The young girl stood in front of her parents and their friends and started to read the list of all the drugs she and her friends had been able to buy in their small community. The long list included heroin, marijuana, cocaine, oxycontin, and finally, embalming fluid. Embalming fluid? What on earth do you do with embalming fluid?

Photo compliments of http://www.drugfreehomes.org

Smoking marijuana cigarettes or tobacco cigars and cigarettes laced with embalming fluid and PCP was popular in large cities several years ago. It is now becoming popular with young addicts in small towns.

Sometimes called fry, fry stick, or wet, these cigarettes produce hallucinations or paranoia and aggression. Users often think they posses super human powers and exhibit erratic behavior. The typical hangover includes crushing headaches and loss of memory.

The long-term effects of substance abuse of embalming fluid and PCP range from brain damage to death and can include kidney damage, lung damage, muscle damage, and spinal cord destruction. Most young drug users are unaware of the damage fry sticks can cause.

Early studies have concluded fry is highly addictive and can be addictive with the first use. It can also have important medical consequences of sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS, and mental health issues. Because embalming fluid is legal and available online, even young dealers can process their own fry sticks.

Law enforcement and hospital emergency departments are training employees to recognize fry stick users so they can receive proper treatment. Parents and health care professionals now have to educate themselves to stay ahead of their children in order to recognize this and related addictions.