Over-the-counter Drug Subject To Teen Abuse

[PeoplesMind]

Craig Police are trying to raise awareness among parents and school
personnel about an over-the-counter drug commonly being abused by youth
nationwide.

Police say people who interact with youth should pay special attention
to the words, "Triple C, CCC, Red Devils or Orange Crush."

According to police, these words have special meaning among youth
involved in the drug abuse trend. The trend is particularly prevalent
among young people ages 11 to 13.

"The cold medications, 'Coricidin Cough and Cold,' Robitussin cough
syrup or any cold medication containing 'dextromethorphan' are being
abused nationwide," according to a report police issued Friday.

The medications are safe if the user adheres to the instructions.
However, youth are ingesting "large amounts of the products in the pill
form, avoiding the sugary liquid," the report states.

"We're trying to alert people to this new stuff that is out there,"
Craig Police Chief Walt Vanatta said. "It would be worth paying
attention to."

Students at the junior high level in Craig are aware of the drug,
according to School Resource Officer Carolyn Wade, a Craig police
officer who works at Craig Middle School.

Wade intercepted notes passed between students, and those notes
referenced the drug by the name, "Triple C."

One student even explained to Wade what was meant by the term.

But Wade said the trend is more of a recycling of an older trend.

"This is not new," Wade said. "Only the name is new."

According to Wade, the abuse of the same family of drugs was common a
few years ago and is resurfacing under a new set of colloquialisms.

The pills may be eaten or crushed into a powder and snorted.

Abuse of the cold medicine can be fatal. According to police, 14 deaths
occurred in 2002 from the abuse of the medications. Abuse of the drug
has also been associated with brain damage and other problems, police
say.

Symptoms of abuse include hyper excitability, lethargy, loss of
coordination, slurred speech, hypertension and involuntary eye movement.

"Parents should be aware of any medications that their children are in
possession of and be alert to unusual reactions," according to the
police report. "Should they exhibit those reactions, they should be seen
by a doctor as soon as possible."

Parents should be especially aware "any time kids are hauling around
cough medicine when they don't seem to need it," Wade said.

The popularity of the drug among younger students is associated with its
availability, Wade said.

"Students at the upper levels usually get a hold of more dramatic drugs,
such as alcohol, marijuana and meth," Wade said. "This is so easy to
get. All they have to do is go into the store and buy it."

Since the drug is available over-the-counter, youth might think it is
not dangerous, Wade said. But when ingested in large quantities, it can
be life-threatening.

One of the notes Wade confiscated at the middle school referred to a
student who became so sick the student was afraid of dying, which
implies at least some youth in Craig are abusing the drug, according to
Wade.

Vanatta said he became aware of the trend through one of the various
national groups to which he belongs.

He distributed the information "in-house" to alert his officers to the
situation. He got a response saying, "We're seeing some of that here."

School Resource Officer Jesse McAvoy, who works at the Moffat County
High School, said he has not seen evidence of such activity.

The over-the-counter drugs are widely available and anyone can purchase
them. The drugs commonly are being shoplifted, according to police.

Jeremy Browning can be reached at 824-7031 or
[email protected]

READ ARTICLE : http://www.craigdailypress.com/section/fro...ead/story/10671

[SpiKeD]

snorting fuckin triple c's?

another flaw in reporting which will end up killing some kids trying to snort lines of CPM.

[EvS]

Oh god fucking dammit.

[MR_AK]

this really sucks... if people keep doing stupid things like snorting ccc, or the police keep geting reports of people overdoseing on dxm there going to make ilegal sooner or later.

from what i understand, its going to be pretty hard for the dea to schedule dxm.

but who knows.

[Alabaster]

I pity no fool that snorts or takes m&ms. Especially the ones that get caught.. Dumbasses all.Hell, I don't regret ever taking them, before I decided that i could no longer stomach them. Life goes on, death strikes again.

[C20H25N3O]

I spend most of my day at school in a sort of independ study arranagement I've set up at school, don't ask me how, and all I do is read. I always deadicate a good hour or two going through topics that interest me, and this is how I spend 75% of an already shortened school day. I spend a lot of time on google, going through news and newsgroups.

The point of the matter being that all of these news storys I've already seen a once or twice already. I don't quite like reading stories such as these, however, due to the fact that they speak volume about the several spefic issues concering the state and general knowledge of our culture. And it detracts from certin comsic thoughts.

I'd class dex as more dramatic than alchohol or marijuana.

[rT::3000]

gee... anyone wanna come over to my house after school and snort cold medicine?