Vapes circulating among Flemish teens have been found to contain a form of synthetic cannabinoids, also known as 'spice' VRT’s Pano team has discovered. The vapes are sold as cannabis vapes containing THC, but in reality, they contain a drug that is much more dangerous and addictive.
'Spice' in Flemish teenagers’ vapes: 'Up to 50 times stronger than cannabis and as addictive as heroin'
Colin Clapson
Published:
Secondary schools in Flanders are sounding the alarm: more and more pupils are vaping, and they are starting at an increasingly young age. A survey of 223 secondary schools in Flanders and Brussels conducted by VRT’s Pano programme shows that 4 out of 5 schools saw vaping increase last year. About as many schools perceive this as a problem.
Besides the “regular” vapes, there are also a lot of vapes that are said to contain THC, the main psychoactive substance in cannabis. As many as 1 in 3 schools say they have already caught students under influence as a result of using a cannabis vape.
Wanting to test what exactly is in those vapes, Pano's team got in touch with several dealers selling ‘THC liquid’ via Snapchat. During their appointment, the dealers promote the liquid as a better version of cannabis. ‘Because it can't be found in urine and saliva tests,’ claims one dealer. The dealer says: ‘You can still drive a car!’
In total, the Pano team get their hands on 8 vials of ‘THC liquid’: 3 via Snapchat dealers, 4 from a concerned parent, and 1 vial seized at a high school. The editors want to test whether the vials really contain THC, or a more harmful substance: spice.
Unlike natural cannabis, spice is much more potent and addictive.
‘It can be up to 50 times stronger than cannabis,’ says Professor Chris Pudney of the University of Bath, in the UK.
A quick test developed by Professor Pudney allows the team to test the eight vials. If they test positive, we are 95 per cent sure that the liquids contain synthetic cannabinoids or spice.
All eight liquids test positive, and so probably contain spice. Pano's editors also test a disposable vape that was confiscated in several schools. Online, the vape is marketed as a cannabis vape. But according to the test, this vape too contains spice.
Whether Pano's test is representative, we don't know. But it seems clear that addictive spice vapes have also gained a foothold in Belgium.