It’s not abusable, it’s very hard to overdose, it has a use in a cough syrup (in as much as any cough syrup works), as far as I know it’s not easy to chemically change into something more “interesting” - why is pholocodeine a schedule 1 chemical? Just cause it has the word codeine in it?
According to Wiki (bless them - everybody! Nobody pays for Wiki - it’s like street entertainers - if you enjoy having them around, pony up!) says it’s found in cough drops in the US.
Why should any opiate be passed around freely? The US has a “deny first” mentality - it outlaws anything it considers a remotely abused drug - and allows only if an overwhelming need is shown.
For instance: hydrocodone: Sch II by itself; Sch III if compounded (vicoden, et al.)
Given how many Americans (not a majority, just a lot) are obsessed with “getting high” in whatever way they can, keeping anything even vaguely narcotic under strict control is barely enough to keep the druggies in check.
btw, I live in the Washington state, so I’m depressingly familiar with druggies and their habits.
Not just Americans. I’m fairly sure that it’s a universal (or at least global) thing and not just limited to humans, either.
I was about to post this very same thread the other day, this is a real baffler of a schedule 1 drug. I’ve read some WHO studies where they gave this to addicts in WD in various doses and zip zero effect.
I kinda want to bring some pholcodine linctus as a souvenir:)
WHO has done studies where they gave pholcodine to druggies and opiate addicts in WD, none reported any effect or relief at any dose.
I did some quick checking on druggie forums on the internet, no one claims any kind of narcotic effect from pholcodine, thats pretty remarkable. I can’t find one claim that pholcodine produced any kind of effect.