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 veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 5,795
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 'Robotripping' is on the rise
#6333920 - 12/04/06 06:52 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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'Robotripping' is on the rise
December 4, 2006 - LA Times
16-year-old Lucia Martino
died from liver failure after
she ingested 20 OTC
cough-suppressant pills.
Teen use of over-the-counter cold and cough medicines to get a cheap high — a practice known as "robotripping" — is rising 50% a year and becoming one of the fastest growing drug abuse problems in California and around the country, according to a study released today.
Since 1999, teen abuse of Coricidin pills, Robutussin syrup and other common medications has risen tenfold, data from the California Poison Control System show. The widely available and inexpensive medicines are growing in popularity while use of illegal drugs such as Ecstasy, LSD and the date rape drug GHB have dropped, according to the report.
"Hey, Mom and Dad, pay attention," said Marilyn MacDougall, executive director of the Orange County Sheriff Department's drug abuse prevention program. "Over-the-counter medicines are the upcoming way your kids are going to abuse drugs."
The cold remedies are valued for an ingredient called dextromethorphan, which can cause hallucinations, out-of-body experiences and, in extreme cases, death. The drug, known by kids as DXM or Dex, was first abused in the 1960s when it was in a cough medicine called Romilar, which was withdrawn from the market in 1973.
Health officials spotted a revival in the late 1990s. About two-thirds of abusers now take Coricidin HBP Cold & Cough, whose candy red tablets are nicknamed CCC, triple C and skittles.
A study in May by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America estimated that 2.4 million teenagers — about 1 in 10 — got high on cough medicines in 2005. That puts it on a par with cocaine and slightly above methamphetamines.
School administrators are learning about the craze the hard way. In El Dorado, a community of apple orchards and Christmas tree farms outside Sacramento, seven high school students were rushed to the emergency room in October after taking Coricidin. The Union Mine High School students had purchased several boxes at a dollar store and swallowed five to eight tablets each during their morning snack time. Administrators learned about it after one student started vomiting in class.
"This is new to us — it caught a lot of people by surprise," said Principal Carl Fickle. "It didn't catch the kids by surprise."
The latest study, published in the December issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, found that the growth of dextromethorphan abuse is being driven by children between the ages of 9 and 17.
Abuse is most common among 15- and 16-year-olds, the study found. The number of 12- and 13-year-olds using the drug exceeds the number of 18-year-olds, indicating that it is popular in middle schools as well as high schools, according to senior author Ilene B. Anderson, a toxicology management specialist at the California Poison Control System in San Francisco.
"I did not expect 12-year-olds to be abusing it," Anderson said.
The study was based on 1,382 calls made to the California Poison Control Center over a six-year period that involved cases of dextromethorphan exposure. Those calls were generally made in emergency situations, usually by physicians treating overdose patients in hospitals. They represent only a fraction of overall drug use, Anderson said.
"If someone is abusing dextro and gets a high, they don't call us," she said. "I think it is grossly underreported."
Of the cases reported to the state poison control center, seven — amounting to 0.5% of the total — were life-threatening. None resulted in death, according to the study. The number of deaths nationwide is unknown.
The researchers compared the California findings to general statistics from the American Assn. of Poison Control Centers and the Drug Abuse Warning Network and found that the trends here are in line with the rest of the country.
Dextromethorphan appeals to teenagers because it "is easily and legally available in most pharmacies and large grocery stores," Anderson said. "It's relatively inexpensive — in many cases, one package can cause hallucinations."
Websites offer testimonials about the buzz the drug provides. Some users describe it as "slightly intoxicating," while others compare their experiences to the hallucinatory effects of ketamine or PCP.
Dextromethorphan users can consult online calculators — where they enter their weight, brand of medicine and "plateau" of high they want to achieve — to determine how big a dose to take.
Because the cough remedies look innocuous, Anderson said, "you can have a package and your parents would never even suspect it, compared to a little white bag of powder which certainly would cause a red flag to go up."
When taken in large quantities, dextromethorphan can make the heart race and blood pressure rise. Some users become agitated while others become lethargic, confused, dizzy or act as if they are inebriated. Life-threatening side-effects include seizures and elevated body temperature, Anderson said.
Users can also have adverse reactions from overdosing on other ingredients in the cold remedies. High quantities of pseudoephedrine and antihistamines can cause irregular heartbeats, high blood pressure and seizures, Anderson said.
"The one that scares me the most is acetaminophen [the medicine in Tylenol] because it can cause liver failure," she said.
State lawmakers in California and elsewhere have tried to ban sales to minors of the hundreds of products that contain dextromethorphan, but those efforts have failed. Some drug stores, including Walgreen's, Rite Aid and Wal-Mart, have voluntarily restricted access to customers younger than 18.
