Teens use common household spice to get high

Law enforcement agencies in Philadelphia are seeing a new substance being used that is a part of almost every chef’s spice rack. Children in the area have been using nutmeg as a means to become intoxicated, reports NBC News.

Health officials told the news source that when this spice is smoked, similar to marijuana, it can lead to increased heart rate, blurred visions and even convulsions. They added that nutmeg can be just as dangerous as any narcotic and can be a gateway drug leading to harder drugs like cocaine and heroin.

Law enforcement is warning parents to be concerned. If kids are resorting to using a legal spice to become intoxicated, they are more likely to experiment with other drugs. Furthermore, they warned that teens can buy this spice without parental supervision and it is cheap

Teen boarding schools can help children who suffer from drug abuse by providing individualized education designed to help them achieve positive results in behavior and social aspects in life.

According the 2009 Youth Behavior Risk Behavior Survey, nearly 21 percent of high school students reported using marijuana in the 30 days prior to the study. Furthermore, over 6 percent of children between grades 9 and 12 were found to have used cocaine at some point.