According to a new study, the vast majority of cannabis sold on the streets of Madrid contains dangerous levels of faeces and is unfit for human consumption.
Manuel Pérez Moreno, a pharmacologist at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, obtained 90 cannabis resin samples from various drug traffickers in the Spanish capital and discovered E Coli Aspergillus bacteria and fungi in a large proportion of the samples.
E Coli present in 75% of the samples badyzed – an indicator of faecal contamination. And 10% was contaminated with Aspergillus – a dangerous fungus that can cause lung infections, especially in people with underlying health problems.
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The average amount of faecal bacteria in each gram of resin was 500 times higher than the maximum limit set by US law for marijuana or by the European regulation for fruits and tea, the study revealed.
Mr. Pérez said that drug trafficking methods were the main reason for the high contamination.
According to the Spanish newspaper El Pais, he added, traffickers pack the cannabis resin in a transparent film the size of an acorn and ingest them, ball after bullet, after eating yogurt to neutralize the acids of the stomach.
"When they arrive in Spain, they take laxatives and emit acorns. And this is on sale, "said the pharmacist.
He reported that 93% of the cannabis contained in these acorns contained E. coliand stated that 40% of purchased acorns had a fecal odor.
"Most of the hashish sold in Madrid is not suitable for human consumption, mainly because of microbiological criteria, and represents a danger to health", he concludes in his study, published in in the newspaper International legal science.
Of all the samples obtained, 83.3% were considered dangerous for human consumption.
The authors of the study warned that the dangers can affect vulnerable patients who buy cannabis illegally to manage pain.
They said that in recent years, the number of people with cancer who smoked cannabis had increased while they were trying to reduce the side effects of chemotherapy.
"These patients have a weakened immune system, so an infection caused by the consumption of contaminated or adulterated hash can be fatal," the study said.
Combustion does not reduce all risks, said Pérez.
"The seal filters are hollow. Not only do you suck the smoke, you also suck particles, "he said.
Biologist Immaculada Santos, co-author of the study and professor at the university, said El Pais"The quantities of bacteria we have seen are outrageous. The problem is not just inhalation. Hashish is constantly handled with his hands. "