Tag: Synthetic Marijuana

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Synthetic Marijuana Blamed for Man’s Death

May 16, 2016

Synthetic Marijuana

Some 8,000 Spice poisonings were reported in the US last year, which the Guardian calls “one of the drug’s most damaging years since its introduction to the United States almost a decade ago.” In one suspected case, a Mississippi man died after taking a single toke.

Indeed, potency is hard to predict and “the risk of overdosing is high,” reports the Las Cruces Sun-News, which explains that because Spice is typically sold (at gas stations, for instance) as “herbal incense” that is labeled as not for consumption, it’s out of the purview of the FDA and USDA.

Spice is a mix of herbs (shredded plant material) and manmade chemicals with mind-altering effects. It is often called “synthetic marijuana” or “fake weed” because some of the chemicals in it are similar to ones in marijuana; but its effects are sometimes very different from marijuana, and frequently much stronger.

Of the almost 8,000 poisonings from synthetic cannabinoids reported last year, New York claimed 1,729, while Mississippi reported 1,362 with 17 suspected deaths. Overdose symptoms include kidney failure, stroke, irregular heartbeat, violent outbursts, and paranoia, and the Guardian notes that the screening limitations mean confirmed cases typically occur only when epidemiologists get involved.

Because the chemicals used in Spice have a high potential for abuse and no medical benefit, the Drug Enforcement Administration has made many of the active chemicals most frequently found in Spice illegal. However, the people who make these products try to avoid these laws by using different chemicals in their mixtures.

Spice is a new drug and research is only just beginning to measure how it affects the brain. What is known is that the chemicals found in Spice attach to the same nerve cell receptors as THC, the main mind-altering ingredient in marijuana. Some of the chemicals in Spice, however, attach to those receptors more strongly than THC, which could lead to a much stronger and more unpredictable effect.

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What will the drug testing look like?

“We are delighted to be able to work in partnership with Boomtown this year to help reduce drug-related harm on site”, said Measham, the President of The Loop, in a statement. “We will be providing our free, anonymous, drug safety testing – MAST – for the first time at Boomtown this year and hope that this will help inform all services on site, as well as festival-goers, who may encounter substances of concern”.

Why Now?

Many times music festivals can be the breeding ground of unsafe, tampered drugs and the people that sell them. Over the years several drug overdoses and deaths have happened at music festivals because of synthetic drug use. So The Loop is aiming to solve this growing problem by making sure BoomTown is a fun and safe environment for attendants. The issue is not so much convincing festival organizers that it is a good idea, but getting police to prize safety over criminalizing people. This allows them to come forward with their drugs without fear of being arrested on their way out of the testing tent.

BoomTown will increase security to stop dangerous drugs from entering the festival grounds to begin. And with drug abuse rates the highest they have been in 10 years, there is no room for lack of safety control when possible. BoomTown will also have a section of its website dedicated to raising awareness of current dangerous drug trends at festivals and further educational information.

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Danny Duffy has been in the MLB for 6 years with the Kansas City Royals, but this is the first year he has been called for 12 random drug tests… and it’s only July. The MLB has not made a comment about it yet but firmly stands behind its’ random drug testing policy.

Why does he think this?

He can’t help but think something is up and took to twitter to talk about the subject:

Danny Duffy Tweet

It’s happened before…

Duffy isn’t the first player questioning why they’ve been submitted to so many drug tests this year.Brewers slugger Eric Thames, who returned to the majors from Korea and has hit a plethora of dingers, wasn’t so sure the drug tests were as random as the league claims.

“I went the long way around to come back here. This whole thing is surprising me, as well. I really have no goals for this year. I wasn’t trying to break any records or set anything. I just wanted to apply what I learned in Korea to see how it would fare here. I’m shocked at all the results. I’m just here to play ball, and do my best to stay healthy, and stretch as much as I can. So, yeah, if people keep thinking I’m on stuff, I’ll be here every day. I have lots of blood and urine.” Thames said in an interview addressing the drug testing.

How can ADT Help?

While the MLB can claim the tests are random, there is a difference between random drug testing, and drug testing under a “Reasonable Suspicion” claim. Accredited Drug Testing Offers “Reasonable Suspicion Training” for any supervisors or HR Managers that want to be able to test under reasonable suspicion, or send an employee to get a drug test when a supervisor believes they may be using or under the influence of drugs. Only companies that have at least one employee that have gone through Reasonable Suspicion Training are legally allowed to test for reasonable suspicion.