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By BBC
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One study indicates that the majority of cannabis sold on the streets of Madrid is contaminated with dangerous levels of faeces.
Analysts have found traces of E. coli and Aspergillus bacteria, which examined 90 samples purchased in and around the Spanish capital.
The samples that were wrapped in plastic "tbadels" were the worst offenders, apparently because of the way they were smuggled into the country.
Some 40% of them also have a fecal aroma, said the senior author of the study.
The purchase, sale and importation of cannabis are prohibited by law in Spain, just as its use in public – although it is technically legal to cultivate it for personal purposes, provided that it is not visible publicly, and consume it in private.
José Manuel Moreno Pérez, a pharmacologist at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, collected cannabis samples directly from street vendors in the city and surrounding suburbs to determine whether the drugs sold were fit for human consumption. .
His research team then separated the form contaminated samples, some looking like "tbadels" and others to "ingots", to determine if one form contained more contaminants than the other.
They found that 93% of the glans-shaped samples contained dangerous levels of E. coli, as did 29.4% of the ingot samples.
About 10% of cannabis samples were also contaminated with Aspergillus, a dangerous fungus that can cause serious health problems.
Most of the samples tested – 88.3% – were not fit for consumption.
Mr. Pérez then explained the contamination – and the smell – to the Spanish newspaper El País.
The acorns, he said, are more likely to be contaminated because of the way they were introduced into the country – the cannabis is wrapped in small plastic pellets and swallowed before the drug traffickers do not "take a laxative and expel" in a toilet. These are then sold by the resellers.
In addition to being unpleasant, what are the health risks?
According to the study, the risks badociated with E. coli and Aspergillus are serious enough to make the illegal sale of hashish on the streets "a public health problem".
For example, E. coli infection can cause diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, fever, and loss of blood in the feces, which can worsen some of the symptoms. diseases.
Meanwhile, inhalation of mold Aspergillus can cause serious problems to people already with lung diseases, such as asthma or cystic fibrosis, or in people with low immunity.
The study indicates that this is especially dangerous for cancer patients, who sometimes smoke cannabis to lessen the symptoms of chemotherapy.
"These patients have a weakened immune system, which means that an infection caused by the consumption of contaminated or adulterated hashish could be fatal," he adds.
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