Originally published February 11, 2010 at 11:51 a.m., updated February 11, 2010 at 11:51 a.m.
A local doctor says young adults who smoke K2 or “fake weed” to achieve a similar high as received from smoking marijuana, may suffer serious reactions instead.
A package of K2.
K2 is a dried herb legally sold in at least four shops in the St. Louis area in three gram packages for $30 to anyone over the age of 18.
The herb comes in multiple flavors including green apple, summit, pineapple express and strawberry.
Employees who work at shops that carry K2 said it is intended to be burned as incense--but some are smoking the substance to get high.
Anthony Scalzo, M.D., director of the division of toxicology at Saint Louis University said in the past few weeks, he’s seen 20 cases where users of the newly surfaced drug suffered from extreme anxiety, agitation, hallucination, pale skin, vomiting and seizures--not the expected euphoric feeling often associated with marijuana.
“This is not what we would expect from it,” Scalzo said. “Instead of wanting to run out to the nearest Krispy Kreme--people are getting very anxious.”
So anxious, Scalzo said he saw one person who wanted to jump out a window.
Scalzo said symptoms such as pale skin and vomiting tell him there is something in the chemical makeup of K2 affecting the central nervous system.
Drug Enforcement Agency officials say K2 is basically an assortment of floral parts like potpourri with a liquid sprayed on it.
Officials say it has a similar chemical make-up as marijuana--but no illegal substances have been found in it so far.
Scalzo said based on his examination of users and the substance, he thinks K2 is being contaminated with several different harmful chemicals.
He said the herb is not testing positive for the usual drugs like PCP and more research will have to be done to identify the chemicals.
“This is not safe,” he said. “Buyer beware--you don‘t know what you are getting.”
Local law enforcement officials say they don’t know much about the herb and think more research should be done on it.
St. Charles County police officials said they encourage further study of the substance after an empty K2 wrapper was found in the parking lot of Francis Howell High School.
Francis Howell School District officials said they are taking the matter very seriously. They tell Globe-Democrat.com that school staff at all district schools are on alert and the district's school resource officers have met and discussed how they will handle K2.
The district also says since K2 is now on its radar, officials are making sure language for future student code and conduct rules will include all "look-alike" drugs and any substance that causes impairment. They point out that even now K2 is not allowed on any campus because it falls under their "no-smoking on campus" guidelines.
Several school district officials in the St. Louis area said they hadn’t had issues with students using K2 on school grounds and if they did the standard drug and alcohol policies in the districts’ handbooks would apply.
“It’s on our radar and something we’ll look at like anything else students shouldn’t have at school,” Cathy Kelly, communications coordinator for the Parkway School District said.
Fort Zumwalt School District Superintendent Bernard DuBray agreed.
“If we had signs of students being inebriated or under the influence we’d have to investigate and go from a case by case basis,” he said.
Superintendent Greg Moats said the Belleville School District has already trained their staff to spot signs of K2 use in case it shows up in their schools.
But some high school students who are frequent users of K2 said neither the health risks or school consequences scare them.
One girl from Fort Zumwalt South High School said a lot of students at her school smoke K2 because they are on probation and can’t smoke marijuana.
“It does say not for consumption on the package and that makes me kind of wonder what’s in it,” she said. “But if you don’t smoke more than what’s in the bag you’re fine.”
She added K2 is popular among teens because it is legal and doesn’t show up in drug tests.
Her friend laughed and agreed.
“I can pass a drug test now for once in my life,” he said.
He added that users have to be careful because one of his friends had a seizure after smoking K2.
Another student said she likes that K2 makes her laugh and feel hyper, but scared when her heart starts pounding.
“You just have to be in the right mindset,” she said.
One student said she will never touch K2 because she’s seen what it has done to her friends.
“My friend was freaking out, crying, having a mental breakdown and I had to go pick her up,” she said.
The teens said they go to shops in the area or have older siblings buy K2 for them.
An employee at The Vice Shop in St. Peters says he won’t sell K2 to anyone who intends to smoke it.
“I’m pretty strict about it,” the employee said. “If people are in here talking about smoking it--I won’t let them buy it.”
Now a proposed ban may prevent everyone from buying K2.
Missouri State Rep. Ward Franz, R--West Plains, has introduced a bill that would make the chemical compound in K2 illegal. He said after going through a public safety committee on Wednesday, he hoped the bill would hit the house floor in early March.
“Naturally when we’re all young we felt we had plenty of time and no clue how when we ingest smoke laced with synthetic chemicals the body is not equipped to handle that,” he said. “Putting chemicals in our bodies that are three times more potent than the THC in marijuana--that’s something to worry about.”
Comments
tbonerpickens (anonymous) says...
totally worth it
February 11, 2010 at 11:03 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Rune04 (anonymous) says...
He said the herb is not testing positive for the usual drugs like PCP and more research will have to be done to identify the chemicals.
Missouri State Rep. Ward Franz, R--West Plains, has introduced a bill that would make the chemical compound in K2 illegal.
How do you make a chemical compund illegal if you don't know what that compound is? I am not condoning K2's use, just wonder what the wording is of this bill.
February 11, 2010 at 11:35 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
jbone (anonymous) says...
let me tell you something about "weed" i don't smoke it but i do support it. Did anyone know if our government legalized it we would not be in debt? Also the fibers from the plant itself can be used as food, clothes, and even fuel!!!!!!!!!! The farmlands in the midwest can support enough hemp to feed, and cloth starving countries . Get with it people!!!!! weed is not a drug and there are more benefits than side effects. The only reason you are reading this is because your worried about your kid smoking k2. I don't know anything about k2 or its side effects but what i do know its funding the Mideast which supports our enemies aka terrorist. So choose your battle. Weed in america? Or supporting the terroist that use the FDA to loophole drugs that fund our enemy?
May 24, 2010 at 12:05 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )