New Drug “Budder” Debuts on the Streets of Florida

It could pass for harmless moustache wax or lip salve, but this new drug is dangerous and should be avoided at all costs. Budder (also known as “butter”) is a yellowish, gooey substance that made its debut in Florida recently, along with another designer drug known as “flakka.” What makes budder so dangerous is the way it’s produced – parts of the marijuana plant are soaked in chemical solvents like butane in order to bring out the elements that produce the best high. The flammability of butane has caused explosions in the making of the drug, and the drug itself brings on hallucinations, paranoia, increased heart rates and severe anxiety. Like most designer drugs, which are manmade synthetics, users never know what’s in the batch of budder they’re using. And because it’s so easily disguised as a salve or vaped in e-cigarettes without the smell of marijuana, it often goes unnoticed by law enforcement.

Designer drugs like budder are made from a concoction of existing, illegal recreational drugs, with a modified chemical structure that keeps them legal. There has been an increased demand for designer drugs in the past few years, according to the 2014 World Drug Report, which refers to them as new psychoactive substances (NPS). According to the report, the popularity of cannabis, which is the most popular of illegal recreational drugs, is declining, while the abuse of the new designer drugs climbs.

Crime officials in South Florida counties where budder is flourishing are not sure how popular it will become, given the severe physical reactions that come with its use. They are asking the public to watch out for the dangerous new drug:

Budder:

• Waxy, gooey, also known as “butter”
• Made from leaves and stems of marijuana
• Soaked in butane, in a process that could be explosive
• Smoked in e-cigarettes, smeared onto cigarettes or joints
• Causes psychosis, racing heart, paranoia, severe anxiety

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