Definition of Paco (drug)

Paco is the name given to a recently created drug. Its name comes from a substance, the base paste of cocaine (the words paste and cocaine merge and the term Paco appears).

What is cocaine base paste?

In the chemical process of elaboration From cocaine, a residue is used that remains at the base of the containers where it is manufactured. This base forms a paste and has traditionally been discarded as it is considered low quality as a drug, especially if we compare it with cocaine as a final product. In chemical terms, the base paste or Paco is cocaine sulfate and has an appearance similar to white powder.

At the beginning of the 21st century, base paste began to be used as a drug and to achieve higher doses and more cost effectiveness economically, other substances were added, such as kerosene, ground glass, rodenticide and other solvents. When this new substance began to be consumed, he was renamed Paco.

El Paco, a drug with serious health consequences

Being an insoluble drug, Paco is consumed by smoking it with homemade pipes (the smoke is held in the throat and then is expelled). Initially it produces a euphoric effect and then comes an intense physical slump. It is very addictive and its effects on

Health are very harmful: it affects neuronal activity causing deterioration cognitive, is associated with weight loss, breathing problems and increased blood pressure. Its devastating effects can lead to death in a short period of time.

El Paco and his relationship with the Argentine social context

In 2001 in Argentina a stage economic recession that led to the well-known "corralito", the famous cacerolazos as forms of protest and a generalized social unrest. In that context, Paco appeared and quickly became a drug for the most disadvantaged classes, especially young people from the poor neighborhoods of large cities.

El Paco has a close relationship with the lack of expectations of the youth Argentina of those years (it should be noted that it is not an exclusive phenomenon of Argentina, since it is also consumed in countries such as Chile, Uruguay or Brazil).

El Paco is the drug of the most helpless in society, who see their future with fear and full of uncertainties. Sociologists consider that Paco allows us to escape from reality itself, even if this escape is very destructive.

Drug traffickers have found a new market with a substance that was initially despised but has become a icon of the marginal classes.

Photos: iStock - Mixmike / Todor Tsvetkov

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