"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