Devil's Breath - New Age

SOME would say that stories are doing the rounds that a chemical known as ‘devil’s breath’ is making its way to Dhaka, which can be blown into faces and soaked into papers to render unsuspecting people incapacitated. The result is at times illusive, It can leave victims with no ability to control their action at risk of having their pocket emptied, homes robbed, accessories stolen, abducted, or raped. Devil’s breath is derived from the flower of the ‘borrachero’ shrub, common in the South American country of Colombia. The seeds, when powdered and extracted via a chemical process, contain a chemical similar to scopolamine called ‘burandanga.’

Borrachero has been used for hundreds of years by native South Americans in spiritual rituals. The compound is said to lead to hallucination, frightening images and a lack of free will. Amnesia can occur, leaving the victim powerless to recall events or identify perpetrators. Scopolamine is also present in Jimson weed, Datura stramonium, a plant found in many parts of the world.

Scopolamine, a belladonna alkaloid, is an anticholinergic. It acts as a competitive inhibitor at postganglionic muscarinic receptor sites of the parasympathetic nervous system and on smooth muscles that respond to acetylcholine but lack cholinergic innervation. Scopolamine is used to prevent nausea and vomiting caused by motion sickness or medication used during surgery. Scopolamine is in a class of medications called antimuscarinics. It works by blocking the effects of a certain natural substance acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter on the central nervous system. Scopolamine prevents communications between the nerves of the vestibule and the vomiting centre in the brain by blocking the action of acetylcholine. It also may work directly on the vomiting centre. This must be taken before the onset of motion sickness to be effective. Dry mouth, drowsiness, dizziness, constipation, mild itching and redness on application sites may also occur. If any of these effects persist or worsen, it is wise to see a doctor or a pharmacist immediately.

This street drug is available in prescription form, too. Scopolamine is used for patients suffering from seasickness. The low dose and slow absorption help to prevent severe side effects in most people. But there could be illegal use of the drug. High doses or drinks could cause issues. Scopolamine can render a victim unconscious for 24 hours or more. In Colombia, where its use seems to be most widespread, ‘unofficial estimates’ of scopolamine events are at roughly 50,000 a year. In large doses, it can cause ‘respiratory failure and death.’ However, the effects are due to oral administration in ‘liquid or powder form in food and beverage,’ not being blown into someone’s face or absorbed via a piece of soaked paper. People should be aware of the mesmerising capability of this wonder drug which, if used for unholy purposes, can hypnotise, or even kill, people.

Overdoses can lead to a dangerously fast heart rate, dilated pupils, toxic psychosis, confusion, vivid hallucination, seizures or coma, among other events. Combined with alcohol, as in spiked drinks, or with other sedative drugs, it would certainly hasten central nervous system depression. Confusion, disorientation, excitability and amnesia could occur with oral consumption. Immediate side-effects from its blowing it into someone’s face seem unlikely from a pharmacologic standpoint. Others also have questioned the reports of robberies taking place when the powder is blown into someone’s face or placed on a business card.

Medical case reports have been published of women from London having prolonged headaches after a possible clandestine scopolamine exposure. Reports of the illegal use of scopolamine in the United States are available but unsubstantiated. It is difficult to confirm all of the reports. Nonetheless, the news stories highlight an important point — food or drinks must not be left unattended during travel to stave off any assault of scopolamine or any drug for that matter. It is not wise to accept food or drinks from strangers or new acquaintances during travel. If people believe that they have been drugged, they must seek medical assistance immediately.

Is Devil’s Breath actually scopolamine, an urban legend or some other drug being used to incapacitate pedestrians? Maybe, it is a combination of all three. Urban legend or not, the use of drugs to incapacitate, rob or rape victims can and does happen domestically and internationally. When an extracted powder from the tree is consumed, inhale, or absorbed through the skin, the results have been referred to as ‘temporary zombification’’ — the docility or people listening to others; lack of free will along with memory loss; powerful, unpleasant hallucination or unconsciousness lasting up to 24 hours; and, at high doses, death. These effects are so strong that scopolamine has at times been used by governments as a ‘truth serum’ during interrogations. The Central Intelligence Agency says that the American police were experimenting with it in 1922 and its most recent use was by the Czechoslovak government in 2008.

This use was largely discontinued because of negative side effects. According to the CIA, sometimes even the threat that scopolamine was going to be used resulted in the suspect confessing to their crimes. Sometimes, it may be used for hallucinatios. Powdered scopolamine, in a form referred to as ‘devil’s breath’, does not brainwash or control people into being defrauded by their attackers. The alleged effects are most likely urban legends. Nevertheless, the drug is known to cause the loss of memory, following exposure and sleepiness, similar to the effects of benzodiazepines or alcohol poisoning.

One common and particularly dangerous method that criminals use in order to rob a victim is the use of drugs. Unofficial estimates show that the number of annual scopolamine incidents is on the rise. The majority of such incidents occur in night clubs and bars and usually people perceived to be wealthy are targeted.

Dr Zubair Khaled Huq is a public health specialist.