After the death of a B.C. man at a weekend party, experts are warning that the drug GHB doesn't have the deadly reputation it should.
Surrey RCMP were called to a home on 143 Street at 4 a.m. on Saturday and discovered an unconscious man lying on the floor.
Police say the 35-year-old died at the scene, but won't comment further, saying the investigation is now in the hands of the BC Coroners Service. Witnesses have said the man may have taken the so-called date-rape drug GHB shortly before he collapsed.
Vancouver clinical psychiatrist Dr. Shao Hua Lu, who specializes in drugs and addiction, says he's concerned about the growing use of the sedative, which he says is dangerously unpredictable.
"There is high individual variability. So what is okay for you can be potentially fatal for me," he told CTV News.
GHB -- or "G" to users -- is popular in gay and club culture. Users say it makes them feel euphoric and sexy.
It was once a legal sedative, but Lu says it was found to be far too dangerous and it was taken off the market for common use.
But that hasn't stopped its illegal manufacture in crude labs. Like crystal meth, experts say you can't ever be sure about what you're getting.
Lu says its use among youth is growing fast.
"The latest information from the U.S. estimates anywhere between 10 to 20 per cent of individuals under age 19 have tried GHB," he said.
Lu likens it to a chemical Russian roulette. He says that even a slight amount of GHB can shut off the automatic signal from the brain that controls breathing.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Peter Grainger
