The adulteration of illicit drugs with dangerous substances—the discovery of a “myth”

Abstract

The notion that illicit street drugs, such as heroin, are routinely adulterated or diluted with dangerous substances is a common one. Elsewhere (Coomber, 1997a, 1997b) I have shown that it is in fact a common view of those involved in the treatment of drug users, the policing of drug users, and the research of drug use and related issues, as well as by the users themselves. More importantly, perhaps, it is also believed to be true by the vast majority of those who are deemed to carry out this adulteration/dilution, the drug dealers themselves. The adulteration/dilution' of street drugs with dangerous substances is thus, arguably, in normative discursive terms relatively uncontested. It is an assumption that attains the status of a fact. Within an area (discourses around drugs, their effects and dangers) that is littered with contested meanings and stereotypes, it is one that elicits little discussion or opposition. Recent research, however, suggests that dangerous adulteration/dilution with substances such as brick dust, talcum powder, rat poison, ground lightbulb glass, Vim and Ajax,2 and numerous other such substances is in fact not a common occurrence, if indeed it happens at all-as opposed to the relatively common practice of adulteration/ dilution of drugs with relatively innocuous substances such as glucose, caffeine and paracetamol.3 Even the widespread belief that drugs such as Ecstasy are adulterated with harder drugs such as heroin is not supported by the forensic evidence or other evidence (Coomber, 1997a, 1997b). Moreover, the actual practice of adulteration/dilution itself (with any substance) appears not to occur as often as is commonly thought. This paper is concerned with examining how the belief in dangerous adulterants/diluents came into being, why it continues to be assumed at just about all levels of involvement and reporting on drug issues, and how this relative truth helps to reinforce other already existing but contested myths upon which it itself is reliant and through which it partially emerged. The evidence and the logic behind adulteration/dilution Although it is known and relatively uncontested that illicit drugs do commonly contain substances other than the drug that has been bought, little (informed) discussion outside of the forensic literature has taken place on this subject. In fact much of the discussion that takes place within the forensic science literature itself is often more concerned with the methods used for analysis (e.g., gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, or NMR spectroscopy) and the stark reporting of what was found than with discussion about broader issues, including, for the purposes of this paper, what is not found and how findings of forensic analysis may impact on perceptions of drugs, on their use, and on those who sell them. Coomber (1997a) attempted to pull together the diverse forensic literature relating to the purity and constituents of illicit drugs and make comparative sense of it. In particular, there was a concern to relate beliefs about dangerous substances being put into street drugs in order to bulk them out, to increase profit, with the forensic evidence. What emerged was a picture of illicit drug adulteration/dilution that differed significantly from common perceptions of it. To begin with, although adulteration/dilution is a common practice, forensic evidence does not reveal adulteration/dilution with dangerous substances such as those listed earlier. Where adulterants/ diluents are found, they are commonly substances such as glucose and other sugars, paracetamol and other prescription or over-the-counter drugs, and caffeine (NCIS, 1994; DEA, 1990-1994; Drug Abuse Trends, 1993; Kaa, 1994). Moreover, when substances are used to adulterate or dilute, rather than being the result of haphazard, unpredictable, and belligerent activity desperate to increase profit at any cost, forensic analysis reveals rational, strategic, and at times market-sensitive activity. …