The Dangers of Drugs!!

In my Drugs and Behaviors class, we watched the documentary, "The Frozen Addict," about an opioid that is used as a form of synthetic heroin, MPPP. This stuff is terrifying, and I feel like the story surrounding it is enough to scare anyone away from doing unknown drugs (please forward this to your children).

MPPP is a synthetic opioid analgesic that was first synthesized by Albert Ziering and John Lee at Hoffman-LaRoche Laboratories in the 1940s. A chemistry graduate student by the name of Barry Kingston took their techniques, altered it to circumvent legal restrictions, and then produced and sold the substance as a synthetic form of heroin. 

Those of you who are unsure about the concept synthetic drugs (often called "designer drugs") may be more familiar with common forms of synthetic marijuana, often labelled as K2 or Spice. These drugs are legal in many states (not New York!), where one can simply buy a pack at a convenience store. Labelled as "natural herbs," these drugs are simply plants sprayed with synthetic chemicals in order to mimic a marijuana high. Our lab is very interested in the use of this drug, and we make sure to ask all of our participants about their experience with this drug. We try to collect demographic data for a side-study about the effects of K2 and Spice. As of  yet, there have not been many scientific studies about the negative effects of these drugs. However, anecdotal evidence tells us that there is no question about the dangers of synthetic marijuana. From paranoia to headaches to seizures, many users have very negative reactions to these drugs. Those who continue to smoke it usually are not able to smoke marijuana (due to drug tests), and believe that the risky high is preferable to the dullness of sobriety. Our hope is that after enough data about this drug is compiled we can encourage people not to waste their time with such synthetics.

Back to the documentary! MPPP gained mild popularity among opioid users, who enjoyed its legal heroin-like effects. However, mistakes in its synthesis lead to its impurity, a substance called MPTP. This substance does not differ so much from the intended product; however, MPTP permanently produces side effects similar to Parkinson's disease symptoms within a couple of hours of using the drug. The severity of these side effects is terrifying! I am filled with such sympathy towards users who, despite engaging in risky drug-taking behaviors, are given such an unforgiving punishment for taking a drug that they thought was relatively harmless. Barry Kingston eventually developed Parkinson's disease-like symptoms from exposure to his impure product, and was arrested on a different drug charge. Justice was served?