U.S. consumers spent about $4.5 billion on cold and cough remedies last year, according to the Consumer Healthcare Products Assn., a trade group representing manufacturers of over-the-counter medicines. The group is pushing federal legislation to ban online sales of pure dextromethorphan in powdered form and is working to shut down websites promoting the drug's recreational use, said President Linda Suydam.
Federal legislation that would restrict the sale of dextromethorphan powder to researchers, drug makers and other legitimate users is expected to be voted on this week by the House of Representatives. The legislative effort was prompted by the overdose deaths last year of five teenagers in Florida, Washington and Virginia.
Teens are continuing to die from the habit, including 16-year-old Lucia Martino, a junior at Canyon High School in Anaheim.
In September, the gregarious soccer player swallowed 20 Coricidin pills in pursuit of a cheap high while the rest of her family slept. Her mother found her vomiting the next morning and took her to the emergency room.
Doctors were baffled by her malfunctioning liver and struggled to pinpoint the cause. Four days later, after Lucia had fallen into a coma, a friend pulled a nurse aside and told her about the pills.
It was too late. Martino died less than a day later, on Sept. 17. At the funeral, her parents left the casket open so the hundreds of teens in attendance could see how the pills had swelled Lucia's athletic, 125-pound frame to a bloated 170 pounds.
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 Dihnekis
Stranger
Registered: 07/11/06
Posts: 906
Last seen: 2 months, 19 days
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: veggie]
#6334155 - 12/04/06 07:54 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Know what you are putting into your body before you put it in and shit like that won't happen.
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Jorsher
Psychonaut
Registered: 08/28/06
Posts: 690
Loc: Earth
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: veggie]
#6334163 - 12/04/06 07:55 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Well, put on the labels NOT to try and trip on products containing acetameniphen (sp?). I've robotripped plenty of times with no problems because I was EDUCATED on what I should and shouldn't consume. You can't get rid of drugs, educate.
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5 shroom me!
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cube428
Stranger
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: veggie]
#6334196 - 12/04/06 08:06 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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certainly a sad sad situation to say the Least, Ive done it but never 20 at 1 time- thats extreme imo for CCC
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ivyexex
Registered: 12/01/06
Posts: 28
Last seen: 10 months, 8 days
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: cube428]
#6334328 - 12/04/06 08:45 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Ive robotriped a few times it is a horrible experience that i hate from now on i stick to only natural psychoactives
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SCleROTiUM_LICK
ResearchedFiction Writer
Registered: 11/08/06
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: cube428]
#6334340 - 12/04/06 08:49 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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"At the funeral, her parents left the casket open so the hundreds of teens in attendance could see how the pills had swelled Lucia's athletic, 125-pound frame to a bloated 170 pounds."
I can see someone maybe making that decision. But, I can't see someone admitting to that type of reasoning and bragging to the press.
My God, a funeral should be a personal memorial, not a public service announcement.
With parents so concerned with doing the right thing that they blatantly forfeit their last chance to show respect for their own child, maybe the overdose was intentional.
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DNKYD
Turtle!
Registered: 09/23/04
Posts: 10,431
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: veggie]
#6334398 - 12/04/06 09:03 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Any kid, or adult for that matter, that uses CCC for robotripping deserves to have their liver fail. Fucking morons. It's too bad. That chick was cute.
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DAVID_ALLAN_CEO
Resident Gambler
Registered: 10/29/06
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: DNKYD]
#6334468 - 12/04/06 09:21 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
DNKYD said:
Any kid, or adult for that matter, that uses CCC for robotripping deserves to have their liver fail. Fucking morons. It's too bad. That chick was cute.
i would say u are right, but it is a travesity when they re cute...  cute people should live on
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thedudenj
Sra_Sephiroth0
Registered: 08/18/04
Posts: 7,776
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yeah sad i had 20 gels the other night a kid tossed me a bottle and was like here and i was like no shit awsome! yeah its important to have a properly functioning liver enzyme. and to agent lemon extract that shit
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""You all are just puppets... You have no heart...and cannot feel any pain...""
you may think thats pain you feel but you must have a heart to feel true pain and that pain wont be yours
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Jorsher
Psychonaut
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: thedudenj]
#6334759 - 12/04/06 10:59 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Actually, if any of you are set on going on a dxm trip, just get "robotussin maximum strength." Don't have to do any agent lemon extraction, just drink it. Drink water though because it's dxm hbr which is a salt. It's only active ingredient is dxm.
Personally I hate it because of the after effects.
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5 shroom me!
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Viveka
Architecturer
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: veggie]
#6334832 - 12/04/06 11:29 PM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Coricidin
WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH THESE PEOPLE?
When I was robotrippin back in high school I knew Coricidin was not a good way to get there. How? A little basic research. This was when erowid was just starting out and we hadn't started to hear about "CCC's" killing people yet. I guess that particular antihistamine (Chlorpheniramine Maleate) is just nasty shit.
