Last month the US Navy launched a new campaign to warn servicemen and women about the dangers of bath salts. The informational video is getting a lot of attention for its depiction of a sailor ingesting the synthetic designer drug and then experiencing violent hallucinations, complete with a gruesome demon-type figure.
The Bath Salts campaign’s slogan, “Bath salts: It’s not a fad...It’s a nightmare,” reflects the hallucinogenic effect of bath salts which are a non-regulated drug comprised of a synthetic cathinone that can have a dangerous or debilitating effect on the user.
According to a Navy press release, “The education and awareness campaign from Navy Medicine supports the Navy’s zero-tolerance policy on designer drug use, as well as highlights the real and present risks of bath salts…The campaign’s goal is to decrease the number of active-duty service members who use designer drugs like bath salts and the synthetic marijuana ‘Spice’ because they are falsely marketed as a ‘legal’ way to get high.”
While sold over the counter in convenience stores and head shops, bath salts are labeled “not for human consumption” as a way to get around the legal issue. However the product has no other purpose except as a drug, and those who sell them and buy them know exactly what they are for.
Navy Medicine is a global health care network of more than 63,000 Navy medical personnel around the world who provide high quality health care to more than one million eligible beneficiaries.
