Ketamine use on the rise
According to DrugScope, there has been a rise in the number of young people taking the Class C drug ketamine. Ketamine was made illegal three years ago, however an investigation uncovered evidence that people were experimenting with larger amounts of it as the price fell.
The drug has a strong following on the dance scene and is also known as K, Special K and Vitamin K. Evidence suggests more people are now injecting the drug, rather than snorting or swallowing it, in an attempt to experience stronger hallucinations.
Research found that ketamine was on the rise in nine out of twenty areas surveyed and was linked to the deaths of 23 people between 1993 and 2006. DrugScope Chief Executive Martin Barnes said young people underestimated the dangers they took when using the drug; Ketamine’s harms increase considerably at high doses and injecting users risk exposure to blood-borne viruses such as Hepatitis C or HIV.
