By contrast, those state institutions involved in the fight against drug abuse have responded with great alarm. Swiss National Councilor Barbara Schmid-Federer primarily complains about the fact that young people have no difficulty in accessing the controversial files and she demands that “providers such as Apple be held responsible.” Since it is currently the case that I-Dosers are experiencing a boom among teenagers in the United States, there are plans to take them off the market there. Addiction expert Mark Woodward of the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs in Oklahoma justifies the prohibition of acoustic drugs with the argument that they could become gateway drugs. He says: “We need to step in immediately. Interest in the range on offer indicates an increased willingness to experiment with real drugs as well.” This danger cannot be dismissed lightly. There is a particularly high risk among the core target group, namely young people going through puberty. Brain researchers have discovered that during this critical stage of development, the reward system, which is responsible for the release of endorphins, is much better developed than the prefrontal cortex, which suppresses excessive emotions and is responsible for measured actions. Accordingly, any young people interested in trying acoustic drugs should take to heart the appeal made by an I-Doser user who posted the following comment on the Internet: “My friends, don’t listen to that music. It just leads to heroin.” 

Anno Bachem