title: The NBOMe hallucinogenic drug series: Patterns of use, characteristics of users and self-reported effects in a large international sample.
abstract: The NBOMe compounds are a novel series of hallucinogenic drugs that are potent agonists of the 5-HT2A receptor, have a short history of human consumption and are available to buy online, in most countries. In this study, we sought to investigate the patterns of use, characteristics of users and self-reported effects. A cross-sectional anonymous online survey exploring the patterns of drug use was conducted in 2012 (n = 22,289), including questions about the use of 25B-NBOMe, 25C-NBOMe, and 25I-NBOMe and comparison drugs. We found that 2.6% of respondents (n = 582) reported having ever tried one of the three NBOMe drugs and that at 2.0%, 25I-NBOMe was the most popular (n = 442). Almost all (93.5%) respondents whose last new drug tried was a NBOMe drug, tried it in 2012, and 81.2% of this group administered the drug orally or sublingually/buccally. Subjective effects were similar to comparison serotonergic hallucinogens, though higher 'negative effects while high' and greater 'value for money' were reported. The most common (41.7%) drug source was via a website. The NBOMe drugs have emerged recently, are frequently bought using the internet and have similar effects to other hallucinogenic drugs; however, they may pose larger risks, due to the limited knowledge about them, their relatively low price and availability via the internet.
authors.affiliation: Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK will.lawn.12@ucl.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Will
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lawn
authors.affiliation: National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia.
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barratt
authors.affiliation: Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.
authors.forename: Abi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Horne
authors.affiliation: South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, UK Global Drug Survey, London, UK.
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Winstock
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D055030:Drug Users / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006213:Hallucinogens / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010627:Phenethylamines / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D012651:Self Medication / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends*; D057566:Self Report; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D006213:Hallucinogens; D010627:Phenethylamines
keywords: Demographics; NBOMe; hallucinogen; internet drug market; legal drugs; n-bomb; oral drugs; psychedelic; psychoactive drugs; public health; recreational drugs; risk behaviour; survey