A number of years ago, synthetic drugs sold under a variety of names at local gas stations were outlawed in Tennessee. Much of the push to outlaw such items that were labeled as “Incense” or “Bath Salts” came from Rutherford County State Representative Mike Sparks, who lives in Smyrna, Tennessee.
State Representative Sparks knows the problem exists better than most, which is one reason he is so tough of synthetics. Sparks opened up to multiple media outlets in 2012 confirming that synthetics have been a problem in his family noting that one of his sons, 19 at the time, started using synthetics and it almost ruined his sons life.
Despite his efforts to see the drugs outlawed, they are still widely available today. However, they are not openly sold in gas stations and convenient stores. Instead, they are sold on the streets or in some cases, behind the counter at certain stores.
Today, the synthetic drugs that are often called “Fake Weed” are much more dangerous and potent than they originally were.
A woman named Nikki who has been clean from synthetics for about 4 weeks said the drug is a tough habit to break (8 MIN and 45 SEC) below….
A former user of fake weed in Murfreesboro by the name of Michael said that some convenient stores in Nashville will let you trade a food stamp card for synthetics that are sold behind the counter. Listen to what he says (3 MIN and 8 SEC) below…
Unlike real marijuana, withdrawals from synthetic weed include not only the inability to control bodily functions, but also dehydration caused by sweating profusely with the users core body temperature increasing greatly which can lead to kidney and liver failure.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse claims that synthetic forms of marijuana are the second most widely used drugs among high school students. The number one most used drug is real marijuana.