GAA warns of dangers of 'legal' drugs

Parents and the public need to be made aware of the dangers associated with the use of a new wave of "legal" drugs which are widely available over the counter in the Republic.

This is according to the GAA's national co-ordinator for alcohol and substance abuse prevention, Brendan Murphy, who says that "just because these products are legal certainly does not mean they are harmless".

He says these drugs, which are mainly plant based, have been available over the internet for the past few years but they are now on sale in many "head shops" in Ireland where a variety of drug paraphernalia such as cannabis pipes can be purchased. They are also available in some sex shops, he says.

The most popular of these "legal" drugs in Ireland are Salvia, Hawaiian baby woodrose and Benzylpiperazine, which is known as BZP.

With the current media spotlight firmly placed on Ireland's cocaine abuse problem over the past two weeks due to the tragic deaths of two young men in Waterford and the model Katy French, Mr Murphy highlights the need for people to be more vigilant in their use of what they assume to be safer, legal drugs.

"It looks like there are changes in the pipeline, for BZP in particular, in the EU.

"It is one of the drugs the EU addressed in July of this year and it will shortly become a controlled drug.

"The others will probably follow in the future, but it takes time for the EU to implement recommendations banning drugs so there is an even greater onus on parents and the general public to be vigilant," he says.

Mr Murphy points out that it took many years of talking about making magic mushrooms a controlled drug before it finally happened last year.

"It's worrying because there is no quality control or legislation to say what's actually in these products. Just because they are legal certainly doesn't make them safe.

"These are all different substances and they have different risks associated with them. Some are stimulants and some are hallucinogenic and people need to be aware of this."

Salvia comes from the plant Salvia Divinorim and is also known as Eclipse and Diviner's Sage. It has a long history of use in religious ceremonies by the Mazatec Indians in Mexico.

Its use in Ireland has grown over the past few years as it is being sold via the internet and through "head shops" as a legal product.

Salvia is a powerful, short-acting hallucinogen that is most commonly smoked in a pipe as a dried herb.

BZP is said to have a similar effect to ecstasy and is also known as Legal E and Pep Pills. It is swallowed in pill or tablet form.

As the use of this drug is relatively new, there is very little reliable information available on the long-term use of benzylpiperazine in its current form.

Hawaiian baby woodrose, made from the seed of the Baby Woodrose plant, is also known as Morning Glory and Legal Acid. It has a long history of use in religious ceremonies in Hawaii and parts of South America. Hawaiian baby woodrose is a powerful hallucinogen said to be similar to LSD.

A former regional drugs training officer in the HSE West, Mr Murphy says the GAA hopes to eventually have alcohol and substance abuse officers in place in every club in the State as part of a national programme to tackle substance abuse and alcoholism.

There are four provincial officers and 20 county officers in place and training programmes are being rolled out by the GAA as officers are appointed.