What Parents Need to Know About the Dangers of Synthetic Marijuana

First published April 2018
Updated July 2026

Here’s one with a bit of good news: one dangerous outbreak involving contamination of an abused drug has mostly faded away!

Back in 2018, this 700 Children’s Blog taught about a brand-new hazard: somehow a group of drugs known as the synthetic cannabinoids was getting contaminated with blood thinners, and especially with a rat poison called brodifacoum. Patients who had thought they were using an artificial marijuana product for fun were also getting poisoned by these blood thinners, and they were showing up at the hospital with bleeding, in some cases, lots of bleeding. Near the end of 2018, the CDC reported more than 300 cases, with at least 8 deaths.

The good news is that the national epidemic faded away and was almost gone by the end of 2018. Since then, there was a cluster of 45 cases with 2 deaths in Florida, and a single fatal case in Indiana in 2024.

We never did figure out how or where the contamination happened, but there are reports that some of the dealers may have added the rat poison in the belief that it could make the drug they were selling appear to be more potent.

While we can be happy this example of drug contamination is gone, we can’t relax our guard and think, “well, now these products are safe.” DRUG ABUSE IS NEVER SAFE! The synthetic cannabinoids, products with names like JWH-018, Spice, K-2, King Kong, Relief, and others, can still cause coma, delirium, seizure, paranoia, hallucinations, muscle destruction, kidney failure, high blood pressure and heart attacks. In 2025 in Ohio, we had ten patients poisoned by one of these products, and between January and July of 2026, another five patients.

If you or your children use artificial marijuana products, today would be a great day to quit. If quitting is difficult, seek help. If you have any concerns you should talk to your child and if necessary, obtain a comprehensive substance abuse assessment by an addiction professional. Substance abuse is more easily treated if caught early and appropriate treatment is initiated. At Nationwide Children’s Hospital call (614) 722-2450 to schedule an appointment.