid identified on the recreational drug market. (1)
Spice was the first well-known brand name. (3)
Synthetic cannabinoids laced on plant material were first reported in the U.S. when a shipment of “Spice” was seized and analysed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in Ohio. (4)
Scientific and law enforcement communities started studying what was actually contained in synthetic cannabis mixtures.
Analysis showed the product had been sprayed with synthetic cannabinoids. It was not a simple mixture of harmless herbs such as canavalia, maritime, leonotis, zornia and others.
These are NOT the “All Natural” ingredients listed on packaging and sellers’ websites.
These chemicals are similar to natural cannabinoid found in marijuana –
THC – tetrahydracannabinol but they affect our brain receptors differently.
Spice and K2 may contain one of many synthetic cannabinoids such as
AB-CHMINACA
AB-FUBINACA
AB-PINACA
AKB4
AM-2201
Cannabicyclohexanol
JWH-018
JWH-073
JWH-200
UR-144
XLR-11
Phenazapam prescription drug has also been found in some products.
Synthetic cannabinoids fit into the same receptors as THC latches onto in the brain, so they can have an effect similar to THC.
Note – some synthetic cannabinoids are 100 X stronger than THC and many operate on other brain receptors too. (5)
JWH-018 an aminoalkylindole (AAIs) originally developed by a researcher in a US university was sold under the brand name Spice.
AAIs are the most common sub-family of synthetic cannabinoids and are produced in kilogram quantities through quick and simple chemical reactions using legal substances. (1)
Synthetic cannabinoids are included in a group of drugs called “new psychoactive substances” (NPS). (6)
Under narcotics legislation, JWH-018 is now a controlled substance in many countries.
The prevalence of next-generation synthetic cannabinoids, known as Spice or Mamba continue to be the largest group of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) in common usage. (1)
The chemistry to make these things is very simple and very old.
You only have three easily available starting materials and only two steps.
In a few days, you could make 25g, which could be enough to make havoc.
Chemist (3)
These substances are produced on a large scale by chemical companies based in China then shipped as bulk powders to Europe by air or sea.
Once in Europe, the synthetic cannabinoids are mixed with plant material using solvents like acetone or methanol to dissolve the powders.
The combination is then dried, packaged and sold as either incense or smoking mixtures. (1)
By the end of 2015, 14 different sub-families of cannabinoid agonists have been identified, indicating that there are potentially hundreds of these types of substances circulating via the Internet and often across international borders. (1)
51 new synthetic cannabinoids were identified in 2012, compared to just 2 in 2009. (4)
The wide range of cannabinoids available have for years made such drugs very difficult for legislators to tackle.
Manufactures simply tweaked the formula, to produce substances with a chemical make-up slightly altered from the most recently banned version. (3)
Although it is usually sold as a herb resembling marijuana, this is a marketing gimmick. (3)
Would it be true to say we are very good at creating the supply if we know there is a demand?
Are the chemical companies even considering what they are producing and where it will end up?
Are those receiving the bulk shipments in Europe deliberately creating a product that they know has a mass demand?
Do manufacturers think they are clever because they can tweak formulas and stay one step ahead of the current legislation?
WHY is there not a public outcry to ban ALL ranges of cannabinoids?
Is this simply about profit before people?
Or is there more here that needs to be addressed?
Would it be true to say that those who have a direct hand in this process are not living a life of integrity?
Would it be true to say that all those involved are not choosing to live with the word RESPONSIBILITY?
What are Synthetic Cannabinoids?
Mind altering chemicals that are –
- Dried
- Inhaled as cigarettes
- Liquid incense
- Liquids to be vaporised
- Shredded plant material so they can be smoked – herbal incense
- Sprayed
These chemicals are called cannabinoids because they are related to chemicals found in the marijuana plant.
Due to the similarity, synthetic cannabinoids are sometimes misleadingly called “fake weed” and they are often marketed as “safe” legal alternatives to that drug.
In fact, they may affect the brain much more powerfully than marijuana; their actual effects can be unpredictable and in some cases, severe or even life-threatening. (6)
Manufacturers sell these herbal incense products in colourful foil packages and sell similar liquid incense products like other e-cigarette fluids, in plastic bottles.
These products are marketed under a wide variety of specific brand names; in the past years
K2 and Spice were common.
There are now hundreds of brand names such as Joker, Black Mamba and Kronic.
