I-Dosing: Latest Trend in Teen Drug Use, and It’s Not Illegal

June 28th, 2010

While it is difficult for parents of today to keep up with their teenagers, we all should make concerted efforts to stay abreast of the latest dangers that threaten our children in the form of peer-pressure. Making sure that our children stay clear of such drugs as marijuana and harder substances is relatively easy in the face of the latest craze–digital drugs.

What are these so-called digital drugs, and how do they work? Time magazine reported on a trend called i-dosing, in which teens listen to audio files available on popular websites like YouTube. Listening to these audio clips is said to have the same neurological effects of marijuana and alcohol. On some websites, like iDoser.com, these tracks are sold for hefty prices and bear titles like "Cocaine" and "Opium."

In one YouTube video, a teen is filmed taking a "hit" of these digital drugs, and he then begins laughing uncontrollably. In another video, another teen, lying on a couch, wearing headphones and blinded, is violently shaking. These are only a couple of examples in a slew of YouTube videos depicting children under the influence of these binaural beats.

According to a Psychology Today article, however, these digital drugs are not as sinister as they may sound. Apparently, these sound tracks that are said to cause alternate states of mind have been around for almost two centuries. According to the article, Heinrich William Dove discovered in 1839 that feeding two constant tones at different frequencies in each ear induces a change in brain wave activity. And Dove’s discovery has since helped launch legitimate research in sound therapy.

However, what most concerns parents about the recent reportings of teenagers getting high off of these digital drugs is that they may serve as the gateway to further drug experimentation. In fact, this concern has become so great for some that, in one instance, the Oklahoma Burea of Narcotics issued a warning to parents to monitor their children’s Internet use. And Mustang Public High School has moreover begun clamping down on unmonitored student cell phone and Internet use.

Still, according to Psychology Today, teens turning to digital drugs in and of itself is relatively harmless. It only points to a typical desire among adolescents to try new things. While it is always advisable to monitor your children, especially those undergoing the rather trying times of adolescence, the media coverage of i-dosing, as with most new trends, will inevitably be overblown.

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