Definition of PACO (Drug)

In 2001 in Argentina a economic crisis that affected the whole of society. In the poorest neighborhoods of the cities, a new drug, PACO, became fashionable among young people. The word PACO is short for cocaine paste, also known as base paste.

His consumption It is not limited to Argentina, since this phenomenon also occurs in large Latin American cities (in Peru it is known by the term Basuco, which means garbage dirty with cocaine).

By preparing it at home and without the need for laboratories, cocaine paste has become a valid alternative for small-scale drug trafficking. scale.

Preparation, consumption and effects on the body

In the laboratories where cocaine is made, cocaine sulfate was traditionally discarded in the form of a paste. Is substance similar to white powder, it was considered a waste unfit for consumption. However, in the strategy of drug trafficking a change was introduced and ground glass was added to the cocaine sulfate, kerosene, baking soda, caffeine and other substances to create a highly addictive new product, The paco.

Those who take this drug usually do so by smoking the paste in a pipe with an aluminum pipe and tobacco is inserted into the bottom of the pipe so that the paste lights up better and maintains heat. In a short time, consumers see their cognitive capacity deteriorate and they become people disconnected from reality or "zombies".

In most cases, PACO addicts have brain sequelae, severe breathing problems, and weight loss

Cocaine paste is very destructive and in a few months it can kill. Its effects on the body are almost immediate and its addictive capacity is very fast. It generates states of euphoria, hallucinations and lack of coordination.

In its origins, cocaine paste began to be consumed among the marginal classes due to its low price and its immediate effects, but in a short time some sectors of the middle class they began to get acquainted with this drug.

In Buenos Aires city

According to various studies, in the capital of Argentina PACO is the third most consumed drug, behind alcohol and psychotropic drugs and ahead of marijuana and cocaine.

In some neighborhoods of the Buenos Aires suburbs, young people are engaged in trafficking cocaine paste on a small scale. They start with their addiction at an increasingly early age and as a consequence of this the abandonment premature schooling increases and crime increases.

Photo: Fotolia - Africa Studio