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Psychoactive drug or mystical incense? Overview of the online available information on Spice products

Fabrizio Schifano, Ornella Corazza, Paolo Deluca, Zoe Davey, Lucia di Furia, Magí Farré, Liv Flesland, Miia Mannonen, Stefania Pagani, Teuvo Peltoniemi, Cinzia Pezzolesi, Norbert Scherbaum, Holger Siemann, Arvid Skutle, Marta Torrens, Peer van der Kreeft

International Journal of Culture and Mental Health December 1, 2009 DOI: 10.1080/17542860903350888 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Qualitative study Peer reviewed
Sample size 200
Population Web pages related to Spice products
Topics Cannabis
Keywords Spice Popularity World wide web Internet privacy
Citations 79
Key findings Spice's appeal to online customers is associated with its legal status, lack of detection in biological samples, ease of online access, and cannabis-like effects, while product descriptions typically do not mention the presence of synthetic THC receptor agonists.

Abstract

The aim of the study was to foster the collection and analysis of data from web pages related to information on the consumption, manufacture and sale of Spice products, a brand name for an herbal smoking blend, sold as legal substitute for cannabis. The Google search engine was used to carry out an 8-language qualitative assessment of information available on Spice products in a sample of about 200 web sites. The level of information elicited included both the users' comments on the effects of the products and the reasons behind their popularity. Users' suggestions on unusual drug combinations not found in the Medline were also identified. This is the first comprehensive and multilingual overview of the online available information on Spice products. The appeal of Spice to online customers was associated with its legal status, lack of detection in biological samples, ease of online access and cannabis-like effects. Spice product descriptions did not typically mention the presence of the powerful synthetic THC receptor agonists that seem to account for the psychoactive effects. Health professionals may need to be aware of the web being a new drug resource for both information and purchase of Spice products.

Comparable studies

Other qualitative studies on cannabis, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Psychoactive substances as a last resort—a qualitative study of self-treatment of migraine and cluster headaches Users of online forums discussing cluster headache and migraine treatments 2017 Qualitative thematic analysis
Patterns, Trends, and Meanings of Drug Use by Dance-drug Users in Edinburgh, Scotland Clubbers in clubs and pre-club bars 2004 Cross-sectional survey with focus groups n = 124
Fascination and Social Togetherness-Discussions about Spice Smoking on a Swedish Internet Forum. Swedish internet forum users who posted reports about Spice intoxication 2013 Qualitative study n = 40
Cannabis as entheogen: survey and interview data on the spiritual use of cannabis. Participants recruited from seven online communities, median age 33, 81% male 2020 Mixed methods (qualitative interviews and quantitative survey) n = 319
Cannabis, Consciousness, and Healing Seriously and terminally ill medical marijuana patients affiliated with the Wo/Men's... 2007 Qualitative study n = 36

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