Marketed as "natural" and "safe" alternatives to marijuana, these products were often sold in gas stations and head shops. Because the chemicals were lab-created and constantly changing, they bypassed early drug laws. Spice/ K2, Synthetic Marijuana - DEA.gov
The story of is a narrative of scientific research gone wrong, a global "legal high" epidemic, and an ongoing crisis within the American prison system. 1. The Laboratory Origin k2-spice-paper
The story begins not on the street, but in the laboratories of in 1995. Professor John W. Huffman was researching the effects of cannabinoids on the brain and synthesized a series of compounds to mimic THC. One of these, JWH-018 (named after his initials), was documented in academic papers. Marketed as "natural" and "safe" alternatives to marijuana,