Pubdate: Sat, 31 Oct 2015 Source: Honolulu Star-Advertiser (HI) Copyright: 2015 Star Advertiser Contact: http://www.staradvertiser.com/info/Star-Advertiser_Letter_to_the_Editor.html Website: http://www.staradvertiser.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5154 Author: Leila Fujimori CANNABIS IN CANDIES HAS OFFICIALS ON HIGH ALERT Tainted Treats Send Several High-Schoolers to the Emergency Room Manufactured cannabis-laced fruit candy that has sickened Oahu teens in recent weeks may be touching off anxiety among parents of trick-or-treaters this Halloween. Several high school students wound up in Oahu hospital emergency rooms after ingesting candy with THC, the active ingredient and chief intoxicant in marijuana. The source was traced to packaged rolled-fruit candy, said Keith Kamita, state Narcotics Enforcement Division chief. As part of Halloween-safety awareness, "we are educating the public there are candies and fruit roll-ups that they should be aware of," Kamita said. Candies containing THC - whether in chocolates and brownies or fruit roll-ups and hard candies - are illegal to distribute in Hawaii, he said. High THC levels in the packaged candies can cause rises in blood pressure and heart rate, as well as nausea, he said. "They may hallucinate and that's the spooky part," Kamita said. "They may run into traffic or do something else." Because the products are packaged, the old advice about keeping only commercially wrapped Halloween candy may no longer be sufficient. "We've been telling parents to be extra vigilant," he said. "Before, we told them if it's not packaged by a commercial company" and appears to be homemade, toss it out. "Now we're thinking some of these products look like they're manufactured," he added. Kamita's advice to parents: "Have kids bring candies all the way home, and go through it before the kids eat it or when trick-or-treating with the kids." He added, "It may not happen, but why take the chance?" The laced rolled-fruit candies have been found on Kauai, Maui, the Big Island and Oahu, so it's being distributed, he said. Hawaii Heart Foundation Executive Director Pamela Foster said she learned in September that several high school students had turned up in Oahu emergency rooms with symptoms including hallucinations due to consuming the candies. She said she reported the matter to police and posted a warning about the candies on the nonprofit's website. "This looks like it's real cute, yellow-and-red striped, nicely packaged," she said. It's one thing if a teen eats it, but "if a young child got a hold of this, it could be deadly. We understand they're very tasty." Foster, a former emergency room registered nurse, said, "I understand what's going to happen when a 3- or 4-year-old eats one of these fruit roll-ups and shows up at the ER near dead from ingesting THC." The label on the candy says the ingredients include 250 milligrams of cannabis extract. "Parents need to be aware of this kind of stuff, and it is out there," Foster said. Last Halloween, Kauai police warned parents about marijuana-coated candy, saying it was gaining popularity where marijuana is legal. Kamita said the rolled-fruit product was illegally manufactured and sold, but the agency is still trying to track down the source, which according to one label was a company called Shaka Organics Hawaii. "It seems to be made in Hawaii," he said. However, it is not being openly sold here. The Narcotics Enforcement Division has found the cannabis candies are being sold over the Internet, including on Facebook, Instagram and Craigslist. "The dealer has changed," Kamita said. Another concern is that such products could be coming from states such as Colorado, where recreational pot use and medical dispensaries are legal. Although medical marijuana is legal in Hawaii, the state does not yet have dispensaries. "Hawaii wouldn't allow these types of products," he said. "Hawaii will only allow tinctures, lozenges or oils but no brownies, fruit roll-ups or candies." - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom