Salvia Divinorum: Another Devil's Weed?

Whatever can be said about Salvia Divinorum, it does seem to live up to its name as a divining drug. In fact, it seems to be very good at that. Why, I remember distinctly the following story appearing in the Star phoenix, I remember submitting a letter to the editor .... but it must have been a halucination.



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Tanya has some comments at Blame The Drug War: Health Canada can't control psychedelic herb. Here is the Star Phoenix article:

Canada: Police Powerless As Psychedelic Herb Remains Legal

Pubdate: Mon, 09 Apr 2007
Source: StarPhoenix, The (CN SN)
Copyright: 2007 The StarPhoenix
Contact: http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/400
Author: Canadian Press

POLICE POWERLESS AS PSYCHEDELIC HERB REMAINS LEGAL

OTTAWA -- An easily available herb that packs a powerful psychedelic punch has some federal health officials recommending strict controls.

But Health Canada says it can't regulate the use of salvia divinorum until there's more evidence of its dangers.

Department documents obtained by The Canadian Press under Access to Information law say salvia is being used by adolescents and young adults for its hallucinogenic properties.

Salvia divinorum is difficult to grow outside of its native habitat in southern Mexico, but the plant's leaves and extracts of salvia's active ingredient in pill form are sold in Canada.

A December 2005 report by the marketed health products directorate, an arm of Health Canada, recommends that salvia be placed under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.

Department spokesperson Jason Bouzanis said salvia has been known to cause hallucinations, outof-body experiences, unconsciousness and shortterm memory loss. But that's not enough to declare it illegal.

"We can't make any recommendations to place salvia under the Controlled Drug and Substances Act schedules until we have sufficient scientific and empirical data that concludes it has the potential for misuse and abuse," Bouzanis said.

Australia is one of few countries that has made it illegal to possess, distribute and consume salvia, also known as Sally D, the diviner's sage, or the sage of seers. It is a species of sage, which belongs to the mint family, and is most commonly found in Mexico, where indigenous Mazatec shamans have used it for centuries for spiritual journeys.

Salvia leaves are most commonly dried and smoked. Extracts of salvinorin-A, salvia's active ingredient, are available in tablet form. Pill prices can range anywhere from $30 to $80 in Canada depending on the potency desired. Most online sellers of salvia advertise the herb as a natural health product.

An October 2006 report by the natural health products directorate of Health Canada, which is responsible for assessing safety among all marketed health products, highlights four cases of adverse reactions to salvia.

One case involves a 16-year-old Canadian boy who reportedly became incoherent, suicidal and threatened to kill police officers after taking a single tablet of salvia in March 2005.

Despite being aware of salvia's potentially harmful effects, the RCMP can't crack down on the herb because it's legal.

"As far as including salvia included under the Controlled Substances Act, that's Health Canada's responsibility," said Sgt. Nathalie Deschenes.

"The RCMP is always concerned about any substance or product that may put the safety and security of Canadians at risk." The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration lists salvia as a "drug of concern" but it has not been banned by the U.S. federal government.

Missouri and Louisiana have criminalized the herb and there are proposals to make it illegal in Alaska, Illinois, Oregon and Wyoming.

Dr. Bryan Roth, a professor of pharmacology at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, is very concerned about the availability of the herb.

"Salvia is the world's most potent naturally occurring hallucinogen," he said.

"You wouldn't want to be driving a car, or you wouldn't want to be on a balcony in a high building so the concern is that if individuals were to take a sufficient dose, they might get themselves or others into trouble.

"The distribution is totally unregulated so unsuspecting teens or even children younger than teenage years might chance upon it and that's a recipe for disaster."

Here is the Star Phoenix article from a few months back. It is essentially the same story only with more of a local focus. Note the similarities in the stories. Niether story is based on facts about Salvia. Both stories balance the opinions of authority figures against headshop employees.

Legal hallucinogen concerns police

David Hutton, The StarPhoenix
Published: Thursday, December 21, 2006

Saskatoon police are concerned about a legal hallucinogen sold in hemp stores and on the Internet, but local users defend the powerful herbal psychedelic as a mind-altering but safe trip.

The herb is Salvia divinorum, known more commonly as Salvia, magic mint or the diviner's sage. It's an unregulated hallucinogen that is legal to possess, distribute and consume in most places in the world and can be bought over the Internet or in hemp stores. In Canada, Salvia is not regulated under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, but it is banned in Australia. Several U.S. states are considering a ban.

Saskatoon police admit they haven't had any specifi c problems with Salvia and can't do anything about it, but they say it may only be a matter of time before something happens.

"Stores shouldn't be selling it to anybody, period," says Sgt. Jerome Engele with the Saskatoon police integrated drug unit. "It's legal and that's a problem.

Unless drugs have some kind of medicinal purpose, they shouldn't be sold. It's caused epileptic seizures and put people in comas in other places.

"Stores that sell the stuff should be held liable if anyone is injured as a result." Health Canada has been monitoring the national and international trend of Salvia use but says the long-term effects of the hallucinogen are unknown.

According to Health Canada, it has been known to cause unconsciousness and short-term memory loss, but the department is not aware of any dependency.

"If it ever came to the point where there was an infl ux of use and police and health-care professionals said this substance posed a threat, then we would take appropriate action," says Health Canada spokesperson Jason Bouzanis.

"For now, we're continuing to collect relevant information specific to this substance." Salvia has been used for hundreds of years by the Mazatec indigenous people of Mexico for spiritual trips and is usually chewed or smoked. Around three years ago, it made its way into commercial sale in Canada. It gives users a short but powerful hallucination, lasting anywhere from 30 seconds to 30 minutes.

Dr. Bryan Roth, director of the psychoactive drug screening program at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, says Salvinorin A, Salvia's active hallucinogenic compound, is unique and activates a different brain receptor than other drugs, such as LSD. He says that causes a "profound effect on the human consciousness." The price of Salvia ranges from $15 to $150 in stores and on the Internet, depending on the potency.

"It's a religious-type experience," says Kerry Kunka, owner of B.O.B. HeadQuarters, a hemp store on Broadway Avenue. "It slows you down and gives you a chance to really experience yourself.

"In western society we're getting out of touch with the spiritual part of life.

There are two ways to look at society and some people don't want to see freethinking in the world and want everyone to conform." A student user in British Columbia described the experience of using Salvia as "reality shattering" and says he "found God" on his lunch break.

Kunka says his store only sells Salvia to people 18 or older and includes a warning label that tells users they may experience mild headaches and insomnia.

The store sells roughly fi ve or six grams of Salvia a week, according to Kunka.

"It's not a party drug," says an employee at B.O.B. HeadQuarters, who says he's tried Salvia around 10 times. "I always warn people not to trick friends into smoking it.

"I don't agree with Salvia being banned. That's only going to force it underground and create a black market."

dhutton@sp.canwest.com
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2006

Propaganda and bullshit that is about all this is.

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Information about Salva divinorum at Erowid.org