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Global rise in new 'legal highs' - UN World Drug Report Global rise in new 'legal highs' - UN World Drug Report
(35 minutes later)
Governments everywhere are struggling to cope with an increase in the number of new drugs known as "legal highs", according to a UN report.Governments everywhere are struggling to cope with an increase in the number of new drugs known as "legal highs", according to a UN report.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) says the use of traditional drugs such as heroin and cocaine is globally stable.The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) says the use of traditional drugs such as heroin and cocaine is globally stable.
But new synthetic substances are being constantly spread via the internet, the office's latest World Drug Report says.But new synthetic substances are being constantly spread via the internet, the office's latest World Drug Report says.
It stresses that these seemingly legal drugs can have deadly effects.It stresses that these seemingly legal drugs can have deadly effects.
The report says street names, such as "spice", "meow meow" and "bath salts" mislead young people into believing that they are indulging in low-risk fun. These "new psychoactive substances" (NPS) have not been tested for safety and pose "unforeseen public health challenges", the report notes.
But these "new psychoactive substances" (NPS) can be far more dangerous than traditional drugs, it adds. "Sold openly, including via the internet, NPS... can be far more dangerous than traditional drugs.
The report focuses on substances that appear to originate in Asia but are marketed globally online. "Street names, such as spice, meow meow and bath salts mislead young people into believing that they are indulging in low-risk fun," the report adds.
The biggest targets are apparently North America and Europe, with Britain a particularly receptive market. Lucrative market
The UNODC says almost 700,000 Britons aged between 15 and 24 have experimented with legal highs, which can be far more dangerous than traditional drugs. New substances are being identified all the time and the authorities are struggling to keep up, according the UNODC.
It says new ones are being identified all the time and the authorities are struggling to keep up. "While law enforcement lags behind, criminals have been quick to tap into this lucrative market," the report says.
It focuses on drugs that appear to originate in Asia but are marketed globally online.
The biggest market is the US, where use of these substances among youth "appears to be more than twice as widespread as in the European Union", it says.
Within the EU, Britain is a particularly receptive market, the UNODC says, with almost 700,000 Britons aged between 15 and 24 having experimented with legal highs.
The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction reported earlier this year that it had detected 73 new substances last year, compared with 49 in 2011.The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction reported earlier this year that it had detected 73 new substances last year, compared with 49 in 2011.