NRP TO PARENTS: IT'S HERE IN NOTL

Parents of Niagara-on-the-lake teenagers need to pay attention to news of a
"leafy substance" being sold at convenience stores that provides a
dangerous hallucinogenic experience that has been described as a "hundred
times stronger than acid."

The Niagara Regional Police are just beginning to learn about salvia
divinorum, which can be purchased for about $30 from a convenience store,
says Sgt. Edd Typer of the NRP.

As the community policing representative, Typer has spoken to Mike Cockburn
of Niagara District Secondary School about the substance, and the principal
also has concerns about its use.

After the semi-formal dance organized by the NDSS student council before
March break, which was held without incident, police were called to a
private house party, and a 15-year-old girl was rushed to the hospital
suffering from an overdose, first believed to be alcohol.

It turned out, said Typer, that she was suffering from the effects of
Salvia divinorum, a psychoactive plant grown in the Mazatec region in
Mexico, and sold locally in one-gram packages. Fortunately she has
recovered, he said, but parents need to be aware of the effects of the
over-the-counter product.

Smoking the herb-like plant in a pipe seems to be the most common way to
use it, although it can apparently be ingested as well, he said. It is
distributed by Ecstacy Inc., a company in Beverly Hills, Calif., and it
boasts on the package that it is "probably the most potent, highest quality
standardized Salvia d. extract you will ever find."

It doesn't say on the package what it is intended for, and there doesn't
seem to be a legitimate use for it, said Typer, but it is perfectly legal.
It is controlled in a few countries, but not in Canada.

There are Internet warnings about the "rough experience" the drug provides,
including "out of body experiences," and also cautions not to use it alone
or to drive a car.

"We don't know too much about it at this stage," says Typer, "but we know
it's here, it's easy to obtain, and it's dangerous. There is no doubt that
the kids know about it, so we believe it's important for parents to become
knowledgeable about it as well."

A group of concerned parents and the principal at NDSS are discussing
forming a group to look at the use of drugs by high school students, he said.

"We as a police department have serious concern because it's so easy to
obtain, and at this stage people don't realize the ramifications from its use."