According to the UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime), the use of mephedrone, a synthetic drug often touted as a legal alternative to amphetamine or cocaine, has become widespread, with increasing reports from Europe, North America and Australia.

Mephedrone, also known as drone, miaow miaow or M-cat, is not under international control, and the true extent and patterns of its use are unclear and probably underestimated.

So far, little is known about this drug as it currently appears on the illicit markets, says Beate Hammond, manager of the UNODC synthetic drugs programme, and even small amounts might pose a danger associated with its use. There have already been reports of mephedrone-related deaths.

To shed more light on the issue of synthetic drugs, UNODC operates the Global Synthetics Monitoring: Analysis, Reporting and Trends (SMART) Programme. SMART teams work with governments to develop, assess and report data and information on synthetic drugs, assisting countries in their planning of prevention and law enforcement responses.

More coverage on mephedrone is available in the latest issue of the Global SMART Update.

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