Drugs of Abuse List

Alcohol – Depressant

Alcohol is a central nervous system depressant, slowing down the body’s responses in all kinds of ways. Alcohol is metabolized by the liver, but when too much alcohol enters the body the liver is unable to process it fast enough, and the levels in the bloodstream continue to rise resulting in alcoholic intoxication. Alcohol is a popular recreational drug that initially makes people feel more sociable but taken in excessive quantities will lead to a state of being drunk. Sufficiently high levels of alcohol in the bloodstream will lead to coma and respiratory arrest.

Alcohol Test Products

Amphetamine – Stimulant

Amphetamine is a synthetic drug and one of the most impure illegal drugs currently available on the street. Purity may be up to 10% but is more commonly less than 5% with some samples as low as 1%. Amphetamine is often mixed (cut) with sugars, caffeine and/or ephedrine and sometimes with paracetamol, Vitamin C, chalk and talcum powder.

Amphetamine (commonly referred to as speed) is usually an off-white or pinkish powder and can sometimes look like small crystals. The ‘base’ form is usually purer and is a pinkish-grey colour and feels like putty.

Users feel very up, alert and energized, but it can also make them agitated and aggressive. Speed makes people feel wide-awake, excited and chatty and is used by clubbers because it gives them the energy to dance for hours without getting tired.

Anabolic Steroids

Anabolic steroids mimic the effects of naturally occurring hormones. First synthesised in the 1930s, anabolic steroids are now used therapeutically in the treatment of wasting conditions, for example when treating bedridden patients whilst recovering, and for those with cancer and AIDS. They are also used to stimulate bone growth and appetite.

Testosterone is a naturally occurring anabolic steroid but now there are many chemicals of a similar structure manufactured. Nandrolone (19-nortestosterone) was the first synthesised anabolic steroid and has been the most commonly used. Nandrolone has a less potent effect in androgenic tissue than testosterone, thus giving more of the wanted effects (anabolic, muscle building) rather than the unwanted (androgenic, increased male characteristics) side effects.

Anabolic steroids include clenbuterol, nandrolone, testosterone, trenbolone, stanozolo and oxymetholone. Taken regularly, they act as body builders by increasing muscle mass. These drugs are addictive, requiring an increase in dose over time to give the same effect and have withdrawal effects if suddenly stopped.

Barbiturates – Depressant

Barbiturates are sedatives that can produce a wide spectrum of effects, from mild sedation to total anaesthesia that have historically been used as anxiolytics and hypnotics.

Today they have been largely replaced by benzodiazepines in routine medical practice because barbiturates are extremely toxic in overdose and have a high risk of addiction and abuse. However, barbiturates are still used as anticonvulsants, as para-operative sedatives and analgesics for cluster headaches and migraines.

Barbiturates used to be a regular feature of the UK drugs scene, but because there is very little prescribing and no illicitly made varieties around, fortunately little is seen of them these days.

Benzodiazepines – Depressant

Benzodiazepines are synthetic drugs that share a common chemical structure based around a 7-carbon ring called benzodiazepine. They are prescription only medicines that are used to treat anxiety and insomnia, which include Valium® (diazepam), temazepam, Rohypnol® (flunitrazepam) and phenazepam (although this latter drug is sometimes found in street drugs, it is not prescribed by doctors in the UK).

Mostly available as tablets, these drugs also exist as powder in capsules, as suppositories, or in liquid form suitable for either oral use or injection. They are also available in gel-filled capsules; however, these are rarely prescribed due to their open abuse in the 1980s.

Benzodiazepines are often used as chill out drugs in the club scene. Some drug users take them to help come down off acid, cocaine, speed or ecstasy.

Buprenorphine – Depressant

A semi-synthetic opioid derived from thebaine, one of the constituents of Papaver somniferum (opium poppy). It is a white crystalline powder, principally marketed in tablet form and administered sublingually (beneath the tongue). Buprenorphine is used as an analgesic for moderate to severe pain and for opiate substitution therapy.

Buprenorphine is an effective evidence-based medication used in the treatment of opioid dependence. The primary function is to reduce (and eventually replace) illicit heroin use, and in so doing reduce harm and improve the health and psychological well-being of the patient.

Buprenorphine is not produced in clandestine laboratories. Legitimate pharmaceutical products are diverted to the illicit market through forged prescriptions etc. It is likely that the drug is also illegally imported from foreign manufacturers. Trade names for buprenorphine include, Subutex, Suboxone, and Temgesic.

Cannabis – THC – Depressant

Cannabis sativa is a plant found wild in most parts of the world and it is easily cultivated in temperate climates such as the UK. Different forms of cannabis come from different parts of the plant and have different strengths. The plant contains a large number of active compounds collectively known as cannabinoids. The main active cannabinoid ingredient is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is largely responsible for the psychoactive effects of cannabis. It is the most widely used drug of abuse in the UK.

