Candyflipping and Other Combinations: Identifying Drug–Drug Combinations from an Online Forum
Michael Chary, David Yi, Alex F. Manini
Frontiers in Psychiatry April 30, 2018 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00135 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study of online forum posts Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Publicly available posts from Lycaeum forum discussing psychoactive substance use |
| Duration | 20 years |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Keywords | Hallucinogen Synthetic cannabinoids Designer drug Pharmacology |
| Citations | 32 |
| Key findings | Online discussions of novel psychoactive substances reveal distinct patterns of co-mention, such as synthetic hallucinogens rarely co-occurring with plant hallucinogens, and bath salts commonly mentioned with sedative-hypnotics or nootropics. |
Abstract
Novel psychoactive substances (NPS) refer to synthetic compounds or derivatives of more widely known substances of abuse that have emerged over the last two decades. Case reports suggest that users combine substances to achieve desired psychotropic experiences while reducing dysphoria and unpleasant somatic effects. However, the pattern of combining NPS has not been studied on a large scale. Here, we show that posts discussing NPS describe combining nootropics with sedative-hypnotics and stimulants with plant hallucinogens or psychiatric medications. Discussions that mention sedative-hypnotics most commonly also mention hallucinogens and stimulants. We analyzed 20 years of publicly available posts from Lycaeum, an Internet forum dedicated to sharing information about psychoactive substance use. We used techniques from natural language processing and machine learning to identify NPS and correlate patterns of co-mentions of substances across posts. We found that conversations mentioning synthetic hallucinogens tended to divide into those mentioning hallucinogens derived from amphetamine and those derived from ergot. Conversations that mentioned synthetic hallucinogens tended not to mention plant hallucinogens. Conversations that mention bath salts commonly mention sedative-hypnotics or nootropics while more canonical stimulants are discussed with plant hallucinogens and psychiatric medications. All types of substances are frequently compared to MDMA, DMT, cocaine, or atropine when trying to describe their effects. Our results provide the largest analysis to date of online descriptions of patterns of polysubstance use and further demonstrate the utility of social media in learning about trends in substance use. We anticipate this work to lead to a more detailed analysis of the knowledge contained online about the patterns of usage and effects of novel psychoactive substances.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on MDMA, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subjective Reports of the Effects of MDMA in a Clinical Setting Individuals who took MDMA in a clinical setting | 1986 | Observational study | |
| Memory impairment in abstinent MDMA ("Ecstasy") users Abstinent MDMA users | 1998 | Observational cohort | |
| Impaired cognitive performance in drug free users of recreational ecstasy (MDMA) Otherwise healthy young people | 2000 | Observational | |
| The Psychological and Physiological Effects of MDMA on Normal Volunteers Older, more educated, drug-experienced individuals | 1986 | Observational cohort | |
| Cognitive performance in recreational users of MDMA or 'ecstasy': evidence for memory deficits Young people who were regular or novice MDMA users, or non-users | 1998 | Observational cohort | n = 30 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 9
- Acute effects of MDMA and LSD co-administration in a double-blind placebo-controlled study in healthy participants. Neuropsychopharmacology December 1, 2023
- Psychedelic experience dose-dependently modulated by cannabis: results of a prospective online survey. Psychopharmacology November 4, 2021
- Who uses digital drugs? An international survey of 'binaural beat' consumers. Drug and Alcohol Review July 1, 2022
- LSD use in the United States: Examining user demographics and their evolution from 2015–2019 Journal of Psychedelic Studies February 1, 2024
- Artificial intelligence and psychedelic medicine Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences September 23, 2024
and 4 more in the library
Cites 11
- Salvinorin A: a potent naturally occurring nonnitrogenous kappa opioid selective agonist. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences September 3, 2002
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors in South American hallucinogenic plants: Tryptamine and β-carboline constituents of Ayahuasca Journal of Ethnopharmacology April 1, 1984
- The Psychological and Physiological Effects of MDMA on Normal Volunteers Journal of Psychoactive Drugs October 1, 1986
- Recreational Use, Analysis and Toxicity of Tryptamines Current Neuropharmacology December 10, 2014
- Pharmahuasca: Human Pharmacology of Oral DMT Plus Harmine Journal of Psychoactive Drugs April 1, 1999
and 6 more in the library