Two great tastes that go great together! No, wait: the opposite of that.
Both bath salts and the term "cocaine psychosis" have been much in the news lately, thanks to the bizarre story out of Florida (where else?) of a man who stripped naked and started eating some poor homeless man's face. This "cannibal attack" was fueled, many suspect, by cocaine psychosis. And given the attacker's situation, most of the speculation is focusing on bath salts.
These are not your mother's bath salts!
The term "bath salts" is a confusing one. It still refers to the stuff that you pour into a nice hot bath to relax and enjoy. In that context, bath salts are mostly Epsom salts with some soap (for suds) and perfume (to smell nice). You can buy traditional bath salts at places like The Body Shop and Amazon.
Traditional bath salts look like, well, large grains of salt. And that is the primary connection between traditional bath salts and what I'll call "bath salts."
A loophole in FDA regulation means that designer drugs can often escape legislation for a little while, if they are sold under another name, with a different ostensible purpose. Which is why people can take a designer drug very similar to meth, label it "bath salts," package it in a plastic tub, and legally sell it to people who know full well that it's drugs.
(The same thing is happening in the UK, but there it's "plant food.")
"Bath salts" has become a catch-all term for this type of drug, which is frequently adulterated with speed, cocaine, PCP, or LSD. Quality control is kind of an issue here. And even though the drugs are labeled "not for human consumption" to skirt regulations, I think we can be sure that they will be as illegal as meth before long.
Until then, if you know which convenience store to go to, you can buy a meth/LSD concoction over the counter. Although you may not want to. Whether it's a "Reefer Madness" style panic or not, a lot of drug-addled bizarre rampages are being blamed on bath salts. It seems that many people trip badly on bath salts, while developing super-human strength.
"Cocaine psychosis" is the slang term for a short-term psychotic break which has been instigated by drugs, typically stimulants. For whatever reason, sometimes instead of just experiencing a regular high, a drug user will experience a violent episode of psychosis which may involve delusions, paranoia, and terror.
The good news is that these psychotic episodes are short-lived, and run out when the drugs wear off. The bad news is that people in the grip of stimulant psychosis can do a lot of damage until that point!