Lean, also known by the popular street name “purple drank,” is an illicit substance made with codeine, containing cough syrup, soda, hard candy, occasionally alcohol, and the antihistamine, promethazine. An individual can develop a lean addiction in a relatively short period due to how opioids impact the brain’s reward response system. Lean, also known as purple drank or sizzurp, is a slang term for a codeine-promethazine cough syrup concoction mixed with soda and candy. Drinking lean to get high can be dangerous and may be a sign of drug abuse. The mixture of Codeine cough syrup, Promethazine, and sodas come in various forms, and go by different names. There are numerous slang terms for a lean drink which include, purple drank, Sizzurp, Syrup, Drank, barre, purple jelly, Texas tea, Dirty Sprite, and Tsikuni.
Promethazine
According to the Monitoring the Future survey, about 3.2 percent of high school seniors abused prescription or over-the-counter cough or cold medicine in 2017. The most commonly used ingredients are prescription cough syrup that contains the opioid codeine and the antihistamine promethazine. Contrary https://sober-house.org/understanding-alcohol-and-anger-s-connection/ to what one might believe from its pop culture references, drinking lean can be very dangerous—largely due to the risk of overdose, addiction, and other health effects. Lean is a slang term used to refer to codeine cough syrup that’s been mixed with soda, hard candy, and sometimes alcohol.
Is Lean Addictive?
The sheer sweetness of purple drank masks the dangerous drugs in it, which might encourage someone to drink more of it. And drinking large amounts could lead to an overdose of codeine and promethazine. In conclusion, it’s essential to prioritize one’s well-being and seek help if struggling with lean addiction.
Signs and Symptoms of Lean Addiction
However, the modern concoction, as we know it, gained popularity in the early 1990s within the hip-hop community in the Southern United States. By understanding these demographics, we can better identify at-risk populations and provide targeted education, prevention efforts, and treatment options for those who need it most. Research suggests that certain demographics may be more susceptible to developing a Lean addiction.
Long-term Health Risks
This leads to euphoria and other pleasant feelings, as well as drowsiness and even sedation. Codeine is a prescription opioid that is a controlled substance in the U.S. The drug is prescribed to treat mild-to-moderate pain and as a cough suppressor. Although codeine is less potent than morphine, it is a highly addictive opioid that can cause overdose.
Sometimes, people may even combine codeine with other substances, like promethazine and Sprite, to intensify their high. A common illicit combination of codeine, promethazine and Sprite is called purple drank. Lean is a mixture of codeine and other ingredients, such as soda and candy.
- Plus, your chances of overdosing are a lot higher when you combine alcohol with codeine or DXM.
- Aside from the addictive nature of opioids, the mixture of lean combines highly euphoric and sedating effects and the potent sugar high from soda and hard candy.
- Decreased heart rate and respiratory depression can both be dangerous on their own and are the primary cause of death by overdose.
- Lean can also have harmful interactions with other drugs, including some OTC medications.
Lean is made by mixing prescription cough syrup, hard candy, and soda (usually lemon-lime soda). While exact figures don’t appear to be available, drinking lean can and has killed people. The most dangerous of its effects will generally be its ability to suppress breathing, causing the brain to not get enough air.
When someone has codeine and Sprite mixed together in the form of lean, they feel a dissociative sense of euphoria, lethargy, drowsiness and impairment of their motor skills. In many cases, purple drank is also taken along with salvia drug overview alcohol or other drugs, upping the risks even more. Lean is a mixture of prescription-strength codeine cough syrup that contains promethazine (an antihistamine and antiemetic), lemon-lime soda, and hard, fruit-flavored candy.
If someone has developed a tolerance and dependence on codeine, they are well on their way to an addiction. One of the subReddit moderators that provided approval gave access to recruit from 3 other substance-related subReddits not initially contacted by the PI. After receiving moderator approval, recruitment materials crack cocaine wikipedia were posted to a total of 7 subReddits focused on substances approximately once per week from October 2022 to November 2022 on a rolling basis. In these instances, the post would only include the wording from the survey flyers without a QR code. The survey, survey link, and QR code were active until early January 2023.
People who are addicted to lean or codeine cough syrup can get help from a West Palm Beach drug rehab center. Due to lean’s popularity in the media, many people underestimate the dangers and addictive nature of drinking purple drank. After all, endless celebrities such as Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, Justin Bieber, Future, and more have been seen sipping lean in their music videos or writing music about it. Codeine is similar to morphine and it is one of the weaker prescription opioids. Even though it is far weaker than drugs like oxycodone or Dilaudid, codeine is still highly addictive and harmful to the body when abused.