DG HEALTH COLD FLU RELIEF

Dextromethorphan, orDXM, a commonactive ingredientfound in many over-the-countercough suppressantcold medicines, is used as arecreational drugandentheogenfor itsdissociativeeffects.Street names includeBrownies,Dextro,Drix,Gel,Groove,Lean,Mega-perls,Poor man's ecstasy,Poor man's PCP, Red devils,Robo,Rojo,Rome,Skittles,Sizzurp,Triple Cs, reds, SkyandVelvet. It has almost nopsychoactiveeffects at medically recommended doses.‍‍‍‍‍‍​​​‍​​​​​​ However,dextromethorphanhas powerful dissociative and euphoric properties when administered in doses well above those considered therapeutic for cough suppression.Recreational use of DXM is sometimes referred to in slang form as "robo-tripping" or "skittling", whose prefix derives from theRobitussinbrand name, or "Triple Cs", which derives from theCoricidinbrand whose tablets are printed with "CC+C" for "Chest Congestion and Cough". However, this brand presents additional danger when used at recreational doses due to the presence ofchlorpheniramine(antihistamine). In over-the-counter formulations, DXM is often combined withacetaminophen(paracetamol, APAP) to relieve pain;however, to achieve DXM's dissociative effects, the maximum daily therapeutic dose of 4000 mg of APAP is often exceeded, potentially causing acute or chronicliver failure, making abuse and subsequent tolerance of products which contain both DXM and APAP potentially fatal. An online essay first published in 1995 entitled "The DXM FAQ" described dextromethorphan's potential for recreational use, and classified its effects into so-called plateaus.Each plateau is categorized depending on how many milligrams of DXM are ingested, each featuring varying or more intense effects. The defined number of plateaus differs depending on the source, but the generally agreed-upon number is 4 or 5. Owing to its recreational use,many retailers in the US have moved dextromethorphan-containing products behind the counter so that one must ask a pharmacist to receive them or be 18 years (19 inNew YorkandAlabama, 21 inMississippi) or older to purchase them.Some retailers also give out printed recommendations about the potential for abuse with the purchase of products containing dextromethorphan.