Social media is being used to sell vapes containing a synthetic drug called spice.
Despite vaping being illegal for those under 18 in the UK, teenagers as young as 13 have purchased vape liquids online and many of these, worryingly, have been laced with a synthetic drug called ‘spice’. More concerningly still, in many cases, the purchasers have no knowledge that their vape liquid was laced with the drug. 1
What is spice?
‘Spice’ is a nickname for synthetic cannabinoids. These are drugs designed to mimic the effects of cannabis but ‘they are more harmful and unpredictable than cannabis.’ These can include powders, concentrated liquids or dried plant material, and can be dissolved and sprayed onto paper. 2 It has also been referred to as a ‘zombie drug’.1
Some of the symptoms and health risks include:
- inability to move
- dizziness
- breathing difficulties
- chest pain
- heart palpitations
- seizures
- extreme anxiety
- paranoia
- suicidal thoughts
- psychosis
- gastrointestinal issues – like vomiting or diarrhoea
- acute kidney injury. 2
Like with any drug, there are withdrawal effects when someone who has taken them regularly over a long period stops. Some of these symptoms for synthetic cannabinoids include:
- headaches
- anxiety
- low mood
- difficulty concentrating
- irritability
- restlessness
- cravings. 2
As well as being more harmful because of their unpredictability and increased potency, synthetic cannabinoids are also cheaper to produce than cannabis, which is a worrying factor in tackling the production, selling and purchasing of these drugs.
What do we know about teenagers’ use?
New research from the University of Bath has found that in one area, more than 1 in 4 of confiscated vapes from school children tested positive for spice. 1 The University of Bath looked at vaping over the last two academic years in seven police force areas – London, South Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Devon and Cornwall, Essex and Lancashire – and found that the use of e-cigarettes by young people in these areas is rising and that an average of 12.9% of all their tested samples (collected from schools in those regions) contained spice. These percentages varied across different regions, for example, 23.1% of e-cigarettes and liquids seized from London schools in 2023-2024 contained spice – compared to 2.5% of those from schools in Essex (2024-2025). 3
Findings from Wedinos, national drug checking service, reflect this concerning trend, as they found 40% of the 300 vape samples they received contained the substance. 1
Concerningly, social media apps are being used to sell and purchase vape liquids, including those containing synthetic cannabinoids. Snapchat removed over 2.4 million drug related posts and disabled 516,000 accounts in relation in 2024. It also explained that, “Using Snapchat to buy or sell vapes and illegal drugs is strictly against our rules…We use technologies to proactively find and shut down dealers’ accounts, block search results for a wide range of drug-related terms and support law enforcement efforts.” Similarly, platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and Facebook have said they ‘proactively shut down dealers’ accounts, blocked drug-related search terms and supported law enforcement.’ 1
Learn more
Understand the risk of synthetic cannabinoids
Read The University of Bath’s research
Read Young Mind’s tips for talking to young people about alcohol and drugs
