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Lower risk guidelines / Synthetic Cannabis

SYNTHETIC CANNABIS

What is it?

Synthetic cannabis is also known as K2 or Spice are a class of synthetic compounds that do not contain any of the compounds found in natural cannabis (1). Synthetic cannabis is often labelled on packaging as "herbal cannabis," but it is not a natural product (2). Although synthetic cannabis mimics the effects of THC, they have greater binding affinity to cannabinoid receptors leading them to be up to 100 times more potent than THC (1).  

Effects

Synthetic cannabis produces similar effects to THC but with greater intensity, resulting in medical & psychiatric emergencies (1).

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Adverse effects include psychosis, acute renal failure, hypertension, suicide ideation and in some cases even death (1).

Page References:

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  1. Castaneto, M. S., Gorelick, D. A., Desrosiers, N. A., Hartman, R. L., Pirard, S., & Huestis, M. A. (2014). Synthetic Cannabinoids: Epidemiology, Pharmacodynamics, and Clinical Implications. Department of Health and Human Services, 144, 12-41. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2014.08.005. 

  2. Alcohol and Drug Foundation. (2018). Synthetic cannabis. Retrieved from https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/synthetic-cannabis/.

References
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