Consumption of cannabis-infused gummy bears resulted in hospitalisation of 14 teenage students from Naperville North High School in Illinois on Tuesday, December 6. The students were admitted to Edward Hospital with symptoms like dry mouth, increased heart rate, dizziness and constant panic attacks.
"It would appear from our (police) investigation that the candy was homemade, and not store-bought," Naperville Police Department Commander Jason Arres was quoted as saying by Chicago Tribune.
"In addition, we still believe that it was a form of cannabis in the gummy bears that made the students ill, but we are awaiting lab results to confirm this," he added.
The teens revealed that they consumed only one candy each. This revelation gave a clue to the experts about what substance these candies probably contained.
"You eat gummy bears, those are pretty tasty. Why would you want to have just one - unless you know there's something else in the gummy bear?" Dr Daryl Wilson, director of EMS at Edward Hospital, was quoted as saying by CBS.
A 17-year-old student has been questioned by police to carry forward the investigation, but no criminal charges have been filed against him.
After interacting with the pupils, Jennifer E McNulty, the medical director of the hospital's paediatric emergency department, came up with a conclusion that the gummy bears were laced with marijuana or marijuana oil.
Now, the school, through its Facebook page, has requested all the parents to talk to their children and motivate them to make healthy choices.
