The K2 Sales Pitch: “Do Not Consume”

I’m curious how much effect this warning line, from the Internet site K2Incense.org, is going to have on teens and young adults who’re looking for a marijuana-like high: “Warning: K2 Incense is sold for INCENSE purposes only and under no circumstances should it be consumed! We do not sell to anyone under the age of 18.” If it doesn’t get their attention, perhaps Missouri’s current push to outlaw K2 will.

My guess – based on young boys who regularly consume all sorts of “forbidden” stuff like dirt, sugar straight from the bag, boogers and toothpaste – is that older kids are just as likely to discount parental advice and give it a try. In the case of K2, though, as a Saint Louis University toxicologist warns, the results go beyond “yuck” and could include hallucinations, severe agitation, elevated heart rate and blood pressure, vomiting or seizures. During February, according to a press release from SLU, toxicology professor Dr. Anthony Scalzo saw almost 30 cases of teens experiencing those symptoms from smoking K2, aka “fake weed.” Scalzo also directs the Missouri Regional Poison Control Center at SSM Cardinal Glennon Children’s Medical Center.

K2 is a brand name for an herbal blend that’s sprayed with synthetic cannabinoids. One of those is usually JWH 018, a man-made drug similar to cannabis, but there is currently no regulation of the incense – it’s completely legal except in Kansas, the only state where it’s been outlawed, and in some counties, including St. Charles. You can buy it over the Internet for approximately the same price as real marijuana would sell for on the street, according to SLU.

Yesterday the Missouri House took a first step toward criminalizing possession of the chemicals in K2, as this article from the St. Louis Beacon explains. The Senate is considering a similar bill. It's already banned by in many countries, including Germany, Great Britain, Poland, France, South Korea and Russia, as an op/ed on CNN.com reports.

Parents who’re concerned about the drug should watch their teens for signs of hallucinations, paleness, agitation or confusion. And keep an eye out for incense in their rooms or arriving in the mail. As K2Incense.org points out, it will be packaged in unmarked mailers.