For several years, synthetic cannabinoid mixtures were easy to buy in drug paraphernalia shops, novelty stores, gas stations and through the Internet.
The chemicals used have a high potential for abuse and no medical benefit.
Authorities in USA have made it illegal to buy, sell or possess some of these chemicals.
However, manufacturers try to sidestep these laws by changing the chemical formulas in their mixtures. (6)
Easy access and the belief that synthetic cannabinoid products are “natural” and therefore harmless have likely contributed to their use among young people.
HELLO
Who on earth comes up with names like this?
Who is the Joker here inside our minds playing these games?
WHY would a name of a highly venomous snake be appealing?
WHY are we not getting clues from the names like Kronic?
WHY has this drug become easy access for so many?
What is the Intelligence1 that fools us to believe these synthetic substances are “natural”?
WHY would manufacturers try and side step our laws by changing the formula?
WHY are we not demanding answers to questions like those raised in this article?
False Advertising
Synthetic cannabinoids are often labelled “not for human consumption.”
Labels often claim that they can contain “natural” material taken from a variety of plants.
The only parts of these products that are natural are the dried plants materials.
Chemical tests show the active, mind altering ingredients are cannabinoid compounds made in laboratories. (6)
Standard drug tests cannot easily detect many of the chemicals used in these products. (6)
Synthetic Cannabinoids have No Commercial Uses. (7)
As a world, WHY do we accept False Advertising?
WHY does dodgy selling happen in the first place?
WHY are marketing companies willing to lie to us at any cost?
WHY are labels not telling the truth – why are they hiding?
WHY do we choose to ignore “not for human consumption”?
WHY are our drug testing methods one step behind in detecting?
Legislation
Spice is NOT Legal.
It is now banned in most Western nations. (3)
Hello again
Can we join the dots here and keep it simple?
Spice is an illegal substance.
There is a valid reason why it is banned.
Why are we choosing to ignore these simple facts?
UK
Use of Spice in large quantities was first noted by the British authorities a decade ago.
2010 – the main synthetic cannabinoid – JWH-018 was made illegal.
26 May 2016 – the production, distribution, sale and supply of Spice became illegal under the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016. (8)
The above Act was in place in England.
However, the possession of Spice was only illegal for prisoners.
Legal Highs was a term used to describe substances that mimicked the effects of illegal drugs but had been tweaked at a molecular level to avoid previous anti-drug laws. (9)
December 2016 – UK Government classified strains of synthetic cannabinoids, which are commonly referred to as ‘Spice’ as a Class B controlled substance under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (MDA). This means those found to be in possession can face up to 5 years in prison and an unlimited fine. (10)
The Psychoactive Substances Act no longer specifies all banned drugs. It places a blanket ban on all psychoactive substances except alcohol, caffeine, nicotine and medical products. (3)
Spice can still be bought online in Ireland. (11)
USA
DEA Schedule/Legal Status
Schedule 1 drug (7)
Federal Laws
2011
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) used emergency protocols to temporarily schedule some of the substances found in synthetic cannabinoid products.
2012
President Obama signed the Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act, permanently placing several different classes of psychoactive substances, including many synthetic cannabinoids, into Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) – the most restrictive classification. (12)
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have approved three medications containing synthetically derived cannabinoids to treat severe nausea and wasting in certain circumstances.
Development programs of products that contain marijuana or their synthetic equivalents are being fast tracked by the FDA for ‘therapeutic purposes’. (7)
State Laws
Each state is currently using various administration actions, prosecution strategies and regulations for product labelling and branding to either quickly ban individual substances or criminalize sales.
Most states have also enacted criminal and civil penalties and others have pending legislation for the sale of products that attempt to avoid being advertised as “synthetic drugs” by claiming they are “not for human consumption”. (12)
Synthetic Cannabinoids – second most frequently used illegal drug among high school seniors. (4)
WHY are synthetic cannabinoids so popular with high school seniors?
What on earth is going on for our Youth of today?
WHY do they need mind altering drugs at such a young age?
