I was just reading up on Salvia D., the herb cum halucinogen. IT is apparently legal and was used by shaman in some mexican tribes. Have any of you tried it? If so, what is your opinion?
Also, as with all drugs, there are some cautionary tales of taking too much. My question is whether anyopne here knows of any real dangers in taking it.
[yes, I know about google. Most of the sites sem very pro-salvia and I want to get an opinion from people here.
Salvia is a toxic substance in certain doses. As it is difficult to regulate dosage in natural plants, I would avoid against ingesting something that could kill you.
FYI, also be sure you have the right species: there are several thousand species of Salvia.
Yes, Salvia does sound interesting. And quite safe–for what it’s worth, there have been no reported overdoses as of yet.
I’ve never tried it myself, but I asked pretty much the same question here last year. Got some interesting responses as well as some pointers to previous threads on this subject. And don’t forget to check Erowid’s Salvia Vault–lots of current information there, including many accounts of user’s experiences with it.
Here’s my old thread: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=77366&highlight=Salvia
I think I should clarify my above post. There have been no fatal overdoses caused by Salvia Divinorum. The human oral lethal dose is believed to be extremely high. This is because swallowed salvinorin is not well absorbed. As far as smoking it goes, one could reasonably expect to pass out before he/she could take a lethal overdose.
HOWEVER, this does not mean Salvia Divinorum is entirely safe! Salvia intoxication causes extreme disorientation. In large doses users have reported losing control of their body–it’s not uncommon to get up and move about recklessly. This could lead to a serious accident if one does not have someone there to watch them! Never experiment with this, or any, drug while alone!
On the other hand, many users report beneficial results from the use of this plant. Its use as an aid to meditation iscurrently being studied. There are also reports of Salvia Divinorum being used to treat chronic depression: Antidepressant Effects of the Herb Salvia Divinorum: A Case Report
Mr’s. Zambezi and Frink,
Perhaps neither of you has noticed in the past when we moderators have urged our posters not to encourage others to do stupid, dangerous things - even if they’re legal. As another poster said, there are many kinds of Salvia and they are all toxic to different degrees. Please drop it now. Thank you.