Can Cobra Venom Get You High? Two Rajasthan Men’s Addiction to Poison Becomes Curious Subject for Research

Two men from Rajasthan are addicted to cobra venom just like people who use narcotics to get high. Cocaine, meth, hash or heroine are not drugs that can get these men high anymore. They need the cobra venom and have been using it without causing any damage to their bodies.

While one bite of a cobra is enough to kill 20 people, these men have been letting cobras bite their tongues as narcotics no more give them a high. As the news spread, Chandigarh's Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research are conducting a study on them. Their case history is now a published in the 'Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine'.

Their case report has been published in the 'Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine'. Doctors Aseem Mehra, Debashish Basu and Sandeep Grover conducted the study named, 'Snake venom use a substitute for opioids: A case report and review of the literature'.

In Rajasthan, snake venom is widely used instead of drugs. Getting high on snake bite is quite common in communities in northwest Rajasthan. They either use it as a substitute or mix it with other substances

The men from Rajasthan have been on the opioid for more than 15 years. A report in The Times of India quoted Dr Grover as saying, "The study was undertaken to make clinicians aware about such substance abuse for recreational purposes as not much medical literature is available. Until now only four reports of the use of snake venom for recreational purposes have been published in India. These two users were from well-off families.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 14, 2018 04:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).