Have you heard about tis yet? There is a fairly knew drug widely known as Spice or K2 that mimics the effects of marijuana. It is a blend of natural occurring herbs and synthetic cannabinoids that act similar to the cannabinoids naturally found in cannabis. (See Wikipedia for full description)
The process to make the active ingredients was developed by Dr. John Huffman ,a chemistry professor while researching the effects of cannabinoids. In 1995 he wrote a research paper outlining the method to create the key compound. That method fell into the hands of people seeking to replicate Huffman’s work and to spray onto dried flowers, herbs and tobacco for recreational drug use.
While the full effects are unknown, there have been reports of people hallucinating for days while on the drug. But Dr. Huffman is quoted as saying “People who use it are idiots,” referring to K2 smokers.
Unfortunately it looks like a growing number of U.S. service members are turning to the drug for fun and self-medication.
The military is attempting to cut down on the expanding problem. A Washington Post article reports that two years ago 29 Marines were investigated for Spice, this year the number tops 700. Last year the Air Force punished 380 airmen for using the drug, this year the number climbed to 497. The Army has medically treated 119 soldiers for the synthetic drug in total. The service members have turned to this substance because until recently there was not a way to detect it. Now there are ways to test for it, but it is still not easy to catch people because Spice is made in different ways and designers are always changing it
States and the federal government are moving to make the substances illegal. But the concoction is widely available on the net selling as incenses and marked as not for human consumption.
Read the full story about U.S. service member use here. Read story quoting Dr. Huffman here?
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