References
(1) Ralphs, R., & Sutcliffe, O. (2016, September 23). What is Spice and Why is the Drug So Dangerous? The Conversation. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from
https://theconversation.com/what-is-spice-and-why-is-the-drug-so-dangerous-60600
(2) Malone, A. (2017, March 13). Rise of the Zombies: Cheaper and More Addictive than Crack, Spice is the Synthetic Drug that Turns Users into the ‘Living Dead’ in Minutes and is Ruining Lives Across Britain. MailOnline. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4302806/Spice-synthetic-drug-turns-users-living-dead.html
(3) (2017, March 25). A New and Deadly Spice Trade. The Week. Issue 1117, p.13
(4) (n.d). Synthetic Drugs (a.k.a. K2, Spice, Bath Salts, etc.). Office of National Drug Policy Control. www.obamawhitehouse.archives.gov. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from
https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/ondcp/ondcp-fact-sheets/synthetic-drugs-k2-spice-bath-salts
(5) (2017, April 8). What Is Spice/K2? The Facts on Synthetic Marijuana 2017. Spice Addiction Support. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from
https://spiceaddictionsupport.org/what-is-spice/
(6) (2015, November). What Are Synthetic Cannabinoids? National Institute on Drug Abuse. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from
https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/synthetic-cannabinoids
(7) (2016, November). Facing Addiction in America: The Surgeon General’s Report on Alcohol, Drugs, and Health. (pp. 1-22, p. 80). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Surgeon General. Washington, DC: HHS
(8) (2016, May 26). Legal Highs Ban Comes into Force Across the UK. BBC News. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-36384729
(9) (2017, February 7). Legal Highs: What Are They and Has the Government Ban Worked? The Week. Retrieved October 26, 2017 from
http://www.theweek.co.uk/legal-highs/59802/legal-highs-what-are-they-and-has-the-government-ban-worked
(10) (2017, January 23). Changes to Drugs Legislation re: ‘Spice’. Metropolitan Police. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from
http://news.met.police.uk/news/changes-to-drugs-legislation-re-spice-214728
(11) (2016, August 4). Spice Training. Turning Point, London.
(12) (n.d). Are Synthetic Cannabinoids Legal? Drug Policy Alliance. Retrieved October 21, 2017 from
https://www.drugpolicy.org/are-synthetic-cannabinoids-legal
Comments 21
Gosh – reading this I felt queasy with the enormity of what is presented here in this blog. Whilst we are seeing the effects of Spice – as outlined in this blog – we have not yet reached a stage where we are seeing the long term effects of Spice – e.g. an epidemic of Spice users would be catastrophic not just for healthcare, or emergency services, or police services, but also for society as a whole.
This really is a serious call to action – in the first place for us to realise that this is actually going on under our noses – in towns and cities where we live.
We really do need to start the conversation – what is Spice? how wide spread is its use? And what is needed here going forward?
Great questions Jane Keep and yes Spice is a very serious problem.
Just yesterday – 25th December 2017, the Guardian published an article on the escalation of the use of Spice in UK prisons.
It is clear that this problem is not going away.
The article says that:
‘Short staffed prisons are struggling to cope with a Spice epidemic as prisoners find ever more ingenious ways to have drugs smuggled into their cells.’
‘Judicial staff at Manchester magistrates court have complained to prisons after defendants have presented for hearings via video link clearly high on Spice…’
One lawyer said of her client:
“I suspected he was on Spice and I couldn’t take coherent instructions from him. He was just staring into space and making very odd gestures.”
Dan Smith, Consultant Paramedic at the North West Ambulance Service, Greater Manchester said:
“…we are seeing a bit of a trend of people who have sadly been inside a prison and whether (or not) they were addicted to drugs prior to going in they are now”
He also added that sometimes ambulances are called to attend on the day of someone’s release from prison due to a prisoner’s use of Spice.
Earlier this year, staff from one prison were off sick due to breathing in smoke blown from prisoners cells. 5.6kgs of Spice were seized from that jail.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/dec/25/uk-prison-staff-struggling-cope-spice-epidemic-grows-psychoactive-drugs?CMP=twt_gu
It is very important that we have articles like this reporting on Christmas Day, a day usually caught up with merriment and indulgence, to remind us that there are other things going on in the world that need our attention and actually require an urgent call to action.
Thank goodness we have this article here, by Simple Living Global, on The Truth About Spice that can support us, if we choose, to get to the root of why people are smoking SPICE and why the rates are escalating to the point that new and stronger strains of it are continually being produced.
Again another reality check from Simple Living Global. It is hard to believe that still another drug is out in the world. And they keep getting deadlier.
What will it take for the world to wake up?
Are all these new drugs a sign that the giving up ness is getting worse?
We all need to Speak up!
Talk to our neighbors.
