Washington ( CNN ) -- The Drug Enforcement Administration is extending for another six months its emergency ban on five chemicals used to make synthetic drugs such as Spice , the DEA announced on Wednesday . The DEA already had banned the substances for a year , but with that period soon to expire , the DEA announced it will file a notice in the Federal Register on Thursday that will mean the chemicals will continue to be illegal . The substances used to make the fake pot products are : JWH-018 , JWH-073 , JWH-200 , CP-47,497 ( that 's all one chemical CP-47,497 ) and cannabicyclohexanol . The names sound like an alphabetical and numerical soup . But the drugs are marketed as herbal incense under such names as K2 , Blaze , Spice and Red X Dawn and have been popular with teenagers and young adults . The DEA says the products are made of plant material coated with chemicals that claim to mimic THC , the key ingredient in marijuana . The DEA 's emergency action means the chemicals are designated as Schedule 1 substances , the most restrictive category of drugs under the Controlled Substances Act . `` Schedule 1 substances are reserved for those substances with a high potential for abuse , no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States and a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug under medical supervision , '' according to a DEA press release . Poison control centers reported about 13,000 calls about problems with synthetic drugs in 2011 , Deborah Carr of the American Association of Poison Control Centers said earlier this month . `` Sixty percent of the cases involved patients under the age of 25 , '' said Carr . The poison centers and emergency room doctors say users of these synthetic drugs might have symptoms as convulsions , elevated heart rates , vomiting and disorientation . DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart said the chemicals `` present an imminent danger to public safety . '' The DEA 's emergency powers to restrict the drugs can not be extended more than 18 months , but the Department of Health and Human Services can take action to make the ban permanent . DEA officials also would like to see Congress pass legislation to outlaw synthetic drugs . The House passed a bill but the Senate has not followed suit .
The Drug Enforcement Administration is extending its ban for six months . The two - year ban on the drug was set to end soon . Drugs used as herbal incense under such names as K2 , Blaze , Spice , Red X Dawn . Users of these synthetic drugs might have nausea , vomiting , disorientation .