Keywords: Edibles, Alomo bitters, paraga, SK, monkey tail, gutter water, alcohol, ethanol, cannabis, colos, rohypnol, Arizona, agbo, nitrous oxide, laughing gas, item seven, agbo.
Introduction.
“Edibles” In Parties? What types of edibles and none edibles are found in modern day parties? Can these edibles be found at other points in the society? What mental health complications do these edibles and none edibles pose to the users?
If you attend certain parties put together by young people, as a stranger, you should be prepared for shock waves. This is not just about the loud music, but about what is served as food, drinks, etc. i.e. edibles in parties.
A typical party scenario:
Let us take a look at recent typical party scenario. You decided to tag along with an acquaintance of yours to his friend’s birthday party. And as you enter the party hall, you will see strategically positioned, certain leaves, small wrapping papers and a lighter. Then at another corner, are inflated balloons.
The party begins –
To your amazement, some people as they enter, they collect some leaves, wrap them and begin to smoke. You later learn that the dried leaves are cannabis or Indian hemp. Some people are calling it colos, whatever that means. But these doesn’t bother you, because you don’t smoke and have never smokes any substance in your life. Of course, the music is good, so you decide to enjoy yourself. As a strong willed person, no one can force you to smoke.
Item seven (eating time) –
Then after the cutting of the cake by the celebrant, you happily await the serving of the delicious looking cake. Being served along with this chocolate cake, were some brown cookies and they all look delicious.
And you are given a small saucer to place what you have picked into. So you collect two pieces of cake and three brown cookies. That didn’t seem like too much, because others took more.
As you munched on the cake and cookies, you felt somehow in your head, but you waved it off. Then comes the almighty party jallof rice, smelling so good with well spiced turkey wings. You collect your share and you start to eat. As you ate, you don’t feel so well any more.
But you notice some people being handed the balloons at the corner. And when they are given an inflated balloon, they put it into their mouths and suck in the air. Next thing is that they begin to behave funny and laughing.
You don’t understand what was going on. And besides, you aren’t feeling well any more. So you are served a glass of drink and you quickly took it, thinking that it would sooth your feelings.
The party ends for you –
And that is all you can remember. Next thing was that you woke up in a hospital surrounded by some members of your family.
What types of edibles and none edibles are found in modern day parties?
Attending parties organized by young people in this present time, one can find some bizarre drinks and foods. These young people include teenagers and young adults.
Drinks:
Alcohol mix –
As at 2018, the online Newspaper Businessday NG reported the new wave of drugs being abused in Nigeria. They include lipton soaked with regal gin, hypo (bleech) in lacasera, tom tom in lacasera, rephynol, etc. There are methylated spirit in coke, dry plantain leaves, cannabis (marijuana) in regal gin, etc.
Popular among young students, are local bitters drinks and other bitters solutions. In these local bitter there are no herbs, only harmful toxic chemicals.
Another popular drink is the monkey tail, also known as paraga or Nokia. This is a drink made from local liquor called Ogogoro mixed with cannabis. Sometimes, the alcohol used is ethanol.
This drink contains very heavy metals such as lead, etc. The drink can be spiced up with other ingredients. These include spirits, dessert wine, Ribena, slices of fruit and stout or palm-wine. Sweeteners are also added to mask the taste of marijuana. Some people may add sedatives drugs like barbiturates.
Also popular is the drink called gutter water. It is made from a mix of substances like tramadol, cannabis, codeine and vodka.
None alcohol mix –
But then sometimes, cannabis is just soaked in water and drank like that. This is called cannabis water or skushi. They can be found in parties and clubs.
Some people serve canamilk. This is milk infused with plain cannabis or SK. There is a brand product of cannabis called SK. It is cannabis mixed with cocaine.
These drinks are easily served in many parties organized by young people in Nigeria. And for the unsuspecting, they get affected negatively.
Foods (edibles in parties):
Pastries –
Cookies and cakes are baked with weed known as Arizona. This type of weed is more active or stronger than the easily of common form of cannabis. Other ingredients used to bakes these pastries are rohypnol and alcohol. It is important to know that rohynol is a very strong sleeping or sedative drug, used often for date rape.
These cookies and cakes also called brownies are easily found in supermarkets, so they find their way into parties. Even some makers or bakers make use of dispatch riders to supply their customers. Orders can be made online from WhatsApp, Instagram, etc. And the doses or amounts of the different substances used are not easily quantified, due to their different makes. Some bakers add very large amounts which they themselves do not know the doses.
In meals –
Cannabis is also used by some people to cook jallof rice, especially the famous Nigerian party rice. And can be used to cook porridge yam, unripe plantain, etc.
It is also used to make all sorts of soups, including melon or egusi soup and ogbono soup.
None edibles:
It is important to note that the abused substance known as colos, is really not natural cannabis, but synthetic cannabis. Colos is made by spraying chemicals on dried leaves. These chemicals are made to give the effects or resemble tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). This is the active ingredient in natural cannabis or Indian hemp.
These chemical compositions in colos are unknown, because manufacturers keep changing them. And they are more potent than natural cannabis. For this reason, colos are smoked in small bits. One puff is enough to get the person high. Sometimes, the colo leaves are mixed with natural cannabis so as to reduce the effects.
Then there is the gas inhaled from balloons at parties, which is nitrous oxide. These balloons containing nitrous oxide are usually handed out to people at parties and are inhaled. It is called laughing gas because it can predispose the person to giggling and laughing for no reason.
Can these edibles be found at other points in the society?
These edibles and drinks are unfortunately being sold in secondary schools and on the streets. This makes them accessible to people of all ages.
On the streets these drinks are sold and they have their local names. These local name include, qurantanshi, or aleko, Afa-too, sepe, paraga, opa eyin, etc, depending on the part of the country one is from. They are all sold as agbo (herbal medicine)
These substances are also abused by older men and women (housewives) who use them to enhance performance in bed. Some of these substances are infused into street drinks called zobo and sold to unsuspecting customers.
What mental health complications do these edibles pose to the users?
These edibles, none edibles and drinks have some containing toxic chemicals, so they can damage the brain and other organs. Natural cannabis when taken orally, gets first to the liver, where the THC is transformed into a more active ingredient.
Mental and neurological issues:
The alcohol, cannabis and other substances present can predispose to mental and neurological health conditions. And they include depression, anxiety, bipolar disorders, schizophrenia, anger issues convulsions, dementia, etc. and death.
Many of the children will have conduct disorders and later develop personality disorders such as narcissistic and dissocial personality disorders.
Cognitive issues:
Most people who engage in the abuse of substances, usually drop out of school. And for those who still remain in school, their grades get bad, because they are unable to carry out mental tasks. These substances can cause poor judgment, poor memory and disorientation.
Social and economic issues:
Such people are have difficulty in making friends that are not in their substance abuse group. So they end up having marital issues with intimate partner violence. They also don’t parent well and their children end up being delinquent.
Many will go into cults and armed robbery, insurgencies and other forms of social vices.
Most cannot hold on to good jobs and many are unemployed or under employed.
So, any society with many of its young people hooked or dependent on drugs, have a bleak future.
“Edibles” In Parties? Share to friends.