A federally approved kit that detects traces of a date rape drug in drinks is being sold by two Las Vegas entrepreneurs.
Charly Cutler and Alissa Garcia created Guardian Angel test kits, which detect Gamma Hydroxybutyrate, commonly called the date rape drug, in beverages.
GHB is a colorless, odorless and tasteless substance that can be slipped into the drink of an unsuspecting partygoer, rendering the victim unconscious and susceptible to rape.
Cutler said the two created Guardian Angel because there were no preventive measures available to combat the abuse of GHB that \terrorizes"" college students around the country.
""If you can detect the drug in your drink before you consume it, then there's really no way to ever be victimized by it,"" Cutler said.
Cutler said the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Food and Drug Administration and other federal labs support the claims of her product.
However, others in the scientific community note that Guardian Angel will not detect all drugs used for date rapes. Instead, it may provide a false sense of security.
Laura Liddicoat, supervisor of toxicology at the Wisconsin State Lab of Hygiene, noted other drugs with effects similar to GHB are becoming more prevalent in the United States since GHB became illegal in 1999.
The United States is still the only nation where GHB is illegal.
According to Liddicoat, Gamma Butyrolactone and 1,4 Butanediol are two specific drugs that have become more widespread since GHB was banned. Both drugs are found in industrial cleaners, Liddicoat said, and neither can be detected by a GHB test.
Liddicoat said she was not specifically familiar with the Guardian Angel test, but said users of the test should be cautioned.
""I would not use [the test] with full certainty that you're detecting any drug that would harm you,"" she said.
A Guardian Angel kit contains non-toxic test strips which Cutler said users can dip into their beverage whenever it has been left unattended. After approximately 15 seconds have passed, the strip will change color if GHB has been detected.
Each kit contains five strips, and each strip can be used three times before being discarded.
The Guardian Angel kit sells for five dollars at certain stores and on the product's official Web site, http://www.test4ghb.com.
UW-Madison sophomore Alisa Huttes said that while the Guardian Angel test kit can only test for GHB, it is better than testing for nothing at all.
""I'd probably buy it just to be on the safe side,"" she said.
