A Wisconsin teenager nearly died this week after overdosing on a relatively new drug known as 2-C-B, and Iowa officials fear it may arrive here soon. Dale Woolery, associate director of the Iowa Governor’s Office of Drug Control Policy, says this drug, like so many others, is a potential killer.
Woolery says: "Two-C-B or Nexus, it has several other names, appears to be a drug that is sometimes used in combination with MDMA or, better known as Ecstasy. We’ve heard of no reports of that in Iowa. That’s not to say it can’t be or isn’t."
Authorities say the 19-year-old in Madison, Wisconsin, was taken to the hospital on Tuesday, screaming, sweating, foaming at the mouth and with a swollen tongue.
Woolery says if this drug is appearing in Wisconsin, a state that borders Iowa, it may be only a matter of time before it shows up here. "For all parents, the watchword is: Be on alert, and try and talk with kids about behavior and choices in general because tomorrow, there could be a new drug that’s being marketed," he says. "We need to make sure that kids are prepared to make good choices regardless of the name of the drug."
Reports say the Wisconsin teen had mixed 2-C-B with alcohol, worsening the drug’s effects. It’s also reported, the drug was purchased over the Internet from China and was mailed to the boy. Woolery says such online purchases are chilling as the Internet is very difficult to regulate and some laws are hard to enforce. He says, "We’re at the beginning of a long learning curve on how to enforce drug laws in particular as it relates to the Internet. Law enforcement attempts to do that but certainly, the Internet, it’s one more portal, potentially, for some of these substances."
Parents can find more tips for talking with their kids at the Office of National Drug Control Policy website: "www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov".