Drug dealers have been promoting dangerous synthetic narcotics as therapeutic drugs to hide their harmful effects, a senior official has said.
Speaking on the Interior Ministry’s Al Aman social media programme, Hidd Police Station’s head Colonel Dr Osama Bahar highlighted that dealers are peddling synthetic hashish falsely as cannabidiol (CBD).
“CBD is a substance made from the cannabis plant and under medical and pharmaceutical supervision and state regulation, it can be used to treat certain illnesses,” Col Dr Bahar explained.
“Drug dealers use the name CBD to disguise synthetic hash, a dangerous substance, and give it that name so if a teenager gets caught, he can tell his mother it is a beneficial therapeutic substance.”
While research has shown that authentic CBD has therapeutic potential without leading to a ‘high’, synthetic cannabinoids are lab-made chemicals designed to mimic the effects of THC, responsible for the elevated sensation that comes with smoking marijuana.
Synthetic cannabinoids are often sold as liquids for vapes, oils or sprays.
“It doesn’t contain any beneficial or therapeutic ingredients, and it doesn’t reduce inflammation at all,” Col Dr Bahar added.
“In fact, it’s a very dangerous substance that can cause death and young people have died from it.
“Its effects also include violence, destruction, aggression, getting into fights and brawls, and dangerous mood swings.”
Fake CBD is not only dangerous and much more potent than marijuana – its ingredients can dramatically vary, leading to unpredictable health risks.
Col Dr Bahar compared the packaging of synthetic cannabinoids as CBD to a childhood folk story where a cigarette smoker, upon being caught, told his mother that the menthol in it helps him ease inflammation in his throat.
“History is repeating itself,” he added.
“What’s strange is that the user willingly turns himself from a respected person among his family into someone harmful to his family, whether by verbally abusing them or sadly, physically.”
Col Dr Bahar
Col Dr Bahar implored parents to be careful and supervise their children, creating a safe environment at home so they do not turn to such substances.
“Mothers, fathers, I beg you, please watch over your children, follow up with them, embrace them,” he added.
“Create a safe environment and stable home for them, guide them to what is good and walk with them.
“You are the first line of defence.”
Over the last several years, unregulated CBD oil has emerged as a popular yet dangerous narcotic.
In March, the GDN reported that a 21-year-old Bahraini was sentenced to 10 years in prison for possessing 5.5kg of unregulated CBD oil across 181 different containers hidden around his car and home.
Last year, a 28-year-old drug dealer was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined BD5,000 for importing unregulated CBD oil, that had arrived from Slovenia via airmail.
In October last year, a 22-year-old man from Ramli and a 25-year-old jewellery saleswoman from Hidd were taken to court for trying to smuggle drugs including CBD from the UK.
The ministry has urged the public to report any information related to drug smuggling or trafficking via the 24-hour hotline 996 or by email at 996@interior.gov.bh, assuring that all information will be treated with full confidentiality.
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