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Club drugs are a loosely-defined category of recreational drugs which are associated with discothèques in the 1970s and dance clubs, parties, and rave
Rave

A rave is a term in use since the 1980s, to describe dance party with fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties disc jockeys and other performers play Electronica, Trance music, and Techno ,...
s in the 1980s to the 2000s. . Unlike many other categories, such as opiate
Opiate

In medicine, the term opiate describes any of the narcotic alkaloids found in opium, as well as any derivatives of such alkaloids....
s, which are established according to pharmaceutical properties, club drugs are a "category of convenience", which includes drugs ranging from phenethylamines such as the popular ecstasy to the lesser known 2C-B
2C-B

2C-B or 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine is a Psychedelics, dissociatives and deliriants of the 2C's, an Empathogen-entactogen. It was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin in 1974....
, inhalant
Inhalant

Inhalants are a broad range of drugs in the forms of gases,aerosols, or solvents which are breathed in and absorbed through the lungs. While some inhalant drugs are used for List of medical inhalants, as in the case of nitrous oxide , this article focuses on the non-medical use of inhalants, as recreational drugs which are used for their int...
s (nitrous oxide
Nitrous oxide

Nitrous oxide, commonly known as "laughing gas", is a chemical compound with the chemical formula Nitrogen2Oxygen. At room temperature, it is a colorless Flammability gas, with a pleasant, slightly sweet odor and taste....
 and amyl nitrite "poppers
Poppers

Poppers is the street term for various alkyl nitrites taken for recreational purposes through direct inhalant, particularly amyl nitrite, butyl nitrite, isopropyl nitrite and isobutyl nitrite....
"), stimulants (such as amphetamines and cocaine
Cocaine

Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine....
), and hallucinogens such as LSD
LSD

Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, LSD-25, or acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family. Its unusual psychological effects, which include visuals of colored patterns behind the eyes in the mind, a sense of time distorting, and crawling geometric patterns, have made it one of the most widely known psyched...
 and psilocybin mushrooms. Dancers at all-night parties use these drugs for their stimulating or psychedelic properties.






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Club drugs are a loosely-defined category of recreational drugs which are associated with discothèques in the 1970s and dance clubs, parties, and rave
Rave

A rave is a term in use since the 1980s, to describe dance party with fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties disc jockeys and other performers play Electronica, Trance music, and Techno ,...
s in the 1980s to the 2000s. . Unlike many other categories, such as opiate
Opiate

In medicine, the term opiate describes any of the narcotic alkaloids found in opium, as well as any derivatives of such alkaloids....
s, which are established according to pharmaceutical properties, club drugs are a "category of convenience", which includes drugs ranging from phenethylamines such as the popular ecstasy to the lesser known 2C-B
2C-B

2C-B or 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine is a Psychedelics, dissociatives and deliriants of the 2C's, an Empathogen-entactogen. It was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin in 1974....
, inhalant
Inhalant

Inhalants are a broad range of drugs in the forms of gases,aerosols, or solvents which are breathed in and absorbed through the lungs. While some inhalant drugs are used for List of medical inhalants, as in the case of nitrous oxide , this article focuses on the non-medical use of inhalants, as recreational drugs which are used for their int...
s (nitrous oxide
Nitrous oxide

Nitrous oxide, commonly known as "laughing gas", is a chemical compound with the chemical formula Nitrogen2Oxygen. At room temperature, it is a colorless Flammability gas, with a pleasant, slightly sweet odor and taste....
 and amyl nitrite "poppers
Poppers

Poppers is the street term for various alkyl nitrites taken for recreational purposes through direct inhalant, particularly amyl nitrite, butyl nitrite, isopropyl nitrite and isobutyl nitrite....
"), stimulants (such as amphetamines and cocaine
Cocaine

Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine....
), and hallucinogens such as LSD
LSD

Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, LSD-25, or acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family. Its unusual psychological effects, which include visuals of colored patterns behind the eyes in the mind, a sense of time distorting, and crawling geometric patterns, have made it one of the most widely known psyched...
 and psilocybin mushrooms. Dancers at all-night parties use these drugs for their stimulating or psychedelic properties. "Club drugs" vary by country and region; in some areas, even opiates such as heroin
Heroin

Heroin is a opioid synthesized from morphine, a derivative of the opium poppy. It is the 3,6-acetate ester of morphine . The white crystalline form is commonly the hydrochloride salt diacetylmorphine hydrochloride, however heroin Freebase may also appear as a white powder....
 are sold at clubs though this practice is relatively uncommon.

Types

Examples of drugs typically categorized as club drugs include ecstasy, various amphetamines and less obviously suitable substances like the depressants GHB
Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid

gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid, 4-hydroxybutanoic acid, or GHB is a naturally-occurring substance found in the central nervous system, wine, beef, small citrus fruits, and almost all animals in small amounts....
 and ketamine
Ketamine

Ketamine is a drug used in human and veterinary medicine developed by Parke-Davis in 1962. Its hydrochloride salt is sold as Ketanest, Ketaset, and Ketalar....
 (which do not act as stimulants, but are commonly referred to as club drugs). 'Poppers
Poppers

Poppers is the street term for various alkyl nitrites taken for recreational purposes through direct inhalant, particularly amyl nitrite, butyl nitrite, isopropyl nitrite and isobutyl nitrite....
' is the street name of amyl, butyl and isobutyl nitrite (collectively known as alkyl nitrites
Alkyl nitrites

