Purple Drank: The New Drug of Choice for French Teenagers?
A news item currently trending in the French press concerns the alarming increase in consumption amongst French teenagers of a drink most commonly known as ‘purple drank’, but also referred to as ‘lean’ or ‘sizzurp’. Le Monde first reported this new drug habit in 2014 and since then, it seems, the problem has only worsened.
Popularised by US rap artists in the 1990s, most notably DJ Screw, purple drank is a mixture of cough syrup containing codeine, Sprite (or a similar carbonated drink) and occasionally some sort of sugary sweet to improve the taste. Codeine affects the body in a similar way to opiates. Secondary effects include the risk of developing an addiction, problems with the nervous system and even death. It is particularly dangerous when mixed with alcoholic substances. DJ Screw, in fact, died from a codeine overdose in 2000 after consuming purple drank and alcohol.