It may have a name that sounds like good, clean fun, but police are warning that "bath salts" are anything but harmless. They say abuse of the synthetic drug is quickly becoming a dangerous epidemic in the U.S. and they want to prevent the same from happening in Canada.
Bath salts are a relatively new drug sold in small packets under such names as "Purple Wave," "Bliss," and "Vanilla Sky." It looks like Epsom salts, but actually contains no bath salts at all.
It's a synthetic drug made in a makeshift lab that's snorted, smoked or injected. It promises a high that's similar to methamphetamine and cocaine, while also acting as an LSD-like hallucinogen, explained Staff Sgt. Michael Laviolette with the Ottawa Police drug unit.
"So you can imagine, that combination causes some concern," he told CTV's Canada AM Monday from Ottawa.
Many users, seeking a high of euphoria from the drug, have instead discovered the drug creates extreme psychosis, hallucinations and the urge for suicide.
The drug has been linked to a number of deaths and hospitalizations in the U.S., including incidents involving people who deliberately tried to kill themselves while high on bath salts.
Even after the high wears off, psychotic episodes and paranoia can continue. And yet even after a bad "trip," many users have said they often have the urge to do it again, raising worries about how addictive the drug might be.
Bath salts are only beginning to make their way into Canada, said Laviolette. But police forces like his are working with the RCMP and Border Services officials to stop the drug from gaining a foothold here.
"At this point, it‘s not widespread," Laviolette said. "We haven't seen the manifestation they've seen in the U.S. as of yet."
Nevertheless, he says there have been a number of incidents, including a few overdoses, a number of police run-ins with people high on bath salts, and a number of arrests of people accused of trying to import bath salt chemicals into Canada.
Laviolette says the biggest problem that police have in controlling bath salts is that the drug is new and some of the chemicals used to make it are still legal.
He says two chemicals are found most often in bath salts: mephedrone, which is a controlled substance; and MDPV (methylenedioxypyrovalerone), which is not.
Both chemicals are made in a lab, but MDPV is not regulated because it's not officially marketed for human consumption. But Laviolette says work is underway to change the way the drug is controlled.
"MDPV is not regulated mainly because it's a new product that we weren't aware of," Laviolette said.
In the meantime, those caught moving large quantities of the chemical find themselves in "a bit of a grey area" legally, he said.
"In terms of enforcement, we're working on that," he said.
Laviolette hopes to raise awareness of the risks of the drug and to encourage parents to warn their kids about it.
"We have an opportunity here to get ahead of this issue by engaging in discussions with our communities, educating parents, and working to prevent the issue before it becomes a problem," he said.
