B
blufluffybunny
Guest
There were a lot of questions about GHB on the OTHER DRUG forum, but not many people had answers. So after some research, I found this for you guys... WARNING: It's long, but SO worth the read!
GHB
Ulterior motives?
It seems likely that at least some of the motives behind the 1990 FDA ban of GHB were other than those of public safety. Such a ban constitutes the only means of Federal control of a substance neither scheduled by the DEA nor approved by the FDA as a drug. In the absence of a genuine public-health concern, such control might have been motivated by a desire to protect the pharmaceutical industry (with which the FDA is closely intertwined) from competition from a safer, more effective and less expensive alternative to sleeping pills. As an afterthought, is it a coincidence that the FDA has also banned L-tryptophan, another nutrient that functions as a safe and effective sleep aid?
Despite GHB clearly meeting the criteria of DHS&EA (Dietary Supplement Health & Education Act of 1994) as a food supplement - substantiated by scores of positive scientific articles extolling its benefits - police agencies and state legislators, spurred on by FDA and DEA "experts" and unquestioning media reports, are moving rapidly to ban the sale and use of GHB by promulgating hysteria, lies, and distortions.
The real concerns are simply that it is possible to use GHB irresponsibly.
IMAGINARY DANGERS
The media impute many fantastic and empirically impossible qualities to GHB. That is to say, these things do not happen! Among the more dramatic claims made by the media are that GHB causes:
· Hallucinations - The media like to report every new drug as a hallucinogen, no matter how wildly inappropriate. One wonders what they're smoking. It could be argued that the current Inquisition in America is suffering from a 'bad trip'.
· Amnesia: Perhaps due to confusion with Rohypnol. ®
· Heart Failure: There was one - one - case to support this allegation. We now know that GHB did not kill Hillory Farias. For more details of this very sad and very public case, see http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~laborit/FAQ.html.
· Death: The lowest estimated lethal dose for GHB that has been reported is 1100mg/kg, although there are reports of experiments with monkeys where the monkeys received 1000mg/kg without apparent harm. In an average human, 1100mg/kg would be over 66g of GHB, or 22 active doses, taken all at once!
If you don't mix alcohol and GHB, death will not happen, folks.
As with most substances, unpleasant and possibly dangerous side effects can be associated with excessive doses of GHB. A dose usually only about twice the amount required for relaxation or a prosexual effect can, as one user put it, "knock you out but fast." In this respect, GHB is probably comparable to alcohol: if you drank twice as much as you normally would, you probably wouldn't function very well.
Despite its general safety and lack of toxicity, the safe use of GHB requires information, preparation, caution, and good judgement. In other words, follow the usage guidelines!
Is GHB addictive?
The standard definition of addiction comes from the American Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization, which list nine criteria for determining addiction. The two groups, which prefer the term drug dependence, base their definition on research done since the 1960's. This research has determined that multiple traits must be considered in determining whether a substance is addictive. These criteria are:
· Taking the drug more often or in larger amounts than intended.
· Unsuccessful attempts to quit; persistent desire, craving.
· Excessive time spent in drug seeking.
· Feeling intoxicated at inappropriate times, or feeling withdrawal symptoms from a drug at such times.
· Giving up other things for it.
· Continued use, despite knowledge of harm to oneself and others.
· Marked tolerance in which the amount needed to satisfy increases at first before levelling off.
· Characteristic withdrawal symptoms for particular drugs.
· Taking the drug to relieve or avoid withdrawal.
A diagnosis of mild dependence on a psychoactive drug is determined by meeting three of the nine criteria. Five items show moderate dependence and seven items indicate a strong dependence. (Not all nine items apply to each drug. For example, time and effort spent acquiring a drug is a significant feature of heroin addiction, but have no meaning in nicotine addiction.)
However, in the first instance, GHB is not a drug. Apart from this fact, several studies have strongly suggested that GHB has no addictive properties. But the world is full of very different types of people and because of this, there will be instances of individuals who use GHB far more than others may. At worst, applying the criteria above, it may be possible to say that some individuals are mildly dependent on GHB. But these individuals are the exception.
Before the clampdown on GHB in the USA in November 1990, 15 Investigational New Drug reports (IND's) had been filed with the FDA by pharmaceutical companies. Whenever any Investigational New Drug report is filed, it must include the results of pre-clinical and toxicology reports that demonstrate that the drug is safe for clinical trials.
The IND's that have been filed indicate that GHB may have the following uses:
· Improving sleep patterns and maintaining daytime alertness in cases of narcolepsy;
· Reducing painful night-time leg cramps;
· Improving memory;
· Stimulating natural growth hormones;
· Reducing drug and alcohol withdrawal symptoms;
· Decreasing learning and hyperactivity disabilities in children;
· Relieving anxiety;
· Lowering cholesterol.
