It has actually been around since 2006. An import from China and Korea, it is legally available over the internet and at a head shop near you.
It is known as K2, Spice, Genie and Zohai.
At the beginning of April, one of our StandUp Reps from Kansas mentioned their state and Missouri have moved to consider new legislation concerning the herb – a shock to those of us who had never heard of it before. but before the month was out, police officers were on the news in Oregon warning of the adverse effects they have been seeing with the use of K2/Spice – seizures and heart palpitations so severe as to require hospitalization.
K2 is advertised as an entirely natural mix of herbs and spices (in many scents/flavors) and a nicotine-free, legal high. It is often called an ‘aromatic potpourri’. But, in reality, the marijuana-type high that users get comes from a synthetic cannabinoid four or five times as potent as THC, the main psychoactive substance in cannabis, which is sprayed on the mix of plants.
Batches have been seized in Sweden and Switzerland. Germany, Austria and France banned the drug earlier this year. The United Kingdom is considering a similar ban.
As it currently stands in most of the United States, a person of any age could walk into a shop and buy this product. So parents, pay attention!
What to look for: sold in 3 gram packets for $20-$50 (in some of the pix they look like foil condom packets), used like traditional marijuana (joints and pipes), undetectable in drug tests.
What users are saying about the downside of K2/Spice:
- …Think about the chemicals you’re inhaling!
- …I had a horrible experience! Extreme paranoia, sadness, guilt and fear. It lasted for hours and I thought it would never end.
- …Yep, really paranoid and felt like throwing up.
(Edited for content/length.)