Hallucinogens and dissociative drugs are both categories of drugs that alter a persons’ state of mind and mood. Hallucinogens can cause a person to hallucinate–that is to see, hear, or feel things that aren’t actually real. Hallucinogens include LSD, Mescaline (Peyote), Psilocybin, and Psilocyn.
Dissociative drugs, such as Ketamine or PCP, alter a persons state of mind and mood but do not cause a person to hallucinate. Dissociative drugs cause a person to detach, or dissociate, from his or her surroundings.
D-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is the most potent hallucinogenic substance known to man. Dosages of LSD are measured in micrograms or millionths of a gram. By comparison, dosages of cocaine and heroin are measured in milligrams or thousandths of a gram. Compared to other hallucinogenic substances, LSD is 100 times more potent than psilocybin and psilocin and 4,000 times more potent than mescaline.
The dosage level that will produce a hallucinogenic effect in humans generally is considered to be 25 micrograms. Over the past several years, the potency of LSD obtained during drug law enforcement operations has ranged between 20 and 80 micrograms per dosage unit. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recognizes 50 micrograms as the standard dosage unit equivalency.
LSD is classified as a Schedule I drug in the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. As a Schedule I drug, LSD meets the following three criteria: it is deemed to have a high potential for abuse; it has no legitimate medical use in treatment; and, there is a lack of accepted safety for its use under medical supervision.
LSD was synthesized in 1938 by a chemist working for Sandoz Laboratories in Switzerland. It was developed initially as a circulatory and respiratory stimulant. However, no extraordinary benefits of the compound were identified and its study was discontinued. In the 1940’s, interest in the drug was revived when it was thought to be a possible treatment for schizophrenia. Because of LSD’s structural relationship to a chemical that is present in the brain and its similarity in effect to certain aspects of psychosis, LSD was used as a research tool in studies of mental illness.
The effects of LSD are unpredictable. They depend on the amount taken, the user’s personality, mood and expectations, and the surroundings in which the drug is used. Usually, the user feels the first effects of the drug 30-90 minutes after taking it. These effects include dilated pupils, higher body temperature, increased heart rate and blood pressure, sweating, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, dry mouth, and tremors. Sensations and feelings change much more dramatically than the physical signs. The user may feel several different emotions at once or swing rapidly from one emotion to another. Depending on the dose, the drug can produce delusions and visual hallucinations, which can be frightening and cause panic. Users refer to their experience with these acute adverse reactions as a “bad trip,” and the effects typically last for about twelve hours. Terrifying thoughts and feelings, fear of insanity and death, injuries, and fatal accidents have occurred during states of LSD intoxication. Anyone can experience a bad trip and there is no way to predict what your own experience will be.
LSD is being concealed in candy Sweet Tarts by simply placing a clear drop of the drug in the tart. Tarts may or may not have a slight discoloration such as on the pink tart above. Tarts are becoming more popular as a method of concealment. Tarts are used in this instance, however, many other candy products can be used as well.
MANUFACTURER LIST