It is not uncommon this days to see empty bottles of cough syrup with Codeine and Benylin lying carelessly around our environments because such syrups, which are often obtainable over the counter and are meant for the treatment of cough, has been abused. Young persons especially those who don’t want alcohol to be perceived in their breathe, find this syrup a veritable alternative – it can’t be perceived in its user’s breathe but supposedly gives the ‘highness’ associated with alcohol consumption.
This much was attested to by Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, an Orthopaedic Surgeon and Minister of Health in an interview culled from The PUNCH.
According to Prof. Chuwkwu, “This has been one source of abuse in the country. A lot of our youths, and even some adults, have been abusing it. I am told that it makes them high. That is why they are all buying all the cough syrups with codeine.
“Before the next two weeks, you will hear a pronouncement which will say clearly that those syrups with codeine will now be treated like other narcotic drugs, in which case, it will only be accessed the way narcotic drugs are accessed. This means that you can’t find them in any ordinary shops. It will be found in hospitals only.”
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