What are bath salts?

Bath Salts is the name for a new synthetic drug that can be purchased at some convenience stores, novelty shops throughout the state.

The active ingredients in bath salts are usually MDPV and mephedrone, although there are other unknown ingredients that can be found in the bath salts. Although there was a recent federal ban on bath salts, MDPV, and mephedrone invoked in September 2011, users were able to hoard the bath salts and the base ingredients while it was still legal. There are reports that the bath salts can be created in labs similar to the meth labs used to make crystal meth. 

There are literally dozens of brand names (Vanilla Sky, Ivory Wave, Lady Bubbles, etc.), but the drug can also be referred to as any of the following:

• Water Softener

• Plant Food

• Stain Remover

• Party Powder

Bath salts are a white or light brown powder that comes in small containers ranging from 250mg to 1000mg. Prices generally range from $30 to $90.

Bath Salts can be taken many different ways, including:

• Snorted

• Smoked

• Injected

• Swallowed

Bath Salts act as a stimulant on the body and is considered to be a combination of a synthetic cocaine and/or meth-amphetamine and can cause:

• Hallucinations

• Severe anxiety and paranoid behaviors (including the feeling that the person is being watched or followed)

• Agitation and violent behaviors (sometimes, people using have increased strength and increased startle response)

• Suicidal and/or homicidal thoughts

• Dilated pupils (most stimulants tend to cause dilated pupils) 

• Increased sweating 

• Nausea and Vomiting

• Increased heart rate

• Shortness of breath

• Chest pains 

  Bath salts are dangerous!

  • It is very easy to overdose on bath salts.  

    Since there is no set method on making the bath salts, no two batches are exactly the same. Even if the person buys the same brand or type, there is no guarantee that it was made in the same way or even has the same ingredients. 

  • Users can experience hallucinations and paranoid/violent behaviors while on bath salts. Even after a person has stopped using, these paranoid behaviors and hallucinations can return as a flashback.

  • Users can stay awake for three to seven days without any sleep 

     

  Bath salts in West Virginia and Clarksburg

  • Drugs that contain MDPV or mephedrone are illegal in West Virginia, although it is still easily available. People often go on trips to Ohio or Pennsylavania to get large amounts of the bath salts to bring back to West Virginia to sell. 

  • Some of the newer forms of bath salts do not contain MDPV or mephedrone, but are just as dangerous. These were designed to bypass the new wording of House Bill 2505 that made bath salts, MDPV, and mephedrone illegal. 

  • The WV Poison Control Center has had over 135 calls about bath salts usage in 2011.

  • United Summit Center averages about 20 crisis phone crisis phone calls and 2-4 commitments per week for bath salts

   

  What to do if  someone you know is using bath salts

  • Call 911 immediately. Let them know that the person is using bath salts.  

  • Get the user to a safe location and try to keep them calm   

  • Keep the user away from any weapons such as knives or guns  

   

• If you need help with bath salts or anyother drug use:

  Call United Summit Center at 1-800-SUMMIT-0 to arrange a confidential meeting to discuss appropriate treatment options.