Drugs That Made Headlines in 2013

The year 2013 was a pretty crazy year when it came to new drugs and news stories about drugs. So with the year coming to an end, I figured it would be cool to take a look back on all the drugs that made headlines in 2013, so here they are.

Drugs That Made Headlines in 2013: Benzo Fury

After being subject to a provisional ban since June, Benzofuran – or Benzo Fury, as it’s more frequently known – and NBOMe are to be made class B and A drugs, respectively. Numerous users of the new drug Benzo Fury were spoken with to see what the effects of this drug are and what the high is like. The ones spoke to who used the drug in capsule form said it was like an ecstasy or MDMA type of a high, while others who used the drug in different forms described the high from Benzo Fury as a hallucinogenic and acid-like high.

Drugs That Made Headlines in 2013: Zohydro

Zohydro, Made by the company Zogenix, is the first pure hydrocodone prescription drug to ever be permitted by the FDA and the worries for misuse cannot be overlooked: Zohydro can be injected, snorted, or chewed by people wanting to abuse the drug such as opiate addicts in order to provide a powerful dose of hydrocodone and to get a “high” that’s similar heroin. Its super confusing that this new drug is out now when the FDA had recently said they were trying to get tighter control on hydrocodone.

Drugs That Made Headlines in 2013: Krokodil

Krokodil (desomorphine) is a imitative of morphine that is 8 to 10 times more powerful. It can be factory-made illicitly from codeine and other simply attained products, like red phosphorus and gasoline. But, desomorphine manufactured this way is highly contaminated and contains toxic and destructive byproducts. Side effects of this drug (and where it received its street name from) are that your flesh literally starts to turn scale-like and green. You end up having severe tissue mutilation and decay, sometimes needing limb amputation. There is so much tissue damage related with the use of this drug that addicts are expected to have a life probability of 1-2 years.

Drugs That Made Headlines in 2013: Flesh Eating Cocaine

Flesh eating cocaine was found in New York and Los Angeles when people went into the hospitals in these cities and reported it. Levamisole was initially used as an anthelminthic, a specific drug that stuns or kills worms, to treat worm infestations in both humans and animals. Levamisole has progressively been used as a cutting agent in cocaine sold in both the U.S. and Canada; as if rotting skin wasn’t sufficient to turn you off of cocaine, for fright of it being part of the batch of flesh eating cocaine, Levamisole also stops the bone marrow from creating white blood cells, which are essential in fighting off infection.

Drugs That Made Headlines in 2013: Marijuana being Legalized & Alcohol being smoked

It was also brought into the headlines this year that Florida is trying to get marijuana legalized. Backing is overpowering between every group surveyed, fluctuating from 70 – 26 percent among Republicans to 90 – 10 percent among voters 18 to 29 years old. It was also a big issue that alcohol is now not just being drank, but inhaled, too. Someone can pour alcohol over dry ice and inhale it directly or with a straw, or make a DIY vaporizing kit using bike pumps. Whatever alcohol you choose is transferred into a bottle, the bottle is corked, and the bicycle pump needle is stabbed through the top of the cork. Air is pushed into the bottle to vaporize the alcohol, and the individual inhales it.

Drugs That Made Headlines in 2013: Narcan, Modafinil & Deadly Spice

Narcan has been a very recent new drug that is being carried by New Jersey Police officers. This drug is an antidote for heroin or opiate overdose and is being carried on the police due to the epidemic of heroin use all over right now. Modafinil has been compared to the ‘limitless drug’ from the movie starring Bradley Cooper. It is marketed in the US as Provigil. Modafinil was originally approved by the FDA in 1998 for narcolepsy treatment, but since then it’s become better known as a nootropic, a “smart drug,” especially among industrialists. And last but not least, it was in the news that people were being exposed to deadly versions of Spice. Since all of the Spice products are created so differently, you never know if a batch you get is going to be a good high or going to be an absolute nightmare.

All these new drugs make my head spin; what happened to just getting drunk (by drinking alcohol) and doing some good old fashioned drugs? Who knows what is going to be going around in the next few years or so, but let’s hope that 2014 is a year that doesn’t include a bunch of new drugs, too. If you or a loved one are struggling with substance abuse or addiction, please call toll free 1-800-951-6135.