It also has notable antidepressant abilities, greatly enhances the desire for and enjoyment of human contact, and as we have mentioned, often improves sex.
For the thirty years prior to 1990, the scientific papers on GHB were unanimous in reporting numerous beneficial physiological effects and the absence of long-term negative effects. In 1964, Laborit listed "very low toxicity" as one of the "principle elements" of the compound's pharmacology. Moreover, GHB demonstrates no toxic effects on the liver and kidneys. In 1972, Laborit described the body's metabolism of GHB and stressed "the absence of any need of detoxification by the organism." As recently as 1989, this scientific consensus on GHB's benign nature remained unchanged.
Then, on November 8th, 1990, in the USA the Food and Drug Administration banned the over-the-counter sale of GHB. In 1991, two scientists from the California Department of Health Services, Drs Chin and Kreutzer, wrote a report on ten "poisonings" associated with GHB. Of the ten "poisonings" reported:
· Four involved "unknown doses,"
· Four featured the simultaneous ingestion of other drugs (usually alcohol),
· One involved epilepsy for which no medication was being taken, and
· One involved a history of grand mal seizures.
Since alcohol and other central nervous system (CNS) depressants are not recommended with GHB, and because GHB is contraindicated for epileptics, such cases are not unexpected. In their report, Chin and Kreutzer do acknowledge that the "more severe reactions...generally occurred when patients took an unmeasured dose, a particularly large dose, or several doses within a short period of time." Such problems are easily avoided by following the directions for GHB's use.
It is noteworthy that despite a seemingly negative bias, the report acknowledged that there were no documented reports of long-term detrimental effects. Nor does the report indicate that there is any evidence for physiological addiction. The authors state in their report: "No investigator [has] reported any long-term adverse effects, addictive or dependent qualities associated with discontinued usage of the drug."
The report by Chin and Kreutzer did indeed warn of GHB's "tremendous potential for abuse". The authors observe that " . . . all interviewed patients reported a pleasurable sensation or a 'high.' Several of them...continued taking [GHB] because it made them 'feel good'." Apparently, Chin and Kreutzer are of the opinion that simply feeling good is a potential threat to public health and that the use of a substance simply for the purpose of feeling good, amounts to an abuse of that substance!
[This message has been edited by blufluffybunny (edited 07 July 2001).]
GHB
Ulterior motives?
It seems likely that at least some of the motives behind the 1990 FDA ban of GHB were other than those of public safety. Such a ban constitutes the only means of Federal control of a substance neither scheduled by the DEA nor approved by the FDA as a drug. In the absence of a genuine public-health concern, such control might have been motivated by a desire to protect the pharmaceutical industry (with which the FDA is closely intertwined) from competition from a safer, more effective and less expensive alternative to sleeping pills. As an afterthought, is it a coincidence that the FDA has also banned L-tryptophan, another nutrient that functions as a safe and effective sleep aid?
Despite GHB clearly meeting the criteria of DHS&EA (Dietary Supplement Health & Education Act of 1994) as a food supplement - substantiated by scores of positive scientific articles extolling its benefits - police agencies and state legislators, spurred on by FDA and DEA "experts" and unquestioning media reports, are moving rapidly to ban the sale and use of GHB by promulgating hysteria, lies, and distortions.
The real concerns are simply that it is possible to use GHB irresponsibly.
IMAGINARY DANGERS
The media impute many fantastic and empirically impossible qualities to GHB. That is to say, these things do not happen! Among the more dramatic claims made by the media are that GHB causes:
· Hallucinations - The media like to report every new drug as a hallucinogen, no matter how wildly inappropriate. One wonders what they're smoking. It could be argued that the current Inquisition in America is suffering from a 'bad trip'.
· Amnesia: Perhaps due to confusion with Rohypnol. ®
· Heart Failure: There was one - one - case to support this allegation. We now know that GHB did not kill Hillory Farias. For more details of this very sad and very public case, see http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~laborit/FAQ.html.
· Death: The lowest estimated lethal dose for GHB that has been reported is 1100mg/kg, although there are reports of experiments with monkeys where the monkeys received 1000mg/kg without apparent harm. In an average human, 1100mg/kg would be over 66g of GHB, or 22 active doses, taken all at once!
If you don't mix alcohol and GHB, death will not happen, folks.
As with most substances, unpleasant and possibly dangerous side effects can be associated with excessive doses of GHB. A dose usually only about twice the amount required for relaxation or a prosexual effect can, as one user put it, "knock you out but fast." In this respect, GHB is probably comparable to alcohol: if you drank twice as much as you normally would, you probably wouldn't function very well.
