Called "space oil” because it makes people feel as if they were in space, the substance is taken through electronic cigarettes. Its basic ingredient is an anaesthetic, etomidate. It is increasingly popular among youth in Hong Kong, but also mainland China and Taiwan. A “zero tolerance” policy has failed so far to deal with the real causes of the problem.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews) – A video went viral recently in Chinese media, showing a girl barely in her teens boarding a Hong Kong MTR train smoking an electronic cigarette. Once she got off at Tin Shui Wai station, she had to hold on to the railing to keep her balance.

The police later arrested the 13-year-old for possession of hard drugs. In addition to the e-cigarette, she carried a bottle with "space oil", a new trendy drug among youth in Hong Kong, mainland China, and Taiwan.

Last month, Hong Kong banned the substance, the main component of which is an anaesthetic, etomidate. Recently, the police arrested other young people, aged 16 and 18, on the same charges.

Social workers say space oil has become extremely popular among the very young because it is cheap, practical (it is inhaled through e-cigarette cartridges), and has a more pleasant taste than other substances.

If only eight arrests were made in 2023 for smuggling space oil, in 2024 the figure rose to 278, including 61 people under the age of 21.

According to Hong Kong's Central Drug Abuse Registry, in 2024, space oil was the third most common substance among young people under the age of 21, after cannabis and cocaine.

Minors also accounted for about a quarter of all hospital cases involving space oil abuse.

The drug is mixed with other drugs and various flavourings, sold in cartridge form, with a price between 100 and 800 Hong Kong dollars (equal to US$ 13 and US$ 103).

In one of its latest raids, police seized 510 milligrams of etomidate from a 16-year-old boy, as well as 2.3 litres of glycerine and 466 capsules to be inserted into electronic cigarettes.

“Investigations show that the suspect allegedly mixed etomidate with glycerine to produce space oil and then injected the mixture into e-cigarette capsules,” the police said. “A preliminary estimate shows that the seized etomidate and glycerine can produce over 600 e-cigarette capsules with space oil."

Back in October last year, lawmaker Hon Lam So-wai, in a question in the Legislative Council, explained that etomidate can only be prescribed by a doctor. When vaped, it “can produce transient euphoria and cause addiction," but health experts note that etomidate can also cause serious damage to the central nervous system.

The drug, Lam So-wai said, begun to become popular in 2023, "with some sellers even blatantly putting space oil up for sale on social media platforms", such as Instagram or WhatsApp.

In addition to banning the drug (now ranked like cocaine) and increasing the penalties for those found in possession (up to seven years in prison and a fine of one million Hong Kong dollars), Hong Kong also launched a series of preventive projects in primary and secondary schools.

Law enforcement agencies have stepped up their activities to raise awareness and intensified inspections, with particular attention to the online sale of the substance.

Taiwan and mainland China have also banned space oil and introduced tougher penalties, but social workers fear that a "zero tolerance" policy will make it harder for young people to seek psychological help, especially among those who already use it to overcome traumatic or particularly stressful events.

Some experts dealing with teenagers have reported that the first capsules with space oil arrived in Hong Kong from mainland China, where the authorities added etomidate to its list of restricted substances in October 2023

“Youth with less of a support network, or who do not know how to face negative peer influence, or do not have a good way to cope with mental health challenges would be more likely to [turn to drugs],” said Cindy Ng, senior manager of programmes and services at the NGO KELY Support Group, speaking to the Hong Kong Free Press.

In addition, many young people who use drugs struggle with anxiety and depression, explained Eugene Chau, senior social work supervisor at Caritas Youth and Community Service.

“Some have bad relationships with their parents, resulting in constant arguing, while others are distant from their family members and have nobody to talk to,” he explained.

“When they take space oil, they feel like they’ve gone up to space. They forget about their problems,” he added. “Compared to ice or cocaine, the effect doesn’t last as long. So they go up to space and then they come back down, and they go back to work or school.”

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• hong kong
• china
• taiwan
• space oil
• etomidate
• anaesthetic
• youth
• addictions