Top 5 Facts About Bath Salts
Some people like to dabble, but this is one experiment you're better off missing. Welcome to WatchMojo's Top 5 Facts. In this installment, we're counting down the Top 5 Facts about Bath Salts.
From their legal standing, recreational horror stories, to their terrifying aftereffects, we'll be taking a look at some information you probably didn't know this street drug.
#5: What Are They?
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Bath salts are a designer drug, one that has been created in such a way as to avoid detection in most drug tests while still evoking the same physical and mental response from the user. The drug usually takes the form of white power or crystals, and because of their appearance, the drugs were often smuggled or disguised as genuine bath salts, and thus earned their name. But that's as far as the likeness goes, as the drugs contain harmful chemicals such as mephedrone and MDPV, which share a number of similarities with drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy. Bottom line: don't do bath salts.
#4: Bath Salts Have Many Street Names
Because people don’t want to get caught talking about an illegal drug over the phone, they will often develop unusual, and sometimes wacky pseudonyms for them. Like how marijuana is often referred to as reefer or Mary Jane, heroin is called smack or horse, and cocaine will sometimes be called snow, blow, or the Devil's Dandruff. Bath salts are no different. Some of the names they've been sold and packaged as include: red dove, white lighting, ivory wave and vanilla sky. The problem with street names is that many of them sound harmless and are thus more likely to inflict harm on a misinformed user. Bottom line: don’t do bath salts.
#3: Their Effects Are Scary
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Buckle up, because the effects that bath salts have on the body are downright disgusting. The initial symptoms often include feeling euphoric, being more focused as well as an increase in energy. However, things go dark pretty quickly. Some of the side effects of taking bath salts include: chest pain, hallucinations, paranoia and a feeling of agitation that can last for days. But wait, it gets worse! Some of the more serious side effects include: liver failure, heart attack and seizures. And these are just the physical effects. You may also experience suicidal thoughts and a desire to self-harm. Bottom line: don’t do bath salts.
#2: Bath Salts Didn’t Become a Designer Drug Until the 2000s
Bath salts first emerged in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom in 2009, by which time they'd already been made illegal in Israel. Because of its status as a designer drug, it took law enforcement some time to crack down on those selling and using bath salts. However, once they did they didn’t take any half measures. In the winter of 2011 the DEA stepped up their game and launched a special campaign to rid New York City of the drug, ultimately arresting 10 people who were selling it out of retail stores. Bottom line: don’t sell bath salts.
#1: Their Primary Ingredient Was Legal Until Recently
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As is the case with many of the world’s most infamous narcotics, the main ingredients of this drug were originally developed, legally, long ago. For instance, the primary ingredient in bath salts is methylenedioxypyrovalerone, a super long word we shall henceforth refer to as MDPV. It was originally created the 1960s with the purpose of treating people suffering from chronic fatigue. MDPV remained a legal, albeit obscure drug until the 2000s, when it was then used in the creation of the new designer drug, bath salts. Nowadays MDPV is considered a Schedule I controlled substance in the U.S., making it illegal to use or sell it. Bottom line? Don’t do (or sell!) bath salts.
