Purple Drank – the name might suggest some sort of a fun drink that is not just so pretty to look at (purple is an attractive and beautiful colour), but also tastes very good; maybe the flavor of blueberry or grapes. You will never know until you try it, but do you really want to try it just because the name seems attractive to you? I do not think that that is a reason good enough. Let’s delve into what exactly purple drank, or rather lean drug is and leave it on you whether you want to try it or not.
Purple drank is an informal name given to a drug that is recreational in nature. Purple drank is prepared when the large doses of cough syrup (that is often prescribed and commonly termed as promethazine-codeine products) is mixed with carbonated drink and a hard candy. The cough syrup that is used in its preparation ha a deep purple colour and that is the reason behind its name.
It is regarded as a dangerous drug cocktail and it first emerged in 1990s. Since it was already termed as dangerous drink, its potential misuse was also highlighted when it first made its debut. Currently, the cough medicines that contain codeine fall into the classification of Schedule V drugs. These drugs are only sold with a prescription, otherwise they are illegal.
Though, we are aware of two of its names but this thing is known by many more names; they are Sizzurp, purple stuff, lean, drank, barre, Texas tea, Tsikuni, purple jelly, Memphis mud, and purple Sprite. Purple drank is composed of a recreational drug and the primary drug ingredient in this drink is codeine. Codeine is classified as an opioid. There is another drug in purple drank, which is antihistamine.
Now that we know about its composition and appearance, let’s move towards its side effects. It has numerous side effects that are often activated with the over dose. The most common side effects it bears are; nausea, impaired vision, euphoria, memory loss, hallucinations, dizziness, and seizures.
Don’t mistake any ordinary purple drink for “Purple Drank”.
This is a tricky one. There are some properties that discriminate purple drank from the other drinks. This so-called cough syrup, that is potentially a “killer”, is mixed with soda, or candy, or even alcohol. It has a signature taste that is extremely sweet or saccharine. It is in deep purple colour that is also one of the distinctive property. It is often drank in a styrofoam cup. These signs are good enough to recognize purple drank among other purple drinks.
What does Purple Drank do to your body?
It has been reported several times that a sip of purple drank causes dissociation from one’s body and puts a person in the state of euphoria. This state is often regarded as a swooning euphoria. It contains promethazine and codeine. Promethazine acts as a sedative in the drink and codeine is responsible for causing the feelings of euphoria. The effects are likely to last for three to six hours. You must have heard the name “lean”, but what is lean drug? It is another name for the purple drank because once it is consumed within the body, people have to lean on something to stand straight, because the effects are so strong that it becomes quite difficult for a person to stand straight. The state people get in is quite similar to the state of being very much drunk. However, it is quite dangerous and horrendous, the ease with which people get access to its low cost ingredients has made it relatively accessible for the people than other recreational drugs that people consume.
Common Side Effects of the Recreational Drug:
Since purple drank recreational drug is made by mixing carbonated soft drink and prescription based cough syrup, there is no definite way to know about the ratio of both the ingredients in any serving. There are high chances of overdose with such addicting drug cocktails. All the ingredients that it comprises are somehow associated with several side effects.
Let’s talk about the side effects caused by promethazine. When it is used under prescription, it is used to cater many disorders like it acts as an antihistamine, anti-vomiting agent and as a sedating agent. If it is consumed alone, it does not become the source of extreme pleasure or does not make a person euphoric, but when it is mixed with other drugs that are depressants, like codeine or alcohol, it becomes a high source of euphoria. When the excessive dose of promethazine is taken, it affects the heart rhythm, making it abnormal. Moreover, it causes rapid changes in blood pressure, dry skin, hallucinations, seizures and eventually, severe breathing problems.
Promethazine alone has so much side effects and in addition to that, codeine is nothing short of a problem in itself. The human body metabolizes the codeine drug into morphine. The cough syrup that is found in the prescription, has codeine that is used to suppress the cough. In addition to that, morphine and the other opioids cause the feelings of elation or extreme pleasure, analgesia and euphoria. There are other dangerous side effects as well, that includes damage to the brain, feelings of extreme dizziness, redness on the body parts like arms, face, neck and chest, shortness of breath and it also causes a stop in the heart beat.
Now that we have covered the side effects of promethazine and codeine, let’s move forward and shed some light on the side effects of depressants. Purple drank is composed of many different depressants that altogether cause a person coma. It also contributes to dangerously low blood pressure that eventually causes hypotension. It also causes respiratory depression and sleepiness. Moreover, it has also been found to be a contributing factor to stupor and a sudden death.
As a matter of scientific fact, it’s uncertain how much amount of purple drank is deadly.