Cannabis is encountered in different forms: herbal cannabis, cannabis resin and cannabis oil. Herbal cannabis consists of the dried flowering tops and leaves of the cannabis plant. Flowering tops from the female plant contain the highest concentration of THC; this is the type of cannabis grown in ‘cannabis factories’ and is typically referred to as ‘skunk’ due to its characteristic pungent aroma. Cannabis resin (sometimes referred to as ‘hashish’) is scraped or rubbed from the dried plant and then pressed into brown/black blocks. Cannabis oil is the least common form of cannabis found in the UK.

Cocaine – Stimulant

Cocaine is a powerful stimulant that is found in the leaves of the Erythroxylum coca (coca leaves) a tropical shrub that is grown widely on the Andean ridge in South America. Cocaine is extracted from the leaves of the coca plant in the salt form cocaine hydrochloride, a white powder.

The powder is mixed with cutting agents before sale. Cocaine powder is taken by snorting or it can be dissolved in water and injected. Crack cocaine is produced by a method that removes the salt content leaving the base form of the chemical. For maximum effect crack cocaine is smoked using a short stemmed pipe.

All forms of cocaine act as powerful mind-altering stimulants. Smoking of crack cocaine speeds up the time it takes the drug to reach the brain so increasing the intensity of euphoria. The effects of cocaine are short lived. Using cocaine with alcohol can substantially increase the risk of side effects.

When the effects of any cocaine use start to wear off there can be a very strong temptation to take more, particularly with the long ‘come down’, the crash period sometimes lasting for days.

Ecstasy – Stimulant

Methylenedioxy-methylamphetamine,(MDMA) is a strong stimulant closely related to amphetamines and methamphetamines. It is a popular party/dance drug that users take to feel energised and happy so that they can dance for longer.

Ecstasy on its own takes effect within about 30 minutes and lasts for between 3 to 6 hours. The user has feelings of love and affection for others and the come down is gradual. It is usually sold in tablet form, although it’s getting more common to see it sold as powder and called by its chemical name, MDMA, or ‘crystal’.

Ecstasy tablets come in all sorts of colours and some of them have designs or logos stamped into them. These designs often spawn new street names, such as Supermans or Mitsubishis.

The constituents in an ecstasy tablet can vary considerably and do not always contain MDMA. Some seized tablets have been shown to contain only everyday substances such as caffeine. Other common constituents can be common medications such as ephedrine and pseudoephedrine or other illicit substances like amphetamine and ketamine. Fatalities have been reported where tablets sold as ecstasy actually contain highly toxic substances like para-methoxyamphetamine (PMA).

Ecstasy is rarely injected, snorted or smoked.

Fentanyl – Depressant

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid of high potency and short duration of action. It is used as an anaesthetic and in the management of chronic and breakthrough pain for opioid tolerant patients. It is a controlled drug prescribed by clinicians and administered by one of the following routes: as an injectable solution for surgical anaesthesia, transdermal patches for management of chronic pain, tablets/lozenges/lollipops taken sublingually used for cancer pain (breakthrough pain), film for buccal use and a nasal spray.

Used as a recreational drug the effects of fentanyl are similar to that of heroin, although users of the drug report that the “high” is less intense than with heroin, while the sedative effects are stronger. Fentanyl is also a very short-acting drug, which means it quickly becomes addictive to users who want to maintain their high. Fentanyl is nearly a hundred times more potent that heroin and users are at an even greater risk of respiratory depression when using fentanyl. Fentanyl is taken in different ways and can be smoked, snorted or injected.

Some drug dealers mix fentanyl with other drugs to make them stronger or to improve low quality drugs. Fentanyl in powder form mixed with heroin can be a lethal combination. Use of fentanyl is not compatible with safe driving.

Gabapentin – Depressant

Gabapentin is used to treat epilepsy and neuropathic pain. It is structurally related to the inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). The drug is not metabolised and is excreted mainly through the kidney.  A prescription only medicine, gabapentin is manufactured as either white, yellow or orange capsules and as tablets. The drug for illicit use is mainly diverted from the pharmaceutical industry.

A survey in 2014 highlighted the significant use of prescription drugs pregabalin and gabapentin, mainly among Britain’s opiate-using and prison populations.

Heroin – Depressant

Heroin is produced by extracting opium from the latex drained from the poppy seed heads of Papaver Somniferum. Opium contains a group of chemicals known as opiate alkaloids including morphine. A process of acetylation converts morphine into diacetylmorphine. When produced illicitly the drug is called heroin, the medical name for this strong painkiller is diamorphine.

Heroin is used as a recreational drug for the intense euphoria it induces, however tolerance develops quickly, and increased doses are needed in order to achieve the same effects.

Heroin usually comes as an off white or brown powder. Heroin can be dissolved, diluted, and injected into veins, muscles, or under the skin. Smoking the drug involves heating up the powder on some foil, and then inhaling the fumes through a small tube.

