Monday, January 24, 2011

Op-Ed: Fake Pot Threatens Children, Families

Westport Patch.com (Westport, CT) January 21, 2011


"After successfully preventing the legalization of marijuana in Connecticut, we have a renewed fight on our hands: banning 'fake pot.' I began work on halting efforts to expand marijuana use after emotional appeals for help from mothers and fathers who had found their young children dead from drug overdoses after years of marijuana use. Along with a team of players, from law enforcement officers to drug treatment centers and two governors, we have been able to forestall legalizing this federally illegal and prohibited drug.
Now, we are confronted with a new popular smoke-able herbal plant which can produce marijuana-like high. It is undetected in a urine test, a most insidious aspect of 'fake pot.' This herbal bag of tricks is sold over the counter right here in Connecticut. The ingredient used to make fake pot products, known as spice, K2 and liquid gold, consists of plant material that has been coated with chemicals that mimic THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. Some effects of using this synthetic cannabinoid are euphoria, lapse of short term memory, dilated pupils, confusion, agitation, racing heart beat, mania, hallucination, elevated blood pressure and seizures." Read More

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