Why is Scopolamine (Devil’s Breath) Dangerous?

VICE produced a widely-viewed documentary in 2012 (seen above) that shows that the effects of scopolamine, which include extreme susceptibility and amnesia.

In higher doses it is a poison having hallucinogenic and memory-inhibiting effects. And it can render a victim unconscious for 24 hours or more. Also, in very high doses, it can cause respiratory failure and even death.

In addition, it’s tasteless and odorless. So, it’s quite easy to slip into drinks and food. And once consumed, it can cause a range of psychoses including disorientation, paranoia and hallucinations.

Urban myth – transmitted by business card.

Urban Myths About Scopolamine (Devil’s Breath)

There a few common urban myths about scopolamine:

1. Can you be drugged with a business card?

There is an urban myth circulating that a transcutaneous delivery mechanism using business cards, pamphlets or flyers laced with the drug, can be effective.

However, this is an urban myth. The quantity of toxin diffusing through the skin barrier after one short contact of the fingers with an object like a business card is considered by medical professionals to be too small of an amount to be readily absorbed in the body and unlikely to have any significant effect.

The bottom line is that skin exposure is very unlikely, as the dose that can be absorbed by the skin is too low to have any effect.

In addition, studies by The Universidad CES in Colombia,  have found that the majority of the  scopolamine cases, the drug was administered by someone who mixed it into their drink.

Also, if someone were to take scopolamine tablets and pulverize them into a powder and blow it into your face, medical professionals consider this not having much effect.

2. Will you turn into a zombie?

This is unlikely. There is a lack of any conclusive proof of scopolamine’s usefulness as a zombification drug. But this has not stopped people from trying to stretch its actual documented effects.

Scopolamine blocks neurotransmitters that carry information to the part of the brain that stores short-term memory. So, what actually happens to people under the effect of scopolamine is simply not recorded by the brain.

Law enforcement agencies have experimented with the use of scopolamine as a kind of “truth serum.” However, it was reportedly ineffective for getting reliable information. Also, in experiments by law enforcement it didn’t really cause people to follow suggestions or fall into a “zombie-like” state.”

3. Is “Devil’s Breath” really so common?

The U.S. State Department stated that “unofficial estimates put the annual scopolamine incidents in Colombia at approximately 50,000.”  However, scopolamine has a short life span in the human body – only around 12 hours. So, this makes is difficult to collect reliable statistics.

If you use the 50,000 number, that is only about 0.1 percent of the population of Colombia at about 50 million. So, that is approximately 1 out of 1,000 people. In addition, according to ACN, about 20 percent of hospital admissions for poisoning in Bogotá are due to this drug.

But more commonly used drugs are cheaper benzodiazepine drugs like valium and Xanax. A study by ACN in Bogotá found that out of nearly 1,000 patients admitted for scopolamine poisoning, 43.7 percent had benzodiazepine drugs in their system and only 12.5 percent had scopolamine in their system.

Provenza, one of the most popular party sectors in Medellín