Vaping cannabis or synthetic cannabinoids such as the banned substances PTC ("Pète ton crâne") or Buddha Blue, popular with teenagers and on social networks, poses "serious health risks", the drug agency warned on Thursday.
Psychiatric disorders – hallucinations, suicidal thoughts, panic attacks – but also digestive (nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain), cardiovascular (tachycardia, chest pain), kidney problems, severe addiction with withdrawal syndrome or even malaise, amnesia, loss of consciousness, convulsions… the list of “serious adverse effects” caused by the consumption of these psychoactive substances is long.
Far from reducing the risks associated with the use of these illicit products, vaping – or electronic cigarettes – “can on the contrary increase them, as the action of the products is faster,” indicates the National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Health Products (ANSM) in an opinion published on Thursday.
"We are seeing the persistent promotion of dangerous practices on social networks, and we would like to call on all audiences to be vigilant, but particularly the youngest," Agnès Laforest-Bruneaux, deputy director of the ANSM surveillance department, told AFP.
Teenagers inhale e-liquids, “obtained on the internet, in the street or at school, from friends” such as PTC (“Pète ton crâne”), or Buddha Blue, “very concentrated products,” she explains. And some “don’t feel well, have tachycardia, hallucinations, lose touch with reality… will go to the emergency room.”
“These vaped substances, cannabinoids, are narcotics: they are prohibited and present serious health risks, while this method of consumption can be perceived as less risky,” specifies Ms. Laforest-Bruneaux.
PTC can indeed contain "several synthetic cannabinoids, substances that mimic the effect of cannabis but whose potency can be greater", indicates the ANSM, whose monitoring, started in 2019 - enriched with data from Drogues Info Service and cases reported to poison control centers - covered 215 cases (including one death) in France in 2021-2022 and 139 in 2023-2024.
"It is not exhaustive, but it allows us to give a trend, to identify new substances that appear," indicates the head of the ANSM.
– Increase in addiction among young people –
"At the end of 2024, we received very close reports of serious adverse effects in high school students, which required fairly long hospitalizations and, over 2023-2024, half of the cases reported to us were serious cases, almost half of which concerned minors," she explains.
Even more worrying, "in the medium and long term", for "chronic users", we are seeing "significant addiction and dependency, which is increasing rapidly, with withdrawal symptoms, particularly among younger users", specifies Ms Laforest-Bruneaux.
The ANSM urges e-cigarette users to be vigilant when purchasing e-liquids that may contain synthetic cannabinoids with varying compositions and dosages. It also urges against making "homemade" mixtures of products that "increase the risk of poisoning that can lead to hospitalizations."
In the event of poisoning linked to vaping, manifested by "nausea and vomiting, malaise, amnesia, convulsions, loss of consciousness, delusional episode" or even "hallucinations or suicidal thoughts", the agency calls for immediate contact with the Samu (15), the fire brigade (18) or the emergency services.
She points out that in the event of addiction to vaping products – excluding nicotine – “young consumer consultations” offer those under 25 a free and confidential reception, listening and advice service.
The site drogues-info-service.fr provides information to help you find suitable care, from a doctor or a specialist organisation.
For emergency physicians, the ANSM reminds that detecting synthetic cannabinoids “is complex and requires specific analyses carried out by specialized laboratories.”
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