Talk:Additive

Additives are chemicals or other drugs added to drugs, either for medical purposes, to prevent abuse, or to increase the amount of the product. Many of these additives can be extremely dangerous.

Pharmaceutical additives

These are added to substances for their medical purposes. Often if they are taken at a higher dose than recommended, they are extremely harmful and often fatal.

Cold/Allergy/Cough medicines

Common additives in cold, allergy or cough medicines include:

• Painkillers, (common examples include Acetaminophen, and Ibuprofen) - Most of these painkillers can be extremely dangerous if more than the recommended amount is taken. Common overdose effects include internal bleeding, and liver failure.
• Expectorants, (common examples include Guaifenesin and Potassium Iodide) - These are added to thin mucus. These substances can often fatal liver damage, and death, from overdosing.
• Decongestants, (common examples include Oxymetazoline, Phenylephrine and Pseudoephedrine) - These are added to dilate the sinuses to reduce congestion.
• Antihistamines, (common examples include Cetrizine, Diphenhydramine, and Loratadine) - These are added to reduce allergy symptoms. Common overdose symptoms include, delirium, psychosis, liver failure, vomiting, and death.

Opioid Painkillers

Often OTC painkillers are added to prescription opioids, to prevent abuse, or to increase pain relief. These can be very damaging and fatal in case of an overdose. Common additives include:

• Acetaminophen - This is the most common additive to opioid painkillers, and painkillers that contain Acetaminophen often end in "cet", common examples being Percocet and Ultracet
• Ibuprophen
• Acetylsalicylic acid (Asprin)
• Naproxen

Cutting agents

Cutting agents are chemicals added to street drugs to increase the amount the dealer can sell, or to increase the potency without increasing the price. Some of these can be completely harmless, and others can be dangerous and even fatal.

Common heroin & opium additives

Street heroin/opium is often cut with other opioid chemicals, often much more dangerous than heroin/opium itself. Common additives include:

• Fentanyl and its analogues - Fentanyl is an extremely dangerous additive, because of its extremely low dosage range. Heroin/opium cut with fentanyl is much easier to overdose on than uncut heroin/opium. Fentanyl is also considered to be more addictive than heroin.
• Research chemical opioids (U-47700, U-x, etc) - Research chemical opioids are added to street heroin/opium to increase their potency, or to increase the amount of product. These are often much more potent than heroin. Heroin cut with these opioids is more dangerous because the increase in potency, and research chemicals do not have much information on them, and can have unknown consequences.
• Caffeine - Caffeine can mask the signs of an overdose

The following additives are not typically as dangerous as the additives mentioned above, although it can be harmful to snort or inject them.

• Baking soda
• Sugar
• Starch
• Powdered milk
• Talcum powder

Cocaine Additives

Cocaine is often cut with other stimulants and other powdered chemicals

• Caffeine and other stimulants - Other stimulants are sometimes added to increase the amount, while keeping the same or similar effect. These additives can be dangerous in case of overdose, or drug interactions.
• Anesthetics (Benzocaine, Lidocaine Procaine) - Because cocaine is an anesthetic, other anesthetics are sometimes added to cocaine, to increase the amount while keeping some effects. These additives can be dangerous in case of overdose or interaction.
• Levamisole - Levamisole is an anti-parasitic drug used in pets, and is the one of the most common additives to cocaine. Levamisole can be dangerous because it attacks white blood cells, and can cause a condition called agranulocytosis, which weakens the immune system.

The following additives are not typically as dangerous as the additives mentioned above, although it can be harmful to ingest, snort, or smoke them.

• Baking soda
• Sugar
• Starch
• Powdered milk

LSD & Other psychedelic additives

• 25x-NBOMe
• 25x-NBOH
• DOx (mainly DOC)
• 1P-LSD

More rarely:

• ALD-52
• AL-LAD
• ETH-LAD
• Bromo-DragonFLY
• 5-MeO-aMT

Other

Ethyl rubbing alcohol

To prevent abuse, poisons and denaturants are often added to ethanol. In the US, it is a legal requirement for ethanol rubbing alcohol to contain acetone, and methyl isobutyl ketone.