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A March 29 CBC News article reports that the British government is taking steps to ban mephedrone, a currently legal recreational substance that has been blamed for a number of deaths in recent years:

The U.K. government's panel of scientific experts recommended restrictions on mephedrone, a synthetic drug also known as M-Cat and Meow-Meow. The drug can be bought over the Internet and is popular in nightclubs.

The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs recommended classifying mephedrone as a Class B controlled substance. This class includes cannabis and amphetamines. Possession carries a maximum sentence of five years in jail, while supplying it carries a penalty of up to 14 years, according to the Home Office.

The European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction said more than 30 web sites promote the substance, which often originates in Chinese labs. A single dose costs about $4.50 US, according to public health researchers.

Mephedrone is a synthetic form of cathinone, the active ingredient in khat, which is a stimulant popular in parts of Africa, said Steven Grant, chief of the clinical neuroscience branch at the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse.

"As a result of the council's advice, I'm introducing legislation to ban not just mephedrone and other cathinones but also to enshrine in law a generic definition & so that we can be in the forefront of dealing with this whole family of drugs," Home Secretary Alan Johnson told reporters Monday.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/03/29/mephedrone-drug-ban-uk-mcat-khat.html#ixzz0jbMgTUFT

Labels: mcat, meow meow, mephedrone

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Mephedrone, also known as meow meow, is legally sold on the Internet as plant fertilizer and is a highly dangerous hallucinogen.

Authorities warn that the drug, which is a chemical relative of Ecstasy, can result in severe hallucinations, nose bleeds, nose burns, blood circulation problems, rashes, anxiety and paranoia, seizures, and heart attack. Users have been known to severely mutilate themselves due to intense hallucinations, such as bugs crawling all over them.

One British police report stated: "A large number of contributors state how addictive mephedrone is and they are constantly popping up as one individual states that after using it for 18 hours his hallucinations led him to believe that centipedes were crawling over him and biting him. This individual then mutilated his body to the point that he required emergency hospital treatment.

Authorities also warn that the drug can become addictive, and when cut with alcohol or other drugs is likely to result in death. The substance is now banned in Sweden, Israel, Norway and Finland.

(Source: www.thesun.co.uk)

Labels: mephedrone, drug-use, hallucinogen

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