A Delaware senator praised pending legislation proposing a nationwide ban on "bath salts," a dangerous synthetic drug that's on the rise in the United States and might have led to the recent attack in Miami where a man allegedly ate off 80 percent of a homeless man's face.
"Dangerous drugs like bath salts are terrorizing our communities and destroying lives," Democratic Sen. Chris Coons said in a statement Monday. "Stricter measures must be taken to stem the growing prevalence of bath salts and other new designer drugs."
The number of calls to poison centers concerning "bath salts" rose 6,138 in 2011 from 304 in 2010, according to the American Association of Poison Control Centers. More than 1,000 calls have been made so far this year.
These so-called bath salts, not to be confused with cleansing products, are an inexpensive, synthetic, super-charged form of speed. The drug consists of a potpourri of constantly changing chemicals, three of which -- mephedrone, MDPV and methylone -- were banned last year by the US Drug Enforcement Agency.
Bath salts are still easily available online, though, and come in brand names such as "Purple Wave," "Zoom" or "Cloud Nine." A 50-milligram packet sells for $25 to $50.
The drugs create a condition police have come to call an "excited delirium" that makes users paranoid, violent and unpredictable. Miami police last month shot and killed a man who was allegedly feasting on the face of another homeless man in a daylight attack on a busy highway.
Police are investigating whether the drugs found in bath salts were in the alleged attacker's system. This case is not the first time police have had to respond to people high on the drug committing illegal acts or exhibiting dangerous behavior.
In most cases, the active ingredient found in bath salts is a chemical known as MDPV. As far as the effects they have, bath salts are a central nervous system stimulant that acts something like a mix of methamphetamine and cocaine. They dramatically increase the dopamine and norepinephrine levels in the human brain in two dangerous ways.
It's a dangerous situation, leading to a high that some drug abuse experts describe as up to 13 times more potent than cocaine. The altered mental status it brings can lead to panic attacks, agitation, paranoia, hallucinations and violent behavior.
(Read by Brian Salter. Brian Salter is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)
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(Agencies)
一名德拉瓦州參議員稱將推動在全美範圍內禁止毒品「浴鹽」的立法行動。這種危險的合成毒品的使用在美國呈上升趨勢，而且可能是導致近日邁阿密「啃臉案」的罪魁禍首。在這起案件中，罪犯咬掉了另一名流浪漢面部的80%。
民主黨參議員克裡斯-庫恩斯本周一在聲明中說，「像『浴鹽』這類危險毒品正在威脅我們的社區並摧毀生命。我們必須採取更嚴格的措施，以遏止日益盛行的『浴鹽』及其它新型致幻藥。」
根據美國毒物控制中心協會的數據，有關「浴鹽」的諮詢求助電話已由2010年的304個上升至2011年的6138個。迄今為止今年也已超過1000個。
這些所謂的「浴鹽」與清潔產品不同，是一種合成的超級加倍脫氧麻黃鹼，費用低廉。「浴鹽」含有不斷變化的化學混合物，其中三種成分（甲氧麻黃酮、搖頭丸、亞甲基雙氧甲基卡西酮）去年已被美國緝毒署禁止。
但是「浴鹽」仍然可以輕易在網上買到，而且被冠以「紫色浪潮」、「熱情|」、或者「極樂心境」等名稱。一包重量為50毫克的「浴鹽」售價為25美元至50美元。
警方稱，這種藥物會造成一種「極度精神錯亂」的情況，使用者會出現妄想狂、暴力和難以預料行為。邁阿密警方上月開槍打死了一名男子。據稱他白天在繁忙的高速公路上攻擊並啃掉一名流浪漢近80%的面部。
警方正在調查，「浴鹽」中含有的毒品是否出現在犯罪者的體內。這已經不是警方首次發現熱衷於「浴鹽」的人犯罪或者表現出危險行為了。
在大多數案件中，「浴鹽」中發現的活性成份是一種被稱為「搖頭丸」的化學物質。就效果來說，「浴鹽」是一種中樞神經系統的興奮劑，功能猶如脫氧麻黃鹼和古柯鹼的混合物，可以通過兩種危險的方式極大提高人大腦中的多巴胺和去甲腎上腺素水平。
服用後的情況很危險，毒品專家形容其興奮功能比古柯鹼強13倍。而其帶來的精神狀態改變，可能會導致恐慌發作、躁動、偏執、幻覺和暴力行為。
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（中國日報網英語點津 Julie 編輯：陳丹妮）