DRUG workers in Hull say they have seen a rise in young people experimenting with "legal highs".
The drugs include salvia – a Mexican plant marketed as a "herbal high" which can produce hallucinations – and nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas.
Vicky Harris, assistant city manager in public health at Hull City Council, said there was a growing trend towards the use of legal highs, known as new psychoactive substances (NPS), in the city.
She said: "It is starting from a small point but there is an increase in reports of NPS, although the figures are still really small.
"We are getting better at recognising it and reporting it but we do know it is an issue in the city.
"It is one of the reasons we are working hard to get out the message that just because something is legal to sell, it doesn't make it safe."
A report released by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) shows a growing number of young people are using the substances.
It also reveals 137 people in Hull and 69 people in the East Riding have been admitted to hospital in the past year after they were poisoned by illicit drugs.
A further 1,100 people have been admitted to hospital after being diagnosed with drug-related mental health or behaviour disorders.
The report also shows one-third of adults have taken drugs at some point in their lives.
One in 11 adults – just under 9 per cent – aged between 16 and 59 have taken an illicit drug in the past year.
However, it more than doubled in 16 to 24 year-olds, with almost 19 per cent taking drugs within the previous 12 months.
In England, 16 per cent of pupils have taken drugs, 11 per cent of them in the past year and 6 per cent in the previous month.
Cannabis was the most widely used drug among children aged 11 to 15, with 7 per cent of pupils taking it in the past year.
Cocaine, ecstasy, LSD and ketamine use increased between 2012/13 and 2013/14. However, about 7.6 per cent of people aged between 16 and 24 had taken nitrous oxide in the past year, while 1.8 per cent had taken salvia.
Ms Harris pointed out some of the people taken to hospital may have abused legal, prescription drugs such as benzodiazepines as well as more familiar drugs such as cocaine, heroin and psychoactive substances.
She said: "We are still working hard to tackle all the drug types. We are really keen to keep an eye on everything rather than putting all our energy into something new which has come along."
Kingsley Manning, chair of HSCIC, said: "Today's report gives insight into the misuse of drugs in society, and shines a light on the prevalence of drug use among different age groups.
"Reporting changes in rates of drug-related hospital admissions and misuse of drugs in adults provides valuable information for primary and secondary healthcare services, policy makers and drug rehabilitation professionals."
Cannot be sold for human consumptionLEGAL highs contain one or more chemicals that produce similar effects to illegal drugs such as cocaine, cannabis and ecstasy.
Despite growing pressure, they are not yet controlled under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
Although they cannot be sold for human consumption, they are often sold as incense, salts or plant food to get around the law.
Legal highs are sold under brand names such as Clockwork Orange, Bliss and Mary Jane.
Their growing popularity has been directly linked to poisoning, emergency hospital admissions including in mental health services and, in some cases, deaths.
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