NEW DRUG, OLD FEARS

When Laurie Legault first saw the sign claiming datura for sale, his mind
went back to an ill-fated trip to India.

The chartered herbalist has made a half-dozen trips to India and Tibet, and
first learned about datura from the sadhus, the holy men of India. The
plant datura has been used for centuries for religious purposes, but
recently the hallucinogen has gained notoriety in Western culture as a
recreational drug.

When Legault's friend tried the drug during the trip to India last year,
the results were frightening.

"He went crazy," Legault recalls. "He started walking barefoot and giving
his money away, walking around in robes and a staff saying he was Jesus."
Legault soon found out how destructive datura can be. The psychotic state
can last for as long as three years, and Legault had to take his friend
first to the Tibetan Mental Health Society and then to a mental institution
in Switzerland, where he remains.

So when Legault recently saw a sign at a Nanaimo nursery stating "Datura -
you want 'em, we've got 'em," alarm bells sounded for the herbalist. Datura
is indeed a plant widely used by gardeners due to the flowers that appear
like oversized petunias. It is part of the nightshade family that
encompasses over 1,600 species, including everything from sweet potatoes to
horse nettle. Datura goes by a variety of names, including the common North
American name of jimsonweed.

Legault noticed two young people who saw the sign at the nursery and were
interested in it, clearly aware of the narcotic nature of the plant. "I
remembered the young people in India and got scared for them," he says. His
fears aren't unfounded. The drug is catching on with the younger
generation. Several instances of abuse have been reported this summer,
including a dozen teenagers sent to hospital in Kamloops recently for
eating 'moonflower,' another member of the nightshade family.

Legault is a student of the Global College of Legalized Chinese Medicine
and Culture, and isn't passing judgment - he simply wants to ensure people
know how dangerous these plants can be.

The leaves, stems, roots and fruit of datura contain tropane alkaloids,
which affect the central nervous system. Depending on the dosage, the
alkaloids can result in extreme hallucinations, delirium and even death.
Legault says India is filled with Westerners who are in a schizophrenic
state as a result of using datura and are considered insane by the locals,
unable to to return home as a result.

Legault has created a fund through the Tibetan Mental Health Society to
help these people return home.

But he's also worried about the local effect.

"I find it hard to believe things like marijuana are illegal and datura is
for sale," he says.

Regional health officer Brian Emerson was unaware of datura or the risks;
however, he says health inspectors will examine the sale at the Nanaimo
nursery to see if the plant appears to be for sale for an inappropriate use.