Photo: National Park Service
The National Park Serviceis asking people to put their hands – and tongues away – when they see a toad.
The agencyissued a warningon social media last week asking people to steer clear of the animal – particularly the Sonoran desert toad, also known as the Colorado river toad or bufo alvarius.
The toad can be identified due to its large size, measuring nearly 7 inches – the largest found in the U.S. – and it emits a “weak, low-pitched toot,” which lasts less than a second.
“As we say with most things you come across in a national park, whether it be a banana slug, unfamiliar mushroom, or a large toad with glowing eyes in the dead of night, pleaserefrain from licking,” the National Park Service said in their post.
It noted that specific species of toad secretes toxins that can make people sick if ingested or touched.
People have been risking potential poisoning as they chase hallucinogenic highs from the frog’s venom which contains bufotenine and 5-MeO-DMT.
“Smoking the bufo toad venom is a life-changing experience and different for every person. It can’t be summed up in a post,” Hall said on social media. She also said that it “basically reset my brainand kicked out years of anxiety in 15 mins.”
Former professional boxer Mike Tyson has also admitted to smoking the venom on theJoe Rogan Experience Podcast. He also told theNew York Postlast year, “the toad has taught me that I’m not going to be here forever. There’s an expiration date.”
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Psychedelics expertDr. Mike Dow Ph.D.,told PEOPLE last year that the hallucinogens in bufo toad venom turns off the “default mode network” in the brain, which can reduce anxiety and depression.
“So you’re not thinking about things in a normal, conscious way, because the parts of the brain that are used to thinking that way to save time, or to keep you alive,have gone offline,” Dow said. “So now other parts of the brain that are more aligned with the collective unconscious, maybe spirituality, those parts are coming forward.”
But Dow also noted that there can be a risk for people with a “predisposition” to “psychosis or bipolar disorder” and there have been “reports of emergency room admissions and a death associated with the abuse of 5-MeO-DMT.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
source: people.com