The change has to come from all of us. Our voice does make a difference.
Yes Ken another drug is out in this world and reading this article it is clear that without a doubt it is more deadly.
WHY is there such a demand and is this where we need to start asking more questions?
Those users who demand this are driving the supply chain because without the need those who prosper would have no business.
What makes the person who is demanding want more of something that is highly toxic and likely to cause extreme harm to their mind and body?
I agree that our voice does make a difference and I for one know that sitting on the fence is simply not an option.
I do not have the resources to maybe make huge changes and get to the root of WHY any user would choose spice as their drug BUT, I can and will continue to write blogs like this and keep expressing.
I have a Responsibility to use my time wisely to bring more and more awareness to our world and so far it feels like real purpose as I don’t get drained, I learn heaps and I know deep down it does make a difference. Leaving a digital footprint like this website is well worth my hard work and effort every single day.
Dispensary, dab bars, and lounge is what they are calling legal Marijuana bars in San Francisco.
Medical Marijuana is dispensed and used there. My partner spoke with a bouncer at the door he said that soon they will be able to serve recreational users.
Are we making any progress in our drug abuse problems? Places like this would not exist if there was not an increasing demand.
Simple Living Global is presenting a way of looking at addiction that makes sense. Our bodies knows when something is not good for it. If we truly take care of ourself, we will get to the point where there is no way we would do drugs.
That is the solution to our addiction problems.
We are in dire straights with this drug.
3 days to become addicted.
Symptoms even after 1 year with no use.
Career criminals warning ‘do not smoke this ever, even once or it will send you under.’
Compounds that ‘latch’ onto the brain and degrade it, turning you into a zombie.
What more do we need to know?
Even 1 person choosing to take this drug would be a wake up call. And we have an epidemic on our hands.
If we were watching monkeys do this it would be front page news in every country in the world.
Thank you Simple Living Global. This is a fact packed article and bringing much needed awareness to the horror of this horrendous drug and it’s affects. I learnt a great deal from reading this and will be bringing this into my conversations.
The fact that the strength of Spice is 100 times more potent that cannabis is alarming.. with the extremely harmful effects and causing of death. How easy it seems to be to get hold of this lethal drug, at such a low cost. I watched the link of the people who had taken this, it is shocking to see the effects take place and the degree it affects people. This is serious.
‘Course participant said that users he works with say they wish they never came into contact with Spice.’
As Simple Living Global is presenting in this blog, could talking about Spice in our daily conversations bring awareness and understanding of the dangers of this drug.. and perhaps be the start of changing this current and escalating serious problem?
You can now buy stock in companies that deal in [medical] marijuana, it is a booming industry.
Is this just the beginning? What is the difference between spice and marijuana? This blog shows the difference, but if there is money to be made, will it matter?
Does human life count for anything? It is like anything goes.
What will it take for us wake up?
I have never read such an extensive article about Spice. This article covers the origin, effects and provides real life on the street examples that leave us in no doubt about the harm this deadly drug causes. Thank you once again, Simple Living Global.
The 2017 Global Drug Survey cites various papers that verify the harming effects of synthetic cannabinoids –
The risk of seeking emergency medical treatment was 30 times higher in users of synthetic cannabinoids than high potency cannabis. (Winstock et al 2015).
Men over the age of 25 are most at risk of needing emergency medical treatment as a result of synthetic cannabinoids.
Over 65% of those who have used synthetic cannabinoids on at least 50 days over the past year have experienced 3 or more withdrawal symptoms.
Do we need any more statistics?
This part is even more shocking –
‘Despite international regulation that has tried to ban many of these compounds – the profit (10,000 % +) that can be made from their retail and distribution, rivals that of cocaine but without a fraction of the risk of interference from law enforcement agencies.’
Does this tell us all we need to know?
Is our collective desire to put profits before people a part, or the cause of the problem?
I was recently talking to someone about Spice and they were saying you do not ever want to see someone who is on it as it is horrific and inhuman.
It is apparently like the person has been taken out of their body and another being has taken it over. There is no semblance of the human inside there at all.
And there is absolutely nothing you can do to help them until it has worn off, except keep them physically safe. You just can not reach them.
Are we listening to those who have witnessed this drug in action?
Do we need more ‘evidence’ of the severity of what we are dealing with here?
Annihilation, is a new ‘super strong’ form of Spice that people are concerned could be laced with heroin.
