Urgent health warning for users of synthetic drug “Marley”
From Caribbean360
Two in intensive care and one hospitalised after a seizure following the use of a drug designed to mimic the effects of cannabis and named after the Jamaican reggae icon.
VICTORIA, Australia – Jamaican reggae icon Bob Marley’s enduring hit “Three Little Birds” asserts that everything is going to be all right, and three men who suffered serious reactions after smoking a drug named after the reggae legend are hoping that it’s true.
An urgent health warning for users of “Marley,” a synthetic drug designed to duplicate the effects of cannabis, has been issued in Victoria.
The three men landed in hospital in Melbourne last week after buying the drug at the same sex shop in the city’s south-eastern suburbs.
Police found one man, in his 20s, agitated and confused on Wednesday evening before he had a seizure necessitating hospitalisation.
Two other men, both in their 40s, shared a sachet of Marley on Thursday and had to be admitted to intensive care.
Acting Chief Health Officer Michael Ackland says he’s worried the drug could be sold elsewhere, putting others at risk.
“These drugs are dangerous,” Dr Ackland was quoted as saying in a report in The Australian.
“I strongly urge anyone who has Marley or any synthetic drug in their possession to refrain from using it.”
Dr Ackland said he was worried about the rapid spread of synthetic drugs despite new laws that banned products designed to mimic the effects of illegal drugs.
Other synthetic drugs targeting cannabis users are sold under names ranging from K2, Kronic and Ash Inferno to Black Widow and Slappa.
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