26 The Encyclopedia of Addictive Drugs
someone’s eyes open? Is it a creature that appears out of nowhere and pro-
vides mystical insights? Is it sensations of floating? Is it a different flow of
time? Is it cross-wiring of senses, where colors are heard and smells are seen?
Specialists may quibble, but this book classifies all such experiences as hal-
lucinations.
Many people dislike hallucinatory experiences, especially people who like
to be in control of themselves and of situations around them. Such people
often find hallucinations not only unpleasant but downright frightening. Other
people find the sensations intriguing and pleasurable.
Scientific interest in hallucinogens began to emerge in the 1800s, blossoming
in the 1950s and 1960s. In those latter times hallucinogens were popularly
identified with beatniks and hippies, and social disapproval of those lifestyles
promoted legal restrictions on hallucinogens that terminated almost all sci-
entific research regarding these substances. Thus much of the scientific data
is old.
For information about specific hallucinogens, see alphabetical listings for:
AET,amanita,belladonna,bufotenine,DET,DMT,DOB,DOM,dronabi-
nol,ergot,ibogaine,jimson weed,LSD,marijuana,MDA,MDEA,MDMA,
mescaline,morning glory,nutmeg,peyote,psilocybin,2C-B, andyage.INHALANTS
Although some authorities consider inhalants to be depressants, and inha-
lants have hallucinogenic qualities, for several reasons this book lists inhalants
as a substance type in their own right. First, despite easy availability, inhalants
are among the most dangerous of abused substances. There is no range of
inhalants, some of which are benign and some of which are risky, as there is
with stimulants or depressants. All inhalants are dangerous despite wide var-
iations in their chemistry, and this sets them apart from other types of drugs.
Second, inhalants are generally used by inhaling them in their gaseous state
(which is not the same as smoking and also differs from eating a solid or
drinking a liquid). That dosage format sets them apart from other drugs.
Third, inhalants are used mainly by younger persons (typically teenage
males), a usage pattern that also sets inhalants apart from other drugs.
With some inhalants the amount needed to produce a recreational effect is
close to a fatal dose, and deadly outcomes demonstrate that the difference was
too close for some deceased users to handle. In addition, strenuous exercise
seems related to inhalant death, troublesome for users at dance clubs. The
products are often flammable, sometimes producing serious physical injury
unrelated to pharmacology. Some users act as if they do not realize they need
a continual supply of oxygen, and they administer inhalants in ways that
cause suffocation. In addition to all these acute dangers, long-term use of
many inhalants can produce nerve damage, impairing the ability to use arms
and legs and hands and feet, damage verified scientifically. Another type of
long-term damage appears to be assorted types of psychoses. This conse-
quence is harder to verify because inhalant users often take other potent drugs,
so proving which mind-altering drug affected the mind can be very difficult.
Unquestionably, however, inhalant users can develop states of mind interfer-