The Drug Foundation is urging caution after drug checking
services at Rhythm and Vines (RnV) found paper tabs sold as
LSD were in fact the potent psychedelic and stimulant,
25B-NBOH.
The samples were tested by the Drug
Foundation’s drug-checking team at RnV over the New Year
period. Secondary testing by ESR this week determined that
the tabs contained 25B-NBOH. The drug was found on
tabs of different colours and patterns and had come from
more than one region.
Drug Foundation Executive
Director Sarah Helm says people planning to take LSD, often
called acid, which is generally regarded as a lower harm
substance, should be aware that 25B-NBOH is circulating on
paper tabs that are misrepresented as LSD.
“Because
this is a relatively new drug, there isn’t much known
about its toxicity, but we can take clues from similar
drugs, such as 25I-NBOMe, which has caused hospitalisations
and deaths worldwide,” says Helm.
“25B-NBOH
can be active even at very tiny doses, so it’s difficult
to dose accurately and may increase your risk of
overdose.”
The NZ Drug Foundation checked 748
samples at the Rhythm and Vines festival over the New Year
period. KnowYourStuffNZ provided drug checking at several
other festivals around the country. Thousands of samples
have been tested by drug checking services like
KnowYourStuff, ESR, NZNEP and the Drug Foundation this
summer.
“These 25B-NBOH samples prove
drug-checking’s worth, having clearly prevented serious
harm to people who would have otherwise taken them,” says
Helm.
“However, we are very concerned there
are likely to still be quantities of this drug in the
community. It’s one we’re particularly concerned about
so we’re asking people to proceed with caution if planning
to take tabs that they’ve bought as
LSD.”
Also identified at Rhythm and Vines were
known synthetic canthinones: cyputylone, dimethylpentylone,
eutylone and n-ethylpentylone.
“One of the perils of
drugs being banned rather than regulated is that it acts as
an incentive on the illegal market to create new, novel and
more potent substances. We encourage people to get their
drugs checked, whether they are tabs, powders or crystals,”
says Helm.
If you’re planning on taking LSD, the
Drug Foundation recommends:
- Taking it to a free,
legal and confidential drug
checking clinic to find out what’s really in
it. - Alternatively, check it at home using an
Ehrlich’s reagent test, which can be purchased from The
Hemp Store or Cosmic Corner. The
Level has instructions on how to use Ehrlich’s reagent to
test your LSD. - Remember: ‘If it’s bitter,
it’s a spitter.’ LSD generally does not have a bitter
taste, however drugs in the NBOMe family can. - Start
low and go slow. 25B-NBOH and similar drugs can have very
different doses to LSD, and the dose may not be distributed
evenly over the tab. Take a small amount of the tab and wait
at least an hour to see how you feel. - Know the signs
of an overdose from 25B-NBOH and get help if needed. These
may include: - Severe agitation, anxiety, or
psychosis - Vomiting
- Abnormal heart
rate - Having a fever
- Having
seizures - Passing out.
If you or someone
around you has taken a tab and experiences any of these
symptoms, or other worrying symptoms, call 111 or get
medical help as soon as possible.
You can report
unusual drug effects anonymously to High Alert, New
Zealand’s drug warning
system.
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