"Chasing the dragon" (CTD) (), or "foily" in
Australian English
Australian English (AusE, AusEng, AuE, AuEng, en-AU) is the set of variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to Australia. It is the country's common language and ''de facto'' national language. While Australia has no of ...
, refers to inhaling the vapor of a powdered
psychoactive drug
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, mind-altering drug, consciousness-altering drug, psychoactive substance, or psychotropic substance is a chemical substance that alters psychological functioning by modulating central nervous system acti ...
off a heated sheet of
aluminium foil. The moving vapor is chased after with a tube (often rolled foil) through which the user inhales.
The "chasing" occurs as the user gingerly keeps the liquid moving in order to keep it from overheating and burning up too quickly, on a
heat conducting material such as aluminium foil.
Another use of the term "chasing the dragon" refers to the elusive pursuit of a high equal to the user's first in the use of a drug, which after acclimation is no longer achievable. Used in this way, "chasing the dragon" can refer to any recreational drug administered by any means.
History
The practice of smoking low grade
heroin
Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...
via heating on tin-foil first originated in Hong Kong in the late 1950s, and thereafter spread to other parts of
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
during the 1960s,
Western Europe
Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context.
The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...
during the late 1970s, and to the
Indian sub-continent during the 1980s.
A report published in 1958 by the
Government of Hong Kong
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government) is the executive authorities of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, following the handover of Hong Kong. ...
stated that since
syringe
A syringe is a simple reciprocating pump consisting of a plunger (though in modern syringes, it is actually a piston) that fits tightly within a cylindrical tube called a barrel. The plunger can be linearly pulled and pushed along the inside ...
s were difficult to obtain in the colony, local addicts bought street deals of crude heroin (often mixed with powdered
barbiturates) weighing approximately 0.126 grams for
HK$2 each, which was then vaporized on tin-foil while the consumer inhaled the rising smoke through a cardboard tube. The use of common materials for consumption of the drugs allowed the addict to quickly dispose of the evidence if they detected the police nearby, and also allowed them to forgo carrying incriminating objects on their person (such as pipes or syringes).
Risks
Lung cancer from natural talc
Talc is an
excipient often used in pharmaceutical
tablets. Also,
illicit drugs that occur as white powder in their pure form are often
cut with cheap
talc
Talc, or talcum, is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate, with the chemical formula . Talc in powdered form, often combined with corn starch, is used as baby powder. This mineral is used as a thickening agent and lubricant ...
. Natural talc is cheap but contains
asbestos
Asbestos ( ) is a group of naturally occurring, Toxicity, toxic, carcinogenic and fibrous silicate minerals. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous Crystal habit, crystals, each fibre (particulate with length su ...
while asbestos-free talc is more expensive. Talc that has asbestos is generally accepted as being able to cause
lung cancer
Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...
if it is inhaled. The evidence about asbestos-free talc is less clear, according to the
American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''.
History
The society w ...
.
Smoke inhalation
It is always harmful to expose the lungs to any kind of smoke or heated vapor.
Heroin
Inhaling heroin appears to rarely lead to
toxic leukoencephalopathy.
There are also documented cases of both severe acute
asthma
Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wh ...
and exacerbation of underlying asthma caused by heroin inhalation, potentially resulting in death.
*
Drug pipe
*
One-hitter (smoking)
*
Opium pipe
References
{{Drug use
Drug culture
Cantonese words and phrases
Drug paraphernalia
Opium culture