Media Credit: Courtesy sagewisdom.com Salvia divinorum, a legal sage available widely in the United States, has been increasing in popularity in the past 10 years. Though officially sold as an incense, the plant is often burned and smoked or extracted into liquid form by people searching for [Click to enlarge]

Salvia divinorum, a sage plant from South America, has made a massive splash on the herbal scene in recent years.

Legal in the United States, the plants' primary psychoactive compound, salvinorin a, is capable of bringing forth unbelievably strong hallucinations with its use, and a growing number of people are beginning to use it recreationally.

With its exportation to America beginning in the mid-1990s, salvia has been popularized in "head shops" and on the Internet as a legal intoxicant. In its natural form, the dried leaf can be smoked, chewed or made into a tea. More often, however, an extract is made, making concentrations of salvinorin A in the leaf from five times more potent to more than 80 times the standard amount.

This increase in potency takes the experience from mere relaxation and mental stimulation to a full-blown severing of the mind from reality.

The experience from a single hit of 10x-strength fortified salvia leaf, a commonly used extract level, is far beyond what most people expect from a single inhalation. Users often find themselves in a dream-like state for up to 15 minutes, completely unaware of what's going on around them. A full immersion in a hallucination, including body sensations, auditory disturbances and vivid visual effects is the most sought-after "breakthrough" of the trip.

"It's the most intense thing you'll ever experience," says a user who wishes to remain anonymous. "It's like someone grabbing your brain and screaming at it. Good or bad, it's intense."

Comparisons to illegal drugs, such as LSD 2c-I, are inevitably drawn against salvia. It is the most potent naturally occurring hallucinogen in the world, with one milligram of vaporized material powerful enough to invoke extreme, often amnesiac effects. Research has not yet proven whether or not it can induce Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder, or flashbacks, though initial findings seem to strongly doubt it. This is perhaps the most dangerous aspect of the plant. There simply hasn't been a great deal of studies conducted.

Legally sold as incense, salvia products are not seen as drugs but rather herbs with a spectrum of effects too wide for it to be considered an abused substance.

Since there's little legislation regarding salvia's use, people often buy it expecting a pleasant, euphoric state and are often shocked to see how quickly a "great trip" can turn sour. This keeps it from being abused, and its wide availability kills the novelty of it.

Government regulation of Salvia has been a topic of controversy for quite some time. Numerous bills have been voted on in Missouri, Louisiana and a few other states but have yet to be passed. Speculation among most is that it will be reviewed at some point, but the federal government has not released any information regarding when. It is likely that it will be researched and possibly scheduled in the near future, but any kind of information release has not been seen.

Only time and research will tell its future here in the United States.

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