Ketamine – Hallucinogen

The main use of ketamine is as a veterinary anaesthetic where it is supplied as an injectable solution. Street sources are mainly from drugs diverted from medical use and therefore tend to be pure. Ketamine is sometimes found in ecstasy tablets mixed with ephedrine.

The use of ketamine has steadily increased since it first appeared in the UK in 1992 and it is principally used in night clubs, all night raves, and music festivals. Within some Asian regions ketamine use is quite high, for example in Hong Kong ketamine users accounted for approximately 31.5% of all drug users in 2012.

At low doses ketamine produces a state of dissociation called the ‘k-hole’ where users may experience a complete loss of bodily awareness and time perception, sensations of floating or falling and euphoria.

At higher doses the anaesthetic effect takes over and numbs the body. When this happens, users can be physically unable to move and for this reason ketamine is sometimes used as a date rape drug.

Khat – Stimulant

Khat, Catha edulis, is a flowering evergreen shrub cultivated in East Africa and the South-West Arabian Peninsula. The principle active constituents of khat are cathinone (ß-ketoamphetamine) and cathine (norpseudoephedrine), both central nervous system (CNS) stimulants. Chewing khat leaves releases these substances into the oral fluid.

Cathinone has a similar chemical structure to amphetamine and although less potent shares similar chemical and physical properties. Cathinone is very unstable and decomposes to the less potent ingredient cathine as the leaves dry. The taste and potency of the freshly picked leaves is lost within 24–36 hours.

Laughing Gas (Nitrous Oxide) – Hallucinogen

Nitrous oxide is commonly known as laughing gas due to the euphoric effects experienced on inhaling it. It has the chemical formula N₂O, and is a colourless, non-flammable gas at room temperature, with a slightly sweet odour and taste.

It is used for its anaesthetic effects and pain relief during surgery, dentistry and childbirth. Entonox® is the 50:50 mixture of nitrous oxide and oxygen, which is used by the ambulance service for pain relief in acute situations. It is also used as an oxidizer in the launching of rockets and in motor racing to increase the power output of engines.

Nitrous oxide is approved for use as a food additive and is used as an aerosol spray propellant in aerosol whipped cream canisters and cooking sprays. It is also used as an inert gas to displace oxygen when filling packages of potato crisps and other similar snack foods to inhibit bacterial growth. The gas is extremely soluble in fatty compounds and in aerosol whipped cream it is dissolved in the fatty cream until it leaves the can, when it becomes gaseous and creates foam.

The euphoric effects have led to its use as a recreational drug.

LSD – Hallucinogen

LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is a semi-synthetic hallucinogen that was first synthesised from lysergic acid. Lysergic acid is found in ergot, a fungus which grows on grains such as rye. There are no medical uses for LSD. The amount of LSD required for an effect is very small, so for ease of use and to prevent overdosing the drug is usually impregnated into blotting paper, sugar cubes or gelatine squares.

As it is one of the most potent drugs, users may experience both enjoyable and unpleasant effects, commonly referred to as “trips”. Visual hallucinations are common and the senses get confused with users “hearing colours” and “seeing sounds”.

Magic Mushrooms – Hallucinogens

Magic mushrooms belong to a group of naturally occurring mushrooms that contain the chemical psilocybin. Psilocybin is a chemical that falls into the broad category of drugs called tryptamines. One of the most common species of mushroom containing psilocybin is Psilocybe semilanceata or ‘liberty cap’ and is commonly found in the UK. Once ingested the chemical undergoes rapid conversion in the body to psilocin which is the chemical with the psychoactive properties. Another type, amanita muscaria or ‘fly agaric’ mushroom is stronger than the traditional ‘liberty cap’ mushroom.

People who consume magic mushrooms experience hallucinations, sometimes referred to as ‘trips’. These experiences can be either good or bad and the length of time they last is dependent on the amount consumed. Effects begin within 20 minutes of ingestion. People who regularly use magic mushrooms may experience flashbacks.

Mephedrone – Stimulant

Mephedrone belongs to a group of synthetic substances that are chemically similar to naturally occurring cathinone (a compound found in the leaves of the Khat plant) and the synthetic drug group amphetamines.

Originally synthesised in 1929 the compound remained an obscure product of academia until it was ‘re-discovered’ and publicised by an underground chemist working in Israel. It appeared on the market in 2007, and between the summer of 2009 and March 2010, the use of mephedrone as a recreational drug grew rapidly in the UK. It was used as a legal alternative to cocaine, ecstasy (MDMA) and amphetamine, as it was found to produce similar experiences, until it became an illegal drug on the 16th April 2010.

Mephedrone is a white, off-white or yellowish powder which is usually snorted, but can also be swallowed in bombs (wraps of paper) and may also appear in pill or capsule form. There are reports that more people are injecting mephedrone.