Marijuana use has risen in popularity over the years, leading to the creation of synthetic cannabis, which is a man-made version of cannabis that is often called Spice. Spice can be found in many forms, including oil, liquid, and solid, and it is often marketed as a safer, healthier, and legal alternative to its natural counterpart, marijuana. However, the marketing claims are mostly false and the increasing abuse of the drug has led to many tragic cases around the United States and the world.
Recent research has discovered that this so-called “synthetic marijuana” actually works differently enough to make it extremely toxic and cause uncharacteristic symptoms of natural cannabis. These symptoms include vomiting, cardiac problems, kidney damage, seizures, psychosis, brain damage, and death. Synthetic cannabis still binds to the CB1 receptor that THC, the active ingredient of marijuana, binds to. However, synthetic cannabis is designed to be able to activate the receptor with a greater efficiency than THC, causing a much more potent effect. The human body is not used to deactivating the drug, nor minimizing the effects of synthetic cannabis on the user.
Image Source: Darren Mower
Another big problem of Spice is that there is very little government regulation on making and distributing synthetic cannabis. Synthetic cannabis is mainly made in underground labs, meaning that there is almost no quality control over the ingredients being put into the drugs. The formulas for the drugs are also constantly being changed, causing it to be impossible for normal buyers to know what exactly is in the synthetic drugs. Spice can contain everything from THC to synthetic cannabinoids to synthetic psychedelics.
This is a growing problem because the manufacturers of Spice constantly create new chemicals and synthetic cannabinoids to elude legal bans. There are currently more than 100 different types of synthetic cannabis being sold in the United States, but only about 40 of them are explicitly stated as being banned and illegal. According to recent CDC reports, the use of synthetic cannabis has grown in the last few years and calls to the poison control center regarding synthetic marijuana abuse has increased fourfold in the early months of this year. Results from the Global Drug Survey showed that people were much more likely to land in the emergency room because of synthetic cannabis use than any other drug.
Synthetic marijuana is a growing public health problem, because it affects different ages of people around the world. In order to combat the growing problem, tighter government regulation of the drug is needed. There is also a need for public education regarding the use of Spice in order to knock down the assumption that it is safer and healthier to use than normal marijuana.
Feature Image Source: Katheirne Hitt
