Bath salts and other synthetic drugs

By Peggy J. Parks

Subjects: Drugs of abuse, Designer drugs, Drug abuse, Synthetic drugs

Description: Examines the history, health effects, social issues, and legal status of different types of synthetic drugs through objective overviews, primary sources, and illustrated statistics. Synthetic drugs are those made complete from chemicals, as distinguished from those like marijuana which are made from plants. No one knows why some stimulant synthetic drugs are called "bath salts," although it was obviously an attempt at camouflaging the true nature of the substances. Originally developed for research purposes, these synthetic stimulants are widely abused, and can cause a variety of side effects.