Inhalants are a broad range of household and industrial chemicals whose volatile vapors or pressurized gases can be concentrated and breathed in via the nose or mouth to produce intoxication, in a manner not intended by the manufacturer. They are inhaled at room temperature through volatilization or from a pressurized container, and do not include drugs that are sniffed after burning or heating.
Recreational drug use is the use of one or more psychoactive drugs to induce an altered state of consciousness, either for pleasure or for some other casual purpose or pastime. When a psychoactive drug enters the user's body, it induces an intoxicating effect. Recreational drugs are commonly divided into three categories: depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogens.
The prohibition of drugs through sumptuary legislation or religious law is a common means of attempting to prevent the recreational use of certain intoxicating substances.
The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It represents action in line with treaty commitments under the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.
A smart shop is a retail establishment that specializes in the sale of psychoactive substances, usually including psychedelics, as well as related literature and paraphernalia. The name derives from the name "smart drugs", a class of drugs and food supplements intended to affect cognitive enhancements which are often sold in smart shops.
Poppers is a slang term referring to recreational drugs belonging to the alkyl nitrite family of chemical compounds. When fumes from these substances are inhaled, they act as potent vasodilators, producing mild euphoria, warmth, and dizziness. Most effects have a rapid onset and are short-acting. Its recreational use is believed to be potentially dangerous for people with heart problems, anaemia, or glaucoma. Reported adverse effects include fainting, retinal toxicity, and vision loss.
ALD-52, also known as 1-acetyl-LSD, has chemical structural features similar to lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), a known psychedelic drug. Similarly, ALD-52 has been reported to produce psychoactive effects, but its pharmacological effects on humans are poorly understood. Given its psychoactive properties, it has been reported to be consumed as a recreational drug, and the purported first confirmed detection of the substance on the illicit market occurred in April 2016.
AL-LAD, also known as 6-allyl-6-nor-LSD, is a psychedelic drug and an analog of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). It is described by Alexander Shulgin in the book TiHKAL. It is synthesized starting from nor-LSD as a precursor, using allyl bromide as a reactant.
Phenazepam is a benzodiazepine drug, first developed in the Soviet Union in 1975, and now produced in Russia and several other countries.
Desoxypipradrol, also known as 2-diphenylmethylpiperidine (2-DPMP), is a drug developed by Ciba in the 1950s which acts as a norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor (NDRI).
Ethylphenidate (EPH) is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant and a close analog of methylphenidate.
Mephedrone, also known as 4-methylmethcathinone, 4-MMC, and 4-methylephedrone, is a synthetic stimulant drug belonging to the amphetamine and cathinone classes. It is commonly referred to by slang names such as drone, M-CAT, White Magic, meow meow, and bubble. Chemically, it is similar to the cathinone compounds found in the Khat plant, native to eastern Africa.
2-Diphenylmethylpyrrolidine (Desoxy-D2PM), also known as 2-benzhydrylpyrrolidine, is a stimulant psychoactive drug. It is the 4-dehydroxylated structural analog of diphenylprolinol (D2PM), and is also similar in structure to desoxypipradrol (2-DPMP), both of which act as norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitors (NDRIs). Like D2PM and 2-DPMP, Desoxy-D2PM is sold as a designer drug and has been used in the manufacture of legal highs. It has been marketed under the names A3A New Generation, A3A Methano, and Green Powder, and has been reported to cause hallucinations, violent behavior, dilated pupils, tachycardia, and high blood pressure. Literature data suggest that it can produce the same psychotropic effects as other stimulants, but with a longer duration of action.
6-APB is an empathogenic psychoactive drug of the substituted benzofuran and substituted phenethylamine classes. 6-APB and other compounds are sometimes informally called "Benzofury" in newspaper reports. It is similar in structure to MDA, but differs in that the 3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl ring system has been replaced with a benzofuran ring. 6-APB is also the unsaturated benzofuran derivative of 6-APDB. It may appear as a tan grainy powder.
Methoxetamine (MXE) is a dissociative hallucinogen that has been sold as a designer drug. It differs from many dissociatives such as ketamine and phencyclidine (PCP) that were developed as pharmaceutical drugs for use as general anesthetics in that it was designed specifically to increase the antidepressant effects of ketamine.
A psychoactive drug, mind-altering drug, or consciousness-altering drug is a chemical substance that changes brain function and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, or behavior. The term psychotropic drug is often used interchangeably, while some sources present narrower definitions. These substances may be used medically; recreationally; to purposefully improve performance or alter one's consciousness; as entheogens for ritual, spiritual, or shamanic purposes; or for research, including psychedelic therapy. Some categories of psychoactive drugs, which have therapeutic value, are prescribed by physicians and other healthcare practitioners. Examples include anesthetics, analgesics, anticonvulsant and antiparkinsonian drugs as well as medications used to treat neuropsychiatric disorders, such as antidepressants, anxiolytics, antipsychotics, and stimulant medications. Some psychoactive substances may be used in the detoxification and rehabilitation programs for persons dependent on or addicted to other psychoactive drugs.
A temporary class drug is a relatively new status for controlled drugs, which has been adopted in some jurisdictions, notably New Zealand and the United Kingdom, to attempt to bring newly synthesised designer drugs under legal control. The controlled drug legislation in these jurisdictions requires drug scheduling decisions to follow an evidence-based process, where the harms of the drug are assessed and reviewed so that an appropriate legal status can be assigned. Since many designer drugs sold in recent years have had little or no published research that could help inform such a decision, they have been widely sold as "legal highs", often for months, before sufficient evidence accumulates to justify placing them on the controlled drug schedules.
The Psychoactive Substances Act 2013 is a law in New Zealand. The purpose of the Act is to regulate the availability of psychoactive substances in New Zealand to protect the health of, and minimise harm to, individuals who use psychoactive substances. The law seeks to make manufacturers test and prove their products are low-risk before they can be sold.
Nitrous oxide (N2O), commonly referred to with street names such as nangs, Nitrus, hippy crack, whippets, whippits or cannies, is an inert gas which can induce euphoria, hallucinogenic states of mind, and relaxation when inhaled. Nitrous oxide has no acute biochemical or cellular toxicity and is not metabolized in humans or other mammals. Rare deaths and injuries associated with use are due to asphyxia or accidents while under the influence, and vitamin B12 deficiency. Excessive use can lead to long-term and significant neurological and haematological toxicity.
The Offensive Weapons Act 2019 is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The act addresses crimes related to acid attacks ; knife crime prevention orders; the sale of, delivery and possession of knives and other offensive weapons; and introduced further restrictions on firearms. It was introduced to Parliament as a government bill by Sajid Javid and Baroness Williams of Trafford of the Home Office.
