54 lines
2.5 KiB
Plaintext
54 lines
2.5 KiB
Plaintext
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THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF AMYL NITRITE/BUTYL NITRITE
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AKA: poppers, amyl
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Price: £5 to £10 a bottle
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Form: liquid sold in small bottles; the cap is taken off and the aroma is
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inhaled either through the mouth or, more common, the nose. You can also
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dip cigarettes in the liquid, dry them over a candle, and smoke them for
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added impact. It is believed that the MP Steven Milligan, who died with a
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bin bag over his head and an orange in his mouth, had soaked the fruit in
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amyl beforehand.
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Duration of high: up to three minutes.
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Legal status: a grey area. While not strictly legal, there have been no
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successful prosecutions for selling nitrites because it is not specifically
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covered by the drug laws. Police tried a test case under the 1861 Offences
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Against the Person Act, but failed.
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History: amyl nitrite was discovered in 1857 and in 1867 was used as
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treatment for angina as it relieves pressure by opening the vessels
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delivering blood to the heart. It is still sometimes used for this purpose.
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Most 'amyl' now sold in the UK is the less powerful butyl nitrite.
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Highs: a light-headed feeling, a sense of being slightly disconnectedó from
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the world. It is a muscle relaxant so is often used by gay men having anal
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sex.However, its use on the dancefloors of gay clubs has diminished because
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of its '70s cloney image, worries about side-effects and also because it
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has been superseded by more powerful drugs such as Ecstasy: although some
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people combine amyl and Ecstasy in the same night. Can also make you
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giggle.
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Lows: can cause headaches and vomiting and should never be used by people
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who have low blood pressure, anaemia or heart problems. It can also
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irritate sensitive skin and 'burn' if any of the liquid accidentally drips
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into the nostrils. There have been several deaths associated with poppers
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but in all cases the victims had drunk the liquid or had heart problems.
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There have also been persistent stories linking poppers with the onset of
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the cancer Kaposi's sarcoma in HIV-positive gay men. This is because some
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of the metabolised by-products of nitrites are carcinogenic and also
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because, like many drugs, they suppress the immune system. This link has
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not been properly proved. Poppers also smell worse than sitting next to a
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farty old tramp.
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Tips: if you are a first-time user, consider whether you just might have
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low blood pressure before you start sniffing away.
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From the magazine TimeOut No. 1239 May 18-25 1994
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Typed by Dr. Benway
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