TEENS OVERDOSE ON JIMSON WEED

Plant Blamed For Two Deaths

TORONTO -- Police in Niagara region are warning parents to speak with
their children about the dangers of trying jimson weed after three
teens ingested the poisonous plant and had to be rushed to hospital.

Police have not been able to speak with the three boys, aged 14 to
17, who remain in critical but stable condition, after arriving in a
Hamilton hospital early Sunday morning, in "unresponsive and
incoherent states."

Also known as Datura, thorn apple, stinkweed or angel's trumpet,
jimson weed is popular among teenagers for its easy access and has
been linked to at least two deaths and dozens of overdoses across
Canada in recent years.

"Its toxicity is such that even low amounts are very, very
dangerous," said Sgt. Steve Scriven of Niagara Regional Police. "It
is not something people get addicted to or even usually try more than
once because there is no pleasure in it."

A member of the nightshade family, jimson weed interferes with one of
the main neurotransmitters in the brain and can cause delirium,
violent hallucinations, seizures, respiratory problems and even death.

Most overdose cases are reported in the fall because that is when the
seeds are most easily accessible. Several police forces report
instances of teenagers taking the drug by mixing it with food,
smoking the seeds, or soaking seeds in water to make tea.

"It is not a controlled substance," said Scriven. "If it were, anyone
who had it in their yard could be charged with possession."

British Columbia's interior coroner said jimson weed was a
contributing factor in the death of an 18-year old Okanagan man in
2006. A St. Catharine's, Ont., man also died after ingesting seeds in 2000.

Last year, following reports of several overdoses in Penticton, B.C.,
the local school board started an awareness campaign asking residents
to cut the weed down if they found it in their yard. Students also
wrote letters to local nurseries asking the seeds not be sold.

Margaret Thompson, medical director of the Ontario Poison Centre in
Toronto, said it is hard to get a good estimate on the number of
jimson weed emergency cases each year because doctors are not under
any obligation to report overdoses.