Sniffy, the legal powder to snort: citrulline for citrulli

The product is already on sale in numerous European countries because it is legal. But in France, tobacconists refused to put it on sale

ROME – I bet, Sniffy will soon conquer many noses. At the moment, according to the news, it is mostly young and very young people who buy it online. It’s a white powder, but look, flavored with various flavors. Reserved for adults (seeee) promises an instant increase in energy for 20-30 minutesall Superman or Superwoman. It contains caffeine, taurine and creatine, then arginine, citrulline, beta-alanine and maltodextrin. Above all, citrulline intrigued me, also because we know that the world is full of citrulli who are ready for anything. It exists, citrulline is an amino acid. Once synthesized in the body, citrulline is involved in particular in the urea cycle through which ammonia – a toxic substance – is transformed into urea which is easily eliminated from the body in urine.

Returning to Sniffy, it is clear that it could soon become a problem, there is a strong message that links it directly to cocaine, the same white powder, which is taken in the same way, directly from the nose thanks to a mini straw supplied with the package. Sniffy is already on sale in numerous European countries, it is legal. The news tells of the revolt of the French tobacconists, who refused to put it on sale. We will see if this dam will withstand the impact of the pressing and ever-increasing demand for citrulli. Another problem is how to know if in the end whoever has the powder in their hands will respect the recommended dose of 2 grams per day. This is the latest to come from the free market. In Italy the Meloni Government has already said that it will use harsh methods against drugs. In these hours all the producers of legal hemp know something about it, which an amendment in the Chamber has effectively outlawed. There was a strong protest from the Italian Hemp Entrepreneurs’ Association, which immediately asked for the opening of a table of consultation with the Government. Because, they say, there are tens of thousands of workers and the activities of hundreds of entrepreneurs who have made and are making investments in danger. It is necessary, they explain, to underline that industrial hemp inflorescences do not constitute drugs or narcotic substances, but represent a safe agricultural product, which does not put public safety at risk. The approval of this amendment would unfairly penalize a production sector that includes numerous companies and operators, employing over 10,000 people and generating a turnover of more than 500 million euros.

Industrial hemp is a resource of great value for Italian agriculture contributing to environmental sustainability, crop diversification and the creation of jobs in many regions of the country. Returning to Sniffy, I tried to understand why the need to take drugs is growing. Reading research carried out in the psychological field above all, we understand that the same drugs take on different functions based on the meanings with which those who are addicted construct their world. Leaving aside the vast literature and renowned writers who over the decades have churned out works upon works about their experiences with drugs, in the end the motivation seems to converge on the universal and ever-present desire for self-transcendence, the need we all feel to take a break from the conscious personality and its self-affirmation problems. A study conducted on drug addicts engaged in a rehabilitation process (and I thank the psychologist Chiara Pensa and the psychologist and psychotherapist Valeria Ugazio) discovered that in all of them a particular way of organizing meaning in the construction of one’s world prevailed, fueled by specific emotions .

The majority of the research participants belonged to the semantics of goodness and had predominantly used heroin and cocaine. Everyone read their story through the good/bad and alive/dead polarities fueled by pleasure/disgust. Good for them was those in their respective families who gave up expressing their desires and defending their interests, those who sacrificed themselves, those who walked away. On the other hand, those who expressed their sexuality and aggressive impulses were bad. People often described themselves as split into two parts: one encouraged them to affirm themselves, get emotionally involved, live, express their emotions; the other prevented them from expressing their affections and impulses. In this context, cocaine allowed them the free release of repressed impulses and ‘finally they could live’; heroin instead took on the opposite meaning of anesthetizing, sedating, repressing emotions, without suffering. Now we will also have to deal with Sniffy.