its cultivation, harvesting and distribution are not subject to quality control mechanisms to ensure the reliability and safety of the product used by consumers. It is well recognised in developing countries, such as Kenya, that illicit alcohol production can result in the contamination with toxic by-products or adulterants that can kill or seriously affect the health of users. The same may be true of illicit drugs such as opiates, cocaine and amphetamine in developed societies." The government cannot enforce quality control on products sold and manufactured illegally. Examples include: the easier to make derivative MDA being sold as MDMA, heroin users unintentionally injecting brick dust, quinine, or fentanyl with which their heroin had been cut; and heroin/cocaine overdoses occurring as a result of users not knowing exactly how much they are taking. If the supply of drugs such as ecstasy came from legitimate pharmaceutical companies, their product would be far less likely to contain toxic additives or varying dosages. This is a view supported by a number of parents whose children have died of overdoses. The illegality of injectable drugs leads to a scarcity of needles which causes an increase in HIV infections. An easy cure to this problem, while upholding the illegality of drugs, is the Dutch policy of distributing free needles. The money spent on both increased health costs due to HIV infections and drug prohibition itself causes a drain upon society. Studies on the effects of prescribing heroin to addicts as practiced in many European countries have shown better rates of success than any other available treatment in terms of assisting long-term users establish stable, crime-free lives. Many patients were able to find employment, some even started a family after years of homelessness and delinquency. Block to research The illegality of many recreational drugs may be dissuading research into new, more effective and perhaps safer recreational drugs, despite evidence that their use may be beneficial in certain contexts. Research on Schedule I drugs in many countries, including the United States and United Kingdom, and under international law, is tightly regulated and requires expensive and hard-to-obtain permits. Such restrictions have largely prevented investigation of their properties and therapeutic uses, and most research since the passage of the drug laws focuses on negative impacts of these drugs. For example, all known agonists of the 5HT2A receptor are psychedelics, which prevents research into this receptor. In particular, research suggests that