Interesting BoingBoing article about Scopolamine, which is evidently quite a common street drug “Devil’s Breath” in Columbia. It also is called the “zombie drug,” as it can sometimes rob its takers of free will and memory (and so is used by criminals in South America as a date rape or rolling drug).
In the US, it’s available by prescription as a patch for motion sickness. I recall that quite well because Cheryl (my first wife), back in college had an inner ear infection that caused serious vertigo, and she got prescribed the Scopolamine patches. This led in turn, we eventually discovered, to short-term memory loss — a known side effect — which was not what you want to have when you’re attending classes and trying to take notes.
In fact, Scopolamine also used to be used on obstetrics, either in conjunction with morphine, to induce a twilight sleep (this use is no longer allowed, as it caused respiratory problems for both mother and child) or on its own, the idea being that short-term memory loss = not remembering that you’re in steady pain. This latter use is also no longer allowed, as it led to significant disorientation (“why am I here and why am I in such pain?” “why and I here and why am I in such pain?”) and mothers injuring themselves in distress.
More on Scopolamine here.