Bodybuilding Aid Tied To Psychosis
Chronic abusers of bodybuilding supplement GHB might suffer from weeks of
severe withdrawal symptoms including hallucinations, psychotic behavior
and, in one case, cardiac arrest resulting in death.
GHB, or
gamma-hydroxybutyrate, is a sedative known to cause feelings of euphoria
and an alcohol-like high. The drug was sold widely in the United States
in the 1980s as an over-the-counter bodybuilding aid due to its ability
to stimulate the release of human growth hormone. However, the FDA
declared GHB unsafe in 1990 and illegal to use except for FDA-approved
physician-supervised research.
GHB is
also known as a date-rape drug because it can knock one unconscious,
cause partial amnesia, and is odorless, tasteless and colorless.
Researchers at the University of California at San Francisco discovered
that eight chronic abusers who took GHB every 1 to 3 hours rapidly
experienced progressively severe withdrawal symptoms that required
sedation and restraints and lasted anywhere from 5 to 15 days.
"Unfortunately, since the early stages of withdrawal from GHB cause
only mild symptoms, medical attention is often delayed," says
researcher Jo Ellen Dyer. Early symptoms include anxiety, insomnia and
tremor. The researchers reported their results in the journal Annals of
Emergency Medicine.
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