PARENTS BEWARE: Salvia, A Potent and Legal Drug Gaining Popularity with Young People

Salvia divinorum, also known as Diviner's Sage,[2] María Pastora,[3] Sage of the Seers, or simply by the genus name, Salvia, is a powerful psychoactive herb. It is a member of the sage genus and the Lamiaceae (mint) family.[4] The Latin name Salvia divinorum literally translates to "sage of the seers".[5] The genus name Salvia is derived from the Latin salvare, meaning "to heal" or "to save".[6]
Salvia divinorum has a long continuing tradition of use as an entheogen by indigenous Mazatec shamans, who use it to facilitate visionary states of consciousness during spiritual healing sessions.[1] The plant is found in isolated, shaded and moist plots in Oaxaca, Mexico. It grows to well over a meter in height, has large green leaves, hollow square stems with occasional white and purple flowers. It is thought to be a cultigen.[7] Its primary psychoactive constituent is a diterpenoid known as salvinorin A[8][9] - a potent κ-Opioid receptor agonist. Salvinorin A is unique in that it is the only naturally occurring substance known to induce a visionary state this way. Salvia divinorum can be chewed or smoked to produce experiences ranging from uncontrollable laughter to much more intense and profoundly altered states. The duration is much shorter than for some other more well known psychedelics; - the effects of smoked Salvia typically lasting for only a few minutes. The most commonly reported after-effects include an increased feeling of insight and improved mood, and a sense of calmness and increased sense of connection with nature, though much less often it may also cause dysphoria (unpleasant or uncomfortable mood). Salvia divinorum is not generally understood to be toxic or addictive. As a κ-opioid agonist, it may have potential as an analgesic and as therapy for drug addictions.
Salvia divinorum has become increasingly well-known and more widely available in modern culture. The rise of the Internet since the 1990s has seen the growth of many businesses selling live Salvia plants, dried leaves, extracts and other preparations. During this time medical experts, accident and emergency rooms have not been reporting cases that suggest particular health concerns and police have not been reporting it as a significant issue with regard to public order offences. Yet Salvia divinorum has attracted increasing attention from the media and some lawmakers.
Media stories generally raise alarms over Salvia's legal status, headlining for example with not necessarily well supported comparisons to LSD. Parental concerns are raised by focus on Salvia's use by younger teens; - the emergence of YouTube being an area of particular concern in this respect. The isolated and controversial case of Brett Chidester, a 17-year old Delaware student who committed suicide in January 2006, has received continued attention. He reportedly purchased Salvia from a Canadian based Internet company some four months prior to taking his own life; his parents consequently blame this for his death. Salvia divinorum remains legal in most countries and, within the United States, legal in the majority of States. However, some have called for its prohibition. Most proposed bills have not made it into law, with motions having been voted down in committee, failed, died or otherwise stalled. Other more recent bills are as yet still at early proposal stage. There haven't been any publicised prosecutions of anti-Salvia laws in the few countries and States where it has been made illegal.

http://www.insideedition.com/ourstories/reports/story.aspx?storyid=951

 

Just go to you tube and watch some of the videos of the kids smoking it and how some become so incoherent, violent and psychotic after using it.

I just wanted to make parents aware of this drug, because I had never heard of it until last night, and apparently it's legal.

 

Unfortunately I cannot access YouTube at work, so I'll have to wait until this evening.

However, "incoherent, violent and psychotic" could also describe a lot of people after a drinking party.

 

Yes, it could. It's just scary the things kids do these days to get high, especially the things that are legal.

 

But the effects are more like acid, peyote or psilocybine.

 

Yep, that's correct Clif, I think pot would be less dangerous than this, that's for sure.

 

Yet Pot is illegal and this stuff is not. Heck they got thier own web site

http://www.salviasupply.com/?act_vn

 

That's a matter of opinion. Just like alcohol, some can handle getting high, some can't.