Flakka: What You Should Know

Flakka also called alpha-Plyrrolidinopentiophenone is a synthetic stimulant of the cathinone class. It’s a psychoactive drug that works similarly to cocaine. like "bath salts," a group of related synthetic drugs that were banned in 2012, flakka has the potential to be much more dangerous than cocaine. Flakka began with the khat plant that grows in East Africa and Southern Arabia. Khat leaves are chewed for a mild stimulant. From there it became a new synthetic drug made from α-PVP (polyvinylpyrrolidone), which is a cousin of amphetamine, which is much stronger than the khat plant. This synthetic drug can be taking in to the body system by smoking it, snorted or by injecting it into the blood stream.
Flakka addiction has being a major issue in some part of the world today. Countries like the USA, Brasil, Mexico, and others have had several cases of flakka related issues. Flakka became available in the United States in 2013 in a tablet form. Within a year, its popularity and distribution quickly spread under the “flakka” name. In 2014, the federal government classified it as a Schedule I controlled substance making it illegal. In 2015, police in Florida reported an outbreak of extremely bizarre behaviors by people after using flakka. In one case in Miami, one man chewed another man’s face after using flakka, there has also been a case of a girl in Melbourne, Florida, ran through the street screaming that she was Satan while on a flakka trip. Authorities in the state are warning people about the dangers of the drug.

Symptoms of flakka

The common symptoms of flakka includes;

• Increased alertness.

• Profuse sweating

• Hyperactivity

• extreme agitation

• anxiety

• bizarre behaviors

• hallucinations, delusions and confusion

Effects of flakka

Mental effect

• Flakka causes a feeling of euphoria for the user

• It can also cause extreme anxiety, paranoia and hallucinations

•  It also causes psychotic delusions leading to bizarre and out of control behaviors.

Physical effects of flakka

•  Flakka cases the heart rate to increase and the body temperature to increase.

•  It can cause liver and kidney failure with prolonged use.

• It can also lead to seizures, stroke, heart attack, and death.

• There is also a believe that flakka gives superhuman strength.

Detection in body fluids

Flakka may be quantified in blood, plasma or urine by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to confirm a diagnosis of poisoning in hospitalized patients or to provide evidence in a medicolegal death investigation.

Range of concentration of flakka in the blood

• 10–50 μg/L expect range of a recreational use

• >100 μg/L at this range patient is under intoxication

•  >300 μg/L in victims of acute overdosage.

Flakka control

α-PVP is a Schedule I drug in New Mexico, Delaware, Florida, Oklahoma, and Virginia. On January 28, 2014, the U.S. DEA listed it, along with nine other synthetic cathinones, on the Schedule 1 with a temporary ban, effective February 27, 2014. The temporary ban was then extended.

As of October 2015 α-PVP is a controlled substance in China.

α-PVP is banned in Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Sweden, United Kingdom, Turkey, Norway, as well as the Czech Republic.

Conclusion

Flakka is a very addictive drug, once started it’s very difficult to stop. The major problem with this drug is overdosing, since people that takes this drugs, do not take it by doctors prescription, overdosing cases is always common. flakka high can last one to several hours, it is possible that the neurological effects can be permanent. Not only does the drug sit on neurons, it could also destroy them, Hall said. And because flakka, like bath salts, hang around in the brain for longer than cocaine, the extent of the destruction could be greater. Flakka is usually associated with violent behaviors that in some cases leads to serious injury to the body, the user ending up in jail, and in worst cases death. So keep away from flakka.