After party drug 'meow meow' - the new legal high is pond cleaner NRG-1

London, May 25 (ANI): Just five weeks after the banning of killer party drug 'meow meow', the market has been flooded with potentially lethal replacements, and all of them are legal.

Of the lethal substances available, NRG-1, which is sold online as a "pond cleaner", is causing the most concern.

"This pond cleaner is even better than any of our previous products - but it also means you need to use less in your pond to get the desired results!" the Sun quoted one site as saying of naphyrone - NRG-1's chemical name.

Naphyrone can be bought online for 20 pounds for two grams, inclusive of postage, or it could also be bought through a dealer.

Most of the legal drugs gaining popularity after the meow meow ban are readily available in High Street shops for around 15 pounds each, and many are caffeine-based.

Others contain harmful chemicals, requiring a warning to be printed on the packet by law.

Headtonik, a shop in Manchester, sold a substance called Karma, labelled "Bath caps" and "Not for human consumption".

Staff claimed the single 10 pounds blue capsule, containing brown powder, has the same effects as meow meow.

Another shop sold two white pills called Doves Ultra, with a label warning: "Plant feeder, not for human consumption".

Other meow meow alternatives include Bliss, at around 1.50 pounds per pill. Its effects include an energy rush with potential palpitations, insomnia and anxiety.

But NRG-1 is the "legal high" which most worries experts. The effects are similar to rave drug ecstasy, giving the user a sense of intense euphoria and energy for 12 hours or more.

But the side effects can include sweating, sickness, fainting, and even death.

"This is a drug designed to be very similar to illegal drugs but to slip past legislation by being very slightly different," Dr Ken Checinski, medical director of drugs charity Addaction, said.

"The dangers which can go with these drugs are potential heart attacks, breathing problems and high blood pressure.

"When the user experiences a comedown, coming off the drug, they could feel depressed, even suicidal," Checinski said.

Art student Caroline-Jane Ryder, 24, from Merseyside, takes around three grams of NRG-1 every week.

"It doesn't matter what they ban, there will be something else to take its place," she said.

"I used to take trips and pills, but because NRG is legal I feel better in myself because it doesn't feel like I'm doing anything wrong.

"I'd say one third of the people I know take it. Until booze and entry to clubs become cheaper, legal highs are going to be massive," she added.

Home Office Minister James Brokenshire said on May 24: "Action to address the issue of emerging legal highs coming on to the market is a priority for the Government." (ANI)