Notice the article makes no mention of the dxm-anticholinergenic combo and this is where people get into danger. That's a dangerous mix even when done properly. But the article makes it seem as if DXM is the sole issue. Or god forbid, acetaminophen! (not that it isn't toxic to the liver).
With the ease of research these days, there's just no excuse for making a mistake like this. Lucia Martino may be cute, but she wasn't too smart.
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Throw out your gold teeth and see how they roll
The answer they reveal - life is unreal
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Anarchyz0r
Indented BrokenAttitude
Registered: 02/22/06
Posts: 638
Loc: Wrong Side of the Prism
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Viveka]
#6335000 - 12/05/06 12:39 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
Viveka said:
Lucia Martino may be cute, but she wasn't too smart.
neither were her parents 
what bastards
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Seuss
Error: divide byzero
Registered: 04/27/01
Posts: 15,485
Loc: Caribbean
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Anarchyz0r]
#6335288 - 12/05/06 02:45 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Based upon the media attention lately, I would guess that Salvia and DXM are the next two targets on the DXM "bad as crack" list.
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Just another spore in the wind.
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beatnicknick
The Innovator
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Seuss]
#6335403 - 12/05/06 05:24 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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And lucky for us they're pretty much some of the worse (fun wise) drugs you can do. Tell you what government, we'll make a deal, you take DXM, Salvia, and Datura and we get LSD, Mushrooms, and Weed. Deal.
What? No deal? Ok fine, take alcohol and cigarrettes too, j
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"News should be fair, not balanced."
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Seuss
Error: divide byzero
Registered: 04/27/01
Posts: 15,485
Loc: Caribbean
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: beatnicknick]
#6335411 - 12/05/06 05:30 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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> And lucky for us
There is nothing lucky at all about the government spreading misinformation or regulating what I can or cannot do with my own body. Like the drug or not, it is not the place of the government to dictate what I can do with my body or enforce moral values upon me.
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Just another spore in the wind.
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Booming
n00b psybot
Registered: 10/05/06
Posts: 71
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Seuss]
#6335534 - 12/05/06 07:13 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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just cause this girl was robotripping does not mean that she was stupid. she just made a poor decision. she should've read about the drug before actually ingesting it. i used to take 20 of the Robo cough gels that had 15mg DMX Hbr and i weigh 210 lbs... that's a bit extreme for someone who weighs 125 (assuming she took the same thing). i personally do not do it any more, but we really need to educate people on drugs and this shit will likely not happen.
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Pigsarefood
Entrepreneur
Registered: 06/11/06
Posts: 205
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Booming]
#6335667 - 12/05/06 08:38 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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its sad that the girl died, but any drug can potentially be dangerous if you dont know what your doing. Especially somthing like DXM, you cant just say "oh hey ill just down that bottle and see what happens!".
Drugs dont kill people, Stupid people doing them do.
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"All mushrooms are edible; but some only once." ~Croatian proverb
^^
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Pigsarefood
Entrepreneur
Registered: 06/11/06
Posts: 205
Loc: Emerald City
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Seuss]
#6335674 - 12/05/06 08:40 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
Seuss said:
> And lucky for us
There is nothing lucky at all about the government spreading misinformation or regulating what I can or cannot do with my own body. Like the drug or not, it is not the place of the government to dictate what I can do with my body or enforce moral values upon me.
If I want to sit in my basement and smoke a blunt, then continue to watch tv, eat food and sleep - please tell me, who am I hurting?
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"All mushrooms are edible; but some only once." ~Croatian proverb
^^
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Koala Koolio
TTAGGGTTAGGGTTAGGGTTAGGG
Registered: 01/07/04
Posts: 7,727
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Pigsarefood]
#6335927 - 12/05/06 10:19 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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No one. But it'd be nice if you contributed more to society than that. :P
Not only for the sake of society, but the stoner image. 
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You're not like the others. You like the same things I do. Wax paper, boiled football leather... dog breath. We're not hitch-hiking anymore, we're riding!
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RoosterCogburn
Fearless,one-eyed U.S.Marshall
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Re: 'Robotripping' is on the rise [Re: Koala Koolio]
#6335957 - 12/05/06 10:32 AM (1 year, 8 months ago) |
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I wish they would just let these fuckin kids smoke some good ole fashioned, tried and true Cali weed. Just educate them, and explain the PRO/CON game...
I think when you have kids drinking bottles of cough syrup and snorting crazy shit and huffing scotchgaurd, it's time to just admit they want to get high, and give them something NATURAL that HAS NEVER KILLED A SINGLE PERSON.
Imagine every highschool kid getting a little glass bowl and a nice sack of cali nug...
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MEET BOB
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