Nation to become first to control entire class of synthetic cannabis

China will become the first country in the world to control the entire class of synthetic cannabinoids - man-made substances identical to chemicals found in the cannabis plant - the country's National Narcotics Control Commission announced on Tuesday.

The chemicals are designed to circumvent legal controls and can produce similar or even stronger effects than cannabis, Deng Ming, the commission's deputy director, said at a news briefing.

These drugs are made in large quantities and varieties with new variations emerging rapidly. Globally, 297 variations have been identified and China has found 103, he said.

These substances are cheap, more addictive than cannabis and cause more harm. Users can suffer from dizziness, vomiting, delusions and hallucinations, and overdose can lead to shock, suffocation and sudden death, he said.

Yu Haibin, another official from the commission, said the substances are also easy to conceal, often disguised in e-cigarette liquids, flower petals or plant stems.

He said international conventions normally control the use of individual psychoactive substances, but that practice tends to lag the emergence of new variations.

Since no valuable clinical use has yet been found for synthetic cannabinoid substances, banning the entire category is effective, Yu said.

This is China's second entire class of substances put under control after the country banned all fentanyl-related substances in 2019.

The regulation will come into force on July 1, together with 18 new psychoactive substances including fluoroketamine.

Chinese authorities will establish standards for assessing the addictive and harmful properties of synthetic cannabinoids and deepen the crackdown on illegal manufacturing and smuggling.

According to Deng, new psychoactive substances are on the rise, posing a serious challenge to the world's anti-drug efforts.

In the last five years, about 450 new variations of psychoactive substances have appeared worldwide. China has discovered 317 new psychoactive substances, with more than 50 new variations in the last three years, he said.