The drug has been given this name due to its very intoxicating effect.
In this news article in Manchester Evening News the reporter writes:
‘Stronger than cannabis – including skunk – Spice use can induce an intense hallucinatory trip.’
Julie Boyle – support worker from the charity Lifeshare, which is for homeless youth said of the users:
“What is going on in the background? How have the ended up in a state of mind where they don’t want to be aware of what’s going on?”
A man from another charity said that the drug is being used by 13 and 14 year olds in school.
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/spice-annihilation-drugs-video-manchester-14070050
So things are getting worse.
The fact that there are stronger strains of any drug being produced is very concerning.
Could it be because there is a demand for it as this article is asking?
Do more of us need to be asking questions to get to the bottom of why we want to numb out with stronger strains of drugs?
If we are honest, what is it we really do not want to feel?
Thank you, Simple Living Global, for this very in-depth look at this most harmful drug.
You only have to look at those who take Spice, in their zombie like comatose state, to see that Spice has such a debilitating effect on people.
Any drug that we take is going to be harmful to ourselves, but this Spice seems to be in a league of its own with its array of extremely harmful effects and consequences.
Under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, illegal drugs are placed into one of three classes – A, B or C.
This is broadly based on the harm they cause either to the user or to society when they are misused.
The class into which a drug is placed affects the maximum penalty for an offence involving the drug.
For example, Class A drugs attract the most severe penalty as they are considered likely to cause the most serious harm.
Class A drugs include: heroin, cocaine, methadone, ecstasy, LSD and magic mushrooms.
Class B drugs include: amphetamines, codeine, cannabis, cathinones, and synthetic cannabis.
Class C drugs include: tranquilisers, GHB/GBL, ketamine, anabolic steroids and benzylpiperazines (BZP).
Considering the harmful effects of Spice, and the potential for it to be up to 100 x stronger than cannabis, why isn’t it already classed as a Class A drug?
This sentence stood out for me in this blog:
‘Legal Highs was a term used to describe substances that mimicked the effects of illegal drugs but had been tweaked at a molecular level to avoid previous anti-drug laws.’
For someone to ‘tweak’ a substance at a ‘molecular level’ would imply a level of intelligence.
Is it possible that, if they have the intelligence to alter molecules, they will no doubt be aware of the harmful effects that this alteration will bring?
Is this true intelligence?
Where is the Responsibility in this?
How is it that we have in our society, someone who is prepared to create substances that can cause others a great deal of harm and misery, for no other purpose than to make money?
Daily Mail – 23 December 2017
ANNIHILATION
This is the name given to ‘an even deadlier strain of zombie drug Spice plaguing our cities’.
So this is the news story two days before most of us are celebrating and indulging in our Christmas day activities.
A super strong form of Spice has now taken hold. The zombie drug – formely a Legal High has this year swept through Britain’s homeless population, leaving users comatose. There is now a deadly new version which has been given the name “Annihilation” and is thought to be laced with Heroin.
Doctors have warned that Spice is crippling the health services, with users increasingly admitted to hospital with hallucinations, seizures and schizophrenia symptoms. They believe the drug which costs as little as £5 for a day’s supply is more powerful than heroin and crack cocaine.
Are our police, social services, health system and local councils equipped for this latest creation?
How are we ever going to get ahead to stop this?
Have we asked WHY there is a demand for a substance that is having a greater impact on the human mind and body, than other well known drugs from the past?
Are we collectively getting together and asking questions until we get to the root cause of WHY anyone does this?
Are our solutions to combat, defeat and fight this war on drugs actually working?
https://simplelivingglobal.com/international-day-against-drug-abuse-illicit-trafficking/
Is there another way?
Is it time to read blogs like this that are presenting much more?
Is this website presenting another way that could help get to the root of why we have this happening in modern day 21st Century?
BBC News – 30 March 2018
A warning has been given after the death of 7 men in Birmingham and a part of the West Midlands which is linked to Black Mamba.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-43600584
Public Health England said “an alert was sent out to commissioners of service and outreach drug workers” as a result.
This is very serious.
We only need to read this extensive article by Simple Living Global to know that these former legal highs are deadly.
Why have we created conditions where drug use is rife?
Why has it become so commonplace to use drugs?
Is there something in the supply/demand questions that Simple Living Global are asking that we need to consider?
From what I can see we are not finding any true answers elsewhere and so is it worth asking the questions that we have not dared to ask thus far?
Thank you Simple Living Global for leading the way on topical discussions on all aspects of life.
We need more articles like this with forensic dissection of subjects, with continuous questioning of what we have thus far accepted in society.
Without people like you presenting that there is another way and inviting us to ask questions, many of us would stay stuck, including drug users.
We know that the current rehabilitation and drug treatment methods do not work and have never worked to help people get to the root cause of why they are using drugs.
So is it time that we were truly open to what is being said here as what we have is definitely not working?
https://www.rcn.org.uk/news-and-events/news/prison-spice-epidemic-putting-nursing-staff-at-risk
Royal College of Nursing – 15 May 2018
The Spice drug epidemic in UK prisons is putting nurses and inmates at serious risk, the Royal College of Nursing has warned.
Nurses and Health Care assistants are often first on the scene when inmates need emergency care and under current guidance, they are expected to enter cells before the smoke has cleared.
RCN members report suffering the effects of inhaling the drug for hours following exposure, with some unable to drive home after their shifts.
Use of psychoactive substances is widespread in UK prisons and RCN experts argue that existing HMPPS guidance “conflates the chronic and longer term issues of exposure to second hand tobacco smoke with the serious and acute issue of exposure to psychoactive substances.”
This blog is spelling out what the chief executive of the RCN is saying “Spice poses a serious threat to nurses, health care assistants and prison staff, whose safety and long-term health is being put at risk day in, day out.”
How can we protect our staff in prisons?
Are we on the front foot?
Do we need to look at how on earth these drugs are getting in and seal the hole?
Do we need to review the real state of prisoners and with absolute honesty admit what is not working?
Do we need to stop the rehabilitation that is not truly making any real changes to the prison population?
Do we need to value experts, like the founder of this blog who is well equipped to discuss this matter with prisoners, staff and the bigwigs who run the prison estate?
Do we need to be open and willing to consider the author of this blog, who has experience in this field, to carry out a study with anecdotal evidence?
Dear World
Are we going to stop trying to find more new solutions and get to the root cause of why any prisoner wants to take such a lethal and harmfull substance in the first place?
Are we searching in the wrong places and are the answers right under our nose?
Can we keep asking questions and leave no stone unturned until we get this nailed?
The Guardian – 29 October 2019
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/oct/29/spice-so-called-zombie-drug-uk-poorest-communities
SPICE IS MORE THAN A DEADLY DRUG – IT IS A WINDOW ON OUR SOCIETY
Soaring use of the ‘zombie drug’ is an inevitable response to a systematic failure in social care and drugs laws.
The news story starts with the following …
“You can tell a lot about a society by the drugs it depends on…”
In the UK right now, the main drug of choice is Alcohol.
338,000 hospital admissions in 2017-2018.
6,000 deaths and 900 fatalities due to drunk drivers.
ALCOHOL brings £12 billion in tax revenue.
Cocaine is another recession-proof perennial.
23kg per day is snorted in London.
600 deaths last year (2018).
Purity soars and price falls due to rise in Columbian output.
Cocaine still has the brand of a luxury good, conferring on its users the association of being in an elite class of substance abuser.
Cannabis, after decades of demonisation as “killer skunk” has been rebranded to the public as an essential medicine, now that hedge funds are pouring millions into the new legal cannabis markets in Canada and the U.S.
Then there is Spice – so called zombie drug ripping a path through the lives of Britain’s poorest communities. Users are often homeless, either living in hostels or on the streets.
95% homeless people in Manchester use it.
Spice came to prominence in the late 2000s and early 2010s in British prisons, where it could easily be smuggled in, either soaked onto letters or passed over by visitors. Most tests could not detect it and its lack of the familiar fug of cannabis made it easy to smoke.
Apparently, Spice kills time like no other drug. Some users say a year of smoking it passes as quickly as a few months. In most cases, it knocks the user out cold. That is the point as the user wants total shutdown.
Metro News – 6 January 2021
£40,000 worth of the ‘zombie drug’ Spice was sent into a prison in England in shower gel bottles.
The smuggler pleaded guilty and was jailed for 2 years.
Is the prison sentence of two years a real deterrent or worth the risk for many that play the part in the supply and delivery of illicit drugs? Worth asking that question.
Next – could we say these drugs are finding their way inside our prisons because there is such a high demand? We all know it is going on and we hear now and then of a seizure but what is the real truth – how much is going inside our supposedly high security jails, under the radar?
