There was an article in the Sunday Age a couple of weeks back about legal drugs - it's a long article but worth reading as it raises a number of interesting points.
Legal highs include Giggle, Hypnotic, Elevate, LightYears and Diablo. Because they are untested and unregulated it's hard to know what effect they will have on you. Many seem to have extremely high caffeine.
The Big Day Out has banned their sale, while the British Government recently banned BZP, GBL and Spice, saying they were 'an emerging threat to young people'.
It claims that there has been a sharp rise in their use (though doesn't quote any solid evidence for this) - and that they will hit this year's festivals 'big time'. They list the potential health risks as including seizures, vomiting, coma and death.
What's your experience? Have you seen an increase in them being sold at festivals etc?
Do you think herbal/legal highs are less risky/safer to take than illicit drugs?
Do you think they should be regulated/tested? Or do you feel people are just overreacting.
3 Comments
Log in to join the conversation. Join Between the Lines.
olived
about 2 years ago
I think it depends whose taking them and for what reason.
As a seasoned drug user, I have tried them to see what they were like. They didn't have a hugely noticeable affect on me, and it was more of a laugh to pretend they did.
I think as long as people take them knowing they are unregulated, use common sense and trial a small dosage before showering themselves with the bottle, they should be ok.
GBL is another story though...right?
Report this comment
Report this comment if you think it is inappropriate, offensive or against the commenting guidelines
NaNdeR
about 2 years ago
I can honestly say I've never heard of anyone taking legal pills at festivals. From what I can gather they are just hefty doses of rubbish. From what I know of some of the drugs that are claimed to be in these legal highs I can imagine them doing either very little or making you ill (and not in the beastie boys kind of way). But then who knows.
I would think these drugs have been around for about the same time as other amphetamine type substances - then I guess society just clicks onto whatever is the 'in'. If the question is are these on their way in...I think that if they were any 'fun' there would be some degree of abuse happening, because lets face it where there are drugs there is always going to be someone abusing them. I haven't heard personally or read anywhere about anything of this sort - at least for Australia. Anyone heard otherwise?
@Olived HAHA GBL is a totally different story! I thought it was illegal. I don't know a great deal about the drug but from what I've heard....if it's legal - What the...?
Report this comment
Report this comment if you think it is inappropriate, offensive or against the commenting guidelines
Heff
about 2 years ago
Most people I know would agree that the legal highs are, altogether, rubbish, but there are eception to this general rule and this can cause problems. While most are just large doeses of caffiene and similar stimulants, some herbal concoctions can be very strong, even stronger than an average "E".
I personaly know of more than one person who has had one of the legal highs (chosen by asking the person working in the store "gimme the strongest you got") expecting relatively nothing to happen, and have then nearly freaked out when the effects have kicked in.
The solution to the problem, I think, is the same as for illicit drugs. Regulation and research, rather than blanket ban.
Report this comment
Report this comment if you think it is inappropriate, offensive or against the commenting guidelines