Is there a difference between crack cocaine and free-based cocaine?

Published June 29, 2010

Question by sky walker: Is there a difference between crack cocaine and free-based cocaine?
Or is crack and free-based cocaine the same drug?
What is the significance of the word “free” in free base?

Best answer:

Answer by LADY WAR
Yes. They are basically the same.

Crack is made from cocaine in a process called freebasing, in which cocaine powder is cooked with ammonia or sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) to create rocks, chips, or chunks that can be smoked. The term crack refers to the crackling sound that is heard when the mixture is smoked. Crack is usually smoked in a pipe. Because it’s smoked, crack cocaine effects are felt more quickly and they are more intense than those of powder cocaine. However, the effects of smoked crack are shorter lived than the effects of snorted powder cocaine.

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