Nrg-1 Legal High Advice Set To Be Published

July 7, 2010

Guidance on drug NRG-1 is set to be published by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) later.

It is widely expected to recommend the banning of the so-called legal high.

Meanwhile, research published in the British Medical Journal suggests many substances sold legally contain similar ingredients to mephedrone, which was banned in April, and pose health risks.

Researchers bought 17 drugs from 12 UK-based websites over a six-week period after mephedrone became a Class B drug.

They found these substances tend to contain the same substance or related chemicals.

Mephedrone, which was also known as Meow, Bubbles and M-CAT, is made up of a compound class called cathinones.

Experts from Liverpool John Moores University, the University of Liverpool and Lancaster University, said many drugs being sold legally are also cathinones.

Writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), they said NRG-1 products, also known as Energy 1 or naphyrone, were found to be "recently banned cathinones that just carried a new label" following chemical analysis.

The researchers went on: "This suggests that both consumers and online sellers are, most likely without knowledge, at risk of criminalisation and potential harm.

"This has important health and criminal justice consequences that will require carefully thought out responses and further investigation."

And Simon Brandt, senior lecturer in analytical chemistry at John Moores, said: "The analysis showed that those sold as legal alternatives turned out to be related to mephedrone and some of them were just, in fact, mephedrone.

"About 70% contained mephedrone or mephedrone-related products. When we analysed these white powders we found cathinones, related products or a mixture."

A spokesman for the BBC said " Wow man, Have a bang on that...."