NOGALES, Ariz., Aug. 7 (UPI) -- Smugglers are reportedly giving undocumented immigrants over-the-counter stimulants to help speed up illegal border crossings.
The Arizona Republic says the illegal immigrants have been taking 500-milligram pills known as "triple stacks." The white tablets are a mixture of aspirin, caffeine and ephedrine, a combination banned in 1983 by the Food and Drug Administration.
Federal officials told the newspaper the the pills may be partly to blame for a record 50 immigrant deaths during July in Arizona. The immigrants apparently die more quickly after falling ill following their crossing into the United States from Mexico and succumbing to the heat.
Medical examiners, however, have not conclusively linked any the deaths with ephedrine-- a substance also found in weight-loss supplements.
A Border Patrol official told the newspaper the stimulants make people "feel like supermen that can go on forever."
