Jacob Sullum in Forbes: How Rumors of a ‘Flesh-Eating Zombie Drug’ Swept the Nation

By now you probably have heard
that krokodil, a nasty homemade version of the
narcotic painkiller desomorphine, is starting to catch on in the
United States. Having eaten its way through the flesh of myriad
Russian opiate addicts, the caustic concoction—notorious for the
ghastly side effects caused by its corrosive contaminants,
including abscesses and gangrene—is reportedly burning its way
through Arizona, Texas, Utah, Oklahoma, Colorado, Illinois,
Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. “The monster has
crossed the ocean,” Time declared last
month.

Like most monster stories, says Jacob Sullum in his latest
Forbes column, this one is not true. Yet it will not die,
perpetuating itself by encouraging reckless claims that become the
basis for the next round of sensational coverage.

Read the article.