If Spice is Legal, it's Okay Then, Right?

If I asked you what your first thought was when I said the word "Mojo," I doubt your initial response would be: Synthetic marijuana. However, many users refer to "Spice" as that very word and many others like K2, Synthetic marijuana, and Black Diamond. The name "Synthetic marijuana" sounds fairly safer than methamphetamine, but the effects of using spice are dangerously deadly. In the United States, spice is legal due to the absence of tetrahydrocannabinol, (THC) which is found in marijuana. It's taboo however, to think that one drug is better than another due to it being legal. Up until fairly recently, more research has been done on spice due to the overwhelming response of patients around the world who have been admitted into hospitals after taking spice. Spice may be a form of "fake" marijuana by giving the same said "high" from THC, but spice gives its victims to have horrid psychotic responses. A researcher from the Missouri Toxic Poison Center conducted a study on the effects of synthetic marijuana on 30 teenagers. Of those 30, one death was linked to a teen who took spice, and then reportedly committed suicide shortly after. An eye witness claimed his friend “freaked out” and became psychotic. 

 One of the limitations of this study is that it was only performed on 30 teenagers. While teens are more likely to use spice, this gives us no picture of how spice can affect older adults. Teens have growing nervous systems and have not fully developed which could be the reason behind their high negative effects of using spice. Another limitation is that we are not told how long the drug was taken or if the negative effects came from a one-time exposure.  One of the main problems with spice is that the chemical in it that mimics THC is 3 times more potent, making the effects dangerous. So as a society, it’s important to question, “it’s legal, so does that mean it’s okay?”Abstract

Macher, R., Burke, T. W., PhD., & Owen, S. S., PhD. (2012). Synthetic marijuana. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, 81(5), 17-22. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1016776815?accountid=12085