T

he Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) will withdraw all drugs containing dextromethorphan by June 30 because of a worrying increase in their misuse as recreational drugs.

Agus Prabowo of BPOM Semarang, Central Java, said that this particular drug '€” known as dextro among teenagers '€” had been misused due to its hallucinogenic side effects.

'€œThe drug is supposed to be used to treat ill people. It cannot be used just as we want,'€ Agus said in Semarang on Tuesday.

He said the pills and syrups were often used by people wanting to escape problems at school, home and work.

'€œPeople sometimes want a quick fix to problems,'€ he said.

The misuse of the drug has been linked to an increase in crimes committed by teenagers in Semarang.

Separately, drug producer PT Phapros corporate secretary Imam Arif said the plan to withdraw medicine containing dextro had been in discussion since last year and that his company had ceased producing the pills three months ago.

'€œThe products already on the market will be withdrawn by June 30 at the latest,'€ Imam said.

Imam also said that his office had given its subsidiary offices until June 23, 2014 to withdraw the products from the market.

Phapros, according to Imam, produced syrup and tablet variants that contained a single composition of dextromethorphan.

BPOM'€™s official website stated that reports regarding the misuse of the drug over the past few years had prompted a thorough study.

The study revealed that physicians rarely prescribed dextromethorphan in its single composition form, but a combination of dextro and other drugs was still needed.

The website stated that the most prolific use of the product was in the elementary and high school age group but that other members of society had abused the drug in much the same way as crystal methamphetamine, heroin or marijuana.