Head shops should be regulated just like your local off-licence

I WOULDN’T dream of ingesting any of the muck they sell in head shops, but 20 years ago I might have been tempted. Once, when younger and without fear (or real understanding) of the consequences of alcohol and drugs, as is the way with many young people, the availability of such things, without breaking any laws, might have proved attractive to me.

The highly visible presence of shops on main streets that sell chemically-prepared mimics of illegal narcotics confers a degree of legitimacy on the trade itself and the subsequent use of the compounds.

It is clear from the number of these head shops that have sprung up in recent months that many people are prepared to spend their cash there buying substances that are not illegal, even though potentially dangerous to their health, thereby reducing at least one risk (that of criminal prosecution) if used.

And if the legal risk to purchase and consumption doesn’t exist, then it’s likely some will assume the health risks don’t figure either. If these products are not banned by those who are supposed to know better, and who are in a position of authority to do something, then how can they be harmful? Well, such products can be highly damaging, physically and psychologically, or at least so we are told. Unfortunately, we are not seeing enough evidence of the damage done.

At least when it came to heroin we saw the pictures of injections and the physical ravages: it was a visible warning sign to most not to try the stuff. The physical consequences of cocaine use admittedly were more difficult to detect, unless the use was so prolonged that the bridge of the inhaler’s nose collapsed.

However, the visible evidence of the detrimental effects of head shop products is not readily available. We have to take the views of the experts – and the debate is full of non-medical experts – on trust. But there are plenty of such people willing to make their voices heard.

For example, Dr Chris Luke, the excellent consultant from the A&E departments at CUH and the Mercy hospital in Cork, has been vivid in his description of the dreadful effects on such products on patients he sees at those hospitals, especially when mixed with alcohol.

I believe him when he says he deals with people “out of their heads”, that the numbers are on the rise and the potential consequences for these people’s health could be appalling. Just as it must have been a nightmare for staff to cope in recent years with the aggression of those who had been injured or became ill while using cocaine, the new set of circumstances cannot be any easier to manage. Similarly, I have spoken to addiction treatment counsellors who have told me of the damage done to those who have developed a liking for these substances: psychosis is a particular problem and the long-term damage caused is immense.

Not surprisingly, something of a public campaign has started to have head shops closed. Some activists may have taken things into their own hands by torching a couple of premises in Dublin.

But the suspicion is that the culprits may have been criminals who have seen their own trade in illegal drugs (and these products too) suffer because of the proliferation of legal outlets. They care only about their cashflow and that’s what motivates their highly dangerous actions.

And that should give cause for thought. If the criminals are worried about the impact on their business, then this may be a good thing.

The shop-owners are not the types who brandish guns and shoot addicts who cannot meet their debts. If they want to run businesses in the long term they are likely to be somewhat more careful about the quality of what they sell, and that is not necessarily a contradiction, even if not always a given, whereas illegal drug-dealers will sell any adulterated substance just to turn a profit.

An outright ban of head shops might have sent out the right signals – that the State does not approve of these drugs and does not wish to encourage their consumption – but it would not succeed in halting the trade in so-called legal highs.

The ban is set to apply to products known as Spice, Charge+, Snow Blow, White Ice, Magic, Liquid Ecstacy, BZP Derivatives and Mephedrone, but it raises questions as to whether a change in brand name will allow manufacturers the opportunity to reconstitute products and stay in business.

John Curran, the junior minister in charge of the national drugs strategy, has said the national advisory committee on drugs and the gardaí will continue to monitor products sold in head shops and any product that proves to have any detrimental health effects will be added to the list for banning.

He said his department was looking at other measures to regulate the head shops by way of planning and consumer laws. The latter instances might be the best way to deal with the problem. Rather than sending the business underground, where the products will continue to be sold, the state might be better able to manage it by through comprehensive controls.

Regulation of the content of these products and the methods and timing of their distribution and sale might prove more effective in mitigating the social consequences of their consumption because, let’s face it, the so-called war on drugs is one that no society has ever been able to win.

Alcohol, for example, is a highly dangerous drug. Its consumption leads to a loss of control by users who can become a danger to themselves or others.

Alcohol use has led to countless deaths on our roads, as both drivers and pedestrians have perished or been seriously injured or have visited disaster upon non-drinkers.

Alcohol leads to violent behaviour on the street and in the home. Its impact on the judgment of users has led to rows and unwanted pregnancies. Its prolonged or excessive use causes disease and illness.

BUT imagine how much worse things might be if prohibition was in place and people purchased and consumed alcohol secretly? Who knows what they would be drinking and how much extra danger it might bring?

At least the situation is managed at present because the volume of alcohol in drinks is regulated and measured. People know what they are drinking and can make (reasonably) informed decisions. Pubs can only be opened at prescribed hours and off-licences have to be shut by 10pm. There is a measure of control, albeit limited. The State partly funds its dealing with the consequences of alcohol use through the taxation it raises on the trade in alcohol products. We have a problem with illegal trade in alcohol products (just as we do with cigarettes), but it is reasonably well contained.

Banning head shops and the products they sell will not end their manufacture and consumption. It will only drive the problem out of our sight. It may not reduce it dramatically. An opportunity exists to regulate the opening hours of head shops along the lines of off-licences, to stop home delivery, to monitor the suitability of those with licences to operate and to inform consumers better about the dangers and contents of the products they are consuming. That would be difficult to achieve – and unpopular – but it might be better than pretending the preferred alternative is going to achieve what people want.

The Last Word with Matt Cooper is broadcast on 100-102 Today FM, Monday to Friday, 4.30pm to 7pm.