‘Lean’ has everyone from rappers to housewives hooked

It’s cooler than ever to get high, and this without getting locked up or braving Hillbrow for a fix.

The codeine-infused concoction known as Lean, first popularised by hip-hop culture around 2016, has enjoyed a surge in popularity recently among both traditional users, teenagers, and now middle-aged adults impacted by lockdown.

The rise in abuse has become so severe that the Norwood Community Policing Forum launched its Lean On Me campaign.

Lean is a generous shot of cough syrup containing codeine in a soft drink. It apparently delivers an opioid-like out-of-body experience to users with a high that lasts around three hours.

David Bayever, of the department of Pharmacy and Pharmacology at Wits University, has been roped in by the campaign to assist.

He says that codeine is a highly addictive substance, albeit very useful as a medicine, too. It is available over the counter at pharmacies.

Author, Orange Grove resident and volunteer Mongi Maphipha echoes the community’s deep concern over the growth in Lean use.

He says that he has seen children as young as 12 get hooked, but most abusers settle into Lean during high school.

“Curiously, a lot of the teenagers who are using Lean are not typical drug users,” he adds.

“Lean is all about being hip and cool. Addiction quickly follows.”

Others, he says, mix up these cocktails because they are simply bored. Bayever agrees, saying it was also partly due to “lockdown, because of the clubs and all these places where the children normally frequent are not open now”.

The impact of use includes developing memory problems, and experiencing headaches, nausea and blurred vision.

Since it is not an illicit substance, Bayever argues that abuse can happen in plain sight. He also adds that the growth curve in use has extended to other generations, too, and this includes many women wrestling with middle age.

Maphipha says parents must be concerned.

“The problem is not just South African, it’s African and worldwide. And it’s artists who openly promote Lean, drinking it in public or in the media. This is where the problem lies.”

Locally, influential stars such as Emtee have been very open about the importance of Lean in their lives, and global rap icon Little Wayne has become synonymous with the addictive mix.

– news@citizen.co.za