Despite its general safety and lack of toxicity, the safe use of GHB requires information, preparation, caution, and good judgement. In other words, follow the usage guidelines!
Is GHB addictive?
The standard definition of addiction comes from the American Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization, which list nine criteria for determining addiction. The two groups, which prefer the term drug dependence, base their definition on research done since the 1960's. This research has determined that multiple traits must be considered in determining whether a substance is addictive. These criteria are:
· Taking the drug more often or in larger amounts than intended.
· Unsuccessful attempts to quit; persistent desire, craving.
· Excessive time spent in drug seeking.
· Feeling intoxicated at inappropriate times, or feeling withdrawal symptoms from a drug at such times.
· Giving up other things for it.
· Continued use, despite knowledge of harm to oneself and others.
· Marked tolerance in which the amount needed to satisfy increases at first before levelling off.
· Characteristic withdrawal symptoms for particular drugs.
· Taking the drug to relieve or avoid withdrawal.
A diagnosis of mild dependence on a psychoactive drug is determined by meeting three of the nine criteria. Five items show moderate dependence and seven items indicate a strong dependence. (Not all nine items apply to each drug. For example, time and effort spent acquiring a drug is a significant feature of heroin addiction, but have no meaning in nicotine addiction.)
However, in the first instance, GHB is not a drug. Apart from this fact, several studies have strongly suggested that GHB has no addictive properties. But the world is full of very different types of people and because of this, there will be instances of individuals who use GHB far more than others may. At worst, applying the criteria above, it may be possible to say that some individuals are mildly dependent on GHB. But these individuals are the exception.
Before the clampdown on GHB in the USA in November 1990, 15 Investigational New Drug reports (IND's) had been filed with the FDA by pharmaceutical companies. Whenever any Investigational New Drug report is filed, it must include the results of pre-clinical and toxicology reports that demonstrate that the drug is safe for clinical trials.
The IND's that have been filed indicate that GHB may have the following uses:
· Improving sleep patterns and maintaining daytime alertness in cases of narcolepsy;
· Reducing painful night-time leg cramps;
· Improving memory;
· Stimulating natural growth hormones;
· Reducing drug and alcohol withdrawal symptoms;
· Decreasing learning and hyperactivity disabilities in children;
· Relieving anxiety;
· Lowering cholesterol.
It also has notable antidepressant abilities, greatly enhances the desire for and enjoyment of human contact, and as we have mentioned, often improves sex.
For the thirty years prior to 1990, the scientific papers on GHB were unanimous in reporting numerous beneficial physiological effects and the absence of long-term negative effects. In 1964, Laborit listed "very low toxicity" as one of the "principle elements" of the compound's pharmacology. Moreover, GHB demonstrates no toxic effects on the liver and kidneys. In 1972, Laborit described the body's metabolism of GHB and stressed "the absence of any need of detoxification by the organism." As recently as 1989, this scientific consensus on GHB's benign nature remained unchanged.
Then, on November 8th, 1990, in the USA the Food and Drug Administration banned the over-the-counter sale of GHB. In 1991, two scientists from the California Department of Health Services, Drs Chin and Kreutzer, wrote a report on ten "poisonings" associated with GHB. Of the ten "poisonings" reported:
· Four involved "unknown doses,"
· Four featured the simultaneous ingestion of other drugs (usually alcohol),
· One involved epilepsy for which no medication was being taken, and
· One involved a history of grand mal seizures.
Since alcohol and other central nervous system (CNS) depressants are not recommended with GHB, and because GHB is contraindicated for epileptics, such cases are not unexpected. In their report, Chin and Kreutzer do acknowledge that the "more severe reactions...generally occurred when patients took an unmeasured dose, a particularly large dose, or several doses within a short period of time." Such problems are easily avoided by following the directions for GHB's use.
It is noteworthy that despite a seemingly negative bias, the report acknowledged that there were no documented reports of long-term detrimental effects. Nor does the report indicate that there is any evidence for physiological addiction. The authors state in their report: "No investigator [has] reported any long-term adverse effects, addictive or dependent qualities associated with discontinued usage of the drug."
The report by Chin and Kreutzer did indeed warn of GHB's "tremendous potential for abuse". The authors observe that " . . . all interviewed patients reported a pleasurable sensation or a 'high.' Several of them...continued taking [GHB] because it made them 'feel good'." Apparently, Chin and Kreutzer are of the opinion that simply feeling good is a potential threat to public health and that the use of a substance simply for the purpose of feeling good, amounts to an abuse of that substance!
[This message has been edited by blufluffybunny (edited 07 July 2001).]
PWOOR... I wrote THAT long before I tried it.