Legal Highs The Lowdown

Bath salts, Black Mamba, Gas, Monkey Dust, NPS, Plant Food, Research Chemicals, Spice….

Because recreational drugs in the UK tend to be illegal, New Psychoactive Substance – known as ‘NPS’ or ‘legal highs’ – were created to bypass the law. They are manufactured synthetically to mimic the effects of existing illegal drugs and can be found as pills, powders, liquid and smokeable substances.

What are new psychoactive substances?

New psychoactive substances – often incorrectly called legal highs – contain one or more chemical substances which produce similar effects to illegal drugs (like cocaine, cannabis and ecstasy).

The Law
Although some of these so-called ‘legal highs’ were legal in the past, since the Psychoactive Substances Act came into effect on 26 May 2016, none of these drugs are legal to produce, supply or import (even for personal use, e.g. over the internet) for human consumption.

This includes selling them or giving them away for free (even to friends) when they are going to be taken to get high.

The main effects of almost all psychoactive drugs, can be described using four main categories:

Stimulants
Depressants
Hallucinogens
synthetic cannabinoids

What are the risks of new psychoactive substances?

Psychoactive Substances were also known as ‘Legal Highs’. All Legal Highs now ILLEGAL. You can’t really be sure of what’s in a ‘legal high’ and what you’ve bought, or been given, or the effect it’s likely to have on you or your friends. For many NPS, there has been little or no research into the risks. Many of these risks are increased if the drug is combined with alcohol or with another psychoactive drug. There have been cases of deaths and you can become addicted too.

Stimulant NPS can make people feel overconfident and disinhibited, induce feelings of anxiety, panic, confusion, paranoia, and even cause psychosis, which can lead them to put their own safety at risk. This type of drugs can put a strain on the heart and nervous system. They may give the immune system a battering so they might get more colds, flu and sore throats. They may feel quite low for a while after they’ve stopped using them.

Depressant NPS can reduce inhibitions and concentration, slow down people’s reactions and make them feel lethargic, forgetful or physically unsteady, placing them at risk of accidents. This type of drug can also cause unconsciousness, coma and death, particularly when mixed with alcohol and/or with other depressant drugs. Some people feel very anxious soon after they stop taking them.

Hallucinogens NPS which act like LSD, magic mushrooms, ketamine and can cause confusion, panics and strong hallucinatory reactions (‘bad trips’), and their effects can make people behave erratically and put their own safety at serious risk. This can interfere with their judgement, which could put them at risk of acting carelessly or dangerously, and of hurting them self.

Synthetic Cannabinoids could lead to severe or even life-threatening intoxication when taken in sufficiently larger doses. They can also affect the central nervous system, and lead to seizures, fast heart rates, high blood pressure, sweating, increased body temperature, being agitated and being ready to fight.

Synthetic Cannabinoids providing a cannabis like effect