Next – could we say our drug industry is constantly coming up with new ways for contraband? That is the nature of their business and the general public and the police would not even think about shower gel as a form of transporting spice.
Next – what is actually going on inside these prisons that Spice is in such high demand?
Next – what would be the real value of £40,000 of spice inside prison and who stands to profit?
Next – Are we on the back foot, so to speak as what we do know is these drug traffickers are on the front foot and that means ahead of the game? We seize their goods and before we know it, they have the next and the next ready for its destination.
Can we be honest and say that until the demand lessens or stops we have no chance of being on the front foot and getting ahead of the drugs world?
Met Police warn of ‘dangerous threat’ of spiking using vapes laced with Spice.
900,000 across the UK were victims last year – 2023.
13% increase in 2023 with the number of allegations reaching 1,383.
As vapes surge in popularity, the Met Police force revealed it is increasingly common across devices that contain chemicals other than nicotine, including THC, the psychoactive found in Cannabis and Spice, the street name for the class of drugs known as synthetic cannabinoids.
The latter are substances made in labs designed to mimic the effects of cannabis, which can cause chest pains, seizures, extreme anxiety and suicidal thoughts.
They have been widely consumed in UK prisons for more than a decade.
Earlier this year, The Independent revealed that school children were being offered vapes spiked with Spice that were being distributed via an instant messaging app SC.
In the last 3 years, the force revealed it had discovered over 100 different types of drugs being used to spike people in the capital.
114 spiking allegations are made in the capital every month.
60% by women. Only 70 arrests in the whole of 2023.
The Met Police believe it is being hugely under-reported.
A national poll about spiking found 97% of survivors did not report getting spiked to the police.
Belfast Live News – 24 May 2024
https://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/derry-principal-sounds-alarm-kids-29234548
The use of vapes for the synthetic drug spice, sometimes referred to as the ‘zombie’ drug is becoming a “massive issue” for children, school principal Michael Allen has warned.
Vaping of illicit substances, such as Spice or THC is happening across the community.
He said “Pupils are moving away from the disposable vapes and more onto the refillable types. What that now is presenting is that there is a market where guys are actually selling the Vape liquid which contains other substances, these cannabinoids. It is moving into these kind of cannabis extracts – we see CBD oils being marketed by shops and the young people in the city being bombarded with this message that cannabinoids are maybe safer smoking cigarettes.
The whole message is unclear because the vapes are now being used to take illicit drugs such as Spice, THC and God knows whatever else.
Now across all the schools in the communities, we are starting to become hugely aware from youth clubs to community representatives that this is becoming a massive issue in some of the housing estates, some of the more maybe deprived areas.
The hospitals are also starting to see more evidence of young people taking what they think is harmless liquid and then ending up having to go to hospital.
It is going to get worse. Once the disposable vapes are banned next year, every kid that vapes is going to carry their own device and their own liquid – this is the problem that is going to get 10 times worse.
There is a danger that our young people just assume that these things are perfectly normal, perfectly harmless when the opposite is true.”
In his letter, the Lisneal College principal said parents should look out for – Increased heart rate; Increased blood pressure, which may cause chest pain; damage to the heart; heart attack; psychotic effects including irritability, paranoia, hallucinations, delusions and psychoses; nausea and vomiting; confusion; light-headedness and dizziness; seizures; bloodshot eyes and a litany of other possible indicators.
University of Bath – 25 July 2024
https://www.bath.ac.uk/announcements/english-school-children-unwittingly-smoking-spice-spiked-vapes-finds-university-of-bath/
English school children unwittingly smoking Spice-spiked vapes.
According to an investigation by the University of Bath, school children are unknowingly smoking vapes spiked with the synthetic drug Spice.
596 confiscated vapes in 38 schools in England
1 in 6 contained Spice
Police, schools and researchers say the much cheaper Spice is being substituted into vapes, which are sold as containing cannabis oil.
“Teenagers think they are purchasing vapes or vape fluid containing THC or nicotine when, in fact, they are laced with Spice.
We know children can have cardiac arrests when they smoke Spice and some have come close to death.
Headteachers are saying that pupils are collapsing in the halls and ending up with long stays in intensive care:
This is not a niche, one-off occurrence that happens in a school; this is something common.”
Professor Chris Pudney – University of Bath – Department of Life Science