Clare Fm - Podcasts

Synthetic drugs including artificial substances that mimic cannabis, heroin and stimulants pose an emerging threat to Europe. That is the warning coming from the EU drug agency, which has documented “unprecedented imports and seizures” of synthetic cathinones. These are chemically similar to cathinone, a stimulant. The “rising availability” of fake medicines containing highly potent nitazenes - a synthetic opioid that led to overdose outbreaks in Dublin and Cork at the end of 2023 and in several Irish prisons last year – are also being highlighted by the EU Drug Agency in its European Union Drug Report 2025. The agency is also pointing to a doubling in the strength of cannabis resin over the last decade, the risks posed by high-potency cannabis extracts and edibles, and the rapid spread of semi-synthetic cannabinoids. To discuss this further, Alan Morrissey was joined by TD, Donna McGettigan and Addiction Counsellor, Michael Guerin.