Alkyl nitrites are chemical compounds of structure R-ONO. Formally they are alkyl esters of nitrous acid. They are distinct from nitro compounds ....
), which are clear, yellow volatile liquids which are inhaled for their intoxicating effects. Nitrites originally came as small glass capsules that were popped open, which led to the nickname 'poppers'. The drug became popular in the UK first on the disco/club scene of the 1970s and then at dance and rave venues in the 1980s and 1990s. The "club drugs" vary by country and region. "In Delaware, heroin (and many other drugs) are sold at clubs and at "raves" -- often to very young users. Though far less common than other "club drugs" like MDMA, ketamine, or LSD
LSD

Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, LSD-25, or acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family. Its unusual psychological effects, which include visuals of colored patterns behind the eyes in the mind, a sense of time distorting, and crawling geometric patterns, have made it one of the most widely known psyched...
, heroin
Heroin

Heroin is a opioid synthesized from morphine, a derivative of the opium poppy. It is the 3,6-acetate ester of morphine . The white crystalline form is commonly the hydrochloride salt diacetylmorphine hydrochloride, however heroin Freebase may also appear as a white powder....
 can be found in some of New York's clubs."

Although the previously mentioned selection of drugs are generally categorized as club drugs by the media and the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 government, this distinction probably does not have an accurate correlation to real usage patterns. For example, alcohol
Alcohol

In chemistry, an alcohol is any organic compound in which a hydroxyl Functional group is bound to a carbon atom of an alkyl or substituted alkyl group....
 is generally not included under the category of club drugs, even though it is probably used more than any other drug at clubs. Ketamine
Ketamine

Ketamine is a drug used in human and veterinary medicine developed by Parke-Davis in 1962. Its hydrochloride salt is sold as Ketanest, Ketaset, and Ketalar....
 has long history of being used in clubs and was one of the most popular substances used in the New York Club Kid
Club Kids

The Club Kids were a group of young clubheads led by Michael Alig and James St. James in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This group was famous for their outrageous costumes and extensive drug use -- in particular, ecstasy , ketamine, and heroin, although preferences ranged....
 scene. Ketamine produces a dissociative state, characterised by a sense of detachment from one's physical body and the external world which is known as depersonalization
Depersonalization

Depersonalization is an alteration in the perception or experience of the self so that one feels detached from, and as if one is an outside observer of, one's mental processes or body....
 and derealization
Derealization

Derealization is an alteration in the perception or experience of the external world so that it seems strange or unreal. Other symptoms include feeling as though one's environment is lacking in spontaneity, emotional colouring and depth....
. Hallucinations and effects include changes in the perception of distances, relative scale, colour and durations/time, as well as a slowing of the visual system's ability to update what the user is seeing. At high doses sounds can be out of sync with the user's visual field. Colors can also turn to sound and sound into color.

In the 2000s, synthetic phenethylamines such as 2C-I
2C-I

2C-I is a Psychedelics, Dissociatives and Deliriants and phenethylamine of the 2C . It was developed and popularized by Alexander Shulgin. It was described in Shulgin?s book PiHKAL....
, 2C-B
2C-B

2C-B or 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine is a Psychedelics, dissociatives and deliriants of the 2C's, an Empathogen-entactogen. It was first synthesized by Alexander Shulgin in 1974....
 and DOB
2,5-Dimethoxy-4-bromoamphetamine

DOB, also known as Brolamfetamine and Bromo-DMA, is a psychedelic Psychedelics, dissociatives and deliriants and a substituted amphetamine of the phenethylamine class of compounds, which can be used as an entheogen....
 have been referred to as club drugs due to their stimulating and psychedelic nature (and their chemical relationship with MDMA).

History

In the mid- to late-1970s disco
Disco

Disco is a genre of dance music that originated in and was initially popular among African American, gay and Hispanic and Latino Americans communities in the United States in the late 1960s....
 club scene, there was a thriving drug subculture, particularly for drugs that would enhance the experience of dancing to the loud dance music and the flashing lights on the dancefloor, such as cocaine
Cocaine

Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine....
  (nicknamed "blow"), amyl nitrite "poppers
Poppers

Poppers is the street term for various alkyl nitrites taken for recreational purposes through direct inhalant, particularly amyl nitrite, butyl nitrite, isopropyl nitrite and isobutyl nitrite....
" , and the "...other quintessential 1970s club drug Quaalude, which suspended motor coordination
Motor coordination

Motor coordination is among the most fundamental aspects of everyday life, seen in reaching for the morning cup of coffee to hitting the buttons on a clock to set your morning alarm....
 and turned one’s arms and legs to Jell-O
Jell-O

Jell-O is a brand name belonging to U.S.-based Kraft Foods for a number of gelatin desserts, including fruit gels, puddings and no-bake cream pies....
." According to Peter Braunstein
Peter Braunstein

Peter Braunstein is a New York City-based journalist, writer, and playwright who became infamous for committing a October 31 2005 sexual assault, leading police on a multi-state manhunt until his capture and self-injury in Memphis, Tennessee on December 16 2005....
, "[m]assive quantities of drugs [were] ingested in discothèques".

See also

  • Party pills
    Party pills

    Party pills, also known as "herbal highs", "pep pills" "dance pills" and "natural power", is a colloquialism for a type of recreational drug whose main ingredient was originally benzylpiperazine , but has now expanded to a wide range of compounds with a variety of effects....
  • Rave
    Rave

    A rave is a term in use since the 1980s, to describe dance party with fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties disc jockeys and other performers play Electronica, Trance music, and Techno ,...


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