The National Drug Councilresponds
Ecstasy use has beenaround here in Cayman for sometime
Inthe lead article in Cayman Net News 'Ecstasy Hits Cayman' it wouldbe easy to assume that the availability of ecstasy is new to theCayman Islands. This drug, often referred to as a designer drug,is in fact the rediscovery of a drug first synthesised in 1912.
And, as early as November 1998, the National Drug Council firstreported the use of ecstasy by middle and high school studentsin the Cayman Islands. According to the Cayman Islands StudentDrug Use Survey (CISDUS) 0.4% reported past year use, no significantdifferences were noted between Ecstasy use and age, sex or districtof residence.
At the time (1998), the prevalence rates were comparable to Canadianstudents in 1993. As of 1997, the Canadian rate had increasedby 500% from 0.6% to 3.1% over 5 years. In the United States,past year use among 12th graders increased by 56% from 3.6% to5.6% in just one year!
The results of Cayman Islands Drug and Alcohol Survey (CIDAS)conducted in April 2000 and scheduled for release later this yearwill indicate the prevalence of use of Ecstasy among the adultpopulation. Both surveys (CISDUS & CIDAS) will be repeatedperiodically, which will provide hard data about increasing ordecreasing use of substances. The next round of the student druguse survey will be conducted later this year.
"The information on the use and effects of Ecstasy in thecommunity is limited" says Catherine Delapenha, Deputy Co-ordinatorof the NDC. "In fact, at this point the data we have collectedin Cayman is as comprehensive as that available anywhere in theworld. The question is, what shall we do with this information?"she says.
Given the adverse effects as mentioned in the previous article,especially regarding the sudden random and disastrous consequencesof even first time use, agencies are already responding to thisthreat. The NDC fully supports all the initiatives by variousagencies in the areas of prevention, intervention and treatmentof all substance abuse problems.
The Chemical side
In 1998, a Reuters news release reportedthat the former South African government had commissioned theuse of Ecstasy for 'riot control'. Their chemist had been orderedto produce one tonne of the drug.
A scientist, Dr. Johan Joekemoer, and the former head of the chemicaland biological weapons research at the secret Delta G. facility,told the South Africa's truth Commission that he had not approvedof the project. He said, "I did not trust the motives ofthose who asked me to make the drug." Additionally, in furtherdetails of the case, a correspondent in South Africa stated, "atthe moment, there is an ongoing commission of inquiry being heldinto the activities of the secret service during the apartheidyears.
The last few days of the inquiry have lifted the lid on the activitiesof a clandestine government laboratory called the Roodeplaat ResearchLaboratory. Evidence presented by former lab employees at thecommission of inquiry, revealed that the laboratory produced allsorts of exotic poisons for use against anti-apartheid activist.These include cyanide, thallium, botulism, paraquat and ecstasy."He continued, "between February 1992 and January 1993, noless than 912kg of Ecstasy in 'pure crystalline form ' was manufacturedby the laboratory.
Working on a tab dosage of 125mgs, that is enough E for 73 millionhits! The evidence being presented to the commission is that theE was going to be used to 'incapacitate the enemy'. He furtherindicated that the former head of army special operations calledWouter Basson was facing criminal charges for being in possessionof the Ecstasy drug two years past.
He said, "the evidence presented in court was that he washaving the E manufactured for 'incapacitating the enemy', butthe word is that he was producing it for international distributionin order to make himself a whole lot of money and in fact muchof that drug turned up among the local rave community in a browncapsule form and was said to be 'goodstuff'".
In an article published by Dr. Karl Jansen called: 'Ecstasy andMental Health: Nerves or Neurosis?', he states, "The useof ecstasy has been linked with a wide range of psychiatric sequelssuch as anxiety, panic attacks, depression, insomnia, depersonalization,derealisation, cognitive deficits, flashbacks, hallucinationsand other perceptual disorders, as well as paranoid delusionsand other forms of psychotic phenomena."
A November 1997 article in 'The Independent' newspaper in theUK stated: "Though the effects of the changes could takeyears or even decades to show up, it is potentially serious newsfor the UK's estimated 500,000 regular Ecstasy users who eachtake one or two tablets every weekend. If the brain cannot compensatefor the changes caused by the drug, the long term effects couldinclude widespread depression and even suicide."
The story was taken up by an Australian publication, the AdelaideAdvertiser which continued with, "New research has producedhard evidence of horrifying side effects of the rave drug takenby an estimated 600,000 Britons every week. It indicates thatregular users could suffer mild mood swings, bouts of potentiallysuicidal depression and memory loss even years after giving upthe drug."
There are several dangers associated with the use of this drugand many documented cases of young people who have had ugly andadverse reactions to Ecstasy. They can range from panic and fearof dying to cases of actual death. In some instances deaths associatedwith Ecstasy are noted as being a form of "drug induced heatstroke" as stated in an article by Chris Jones, Teacher ofCritical Care Courses for Nurses, Edge Hill University College,Liverpool.
He states: "Ecstasy alters the body's thermometer and inclinesits user to warm up the core body temperature particularly wherethe external ambient temperature is high. It is also said to lowertemperature if the external temperature is low. A warm temperatureseems to enhance the Ecstasy experience. The overheating effectof ecstasy is exacerbated by the following factors:
· Users arethought to dance well beyond the point of which a 'normal' personwould tire and sit down.
· DJ's play seamless sequences of records which keep dancersactive, and therefore producing more heat, over long periods oftime.
A club's atmosphere is usually hot and humid. The evaporationof sweat is an essential body defence mechanism to prevent overheatingand beyond a certain level of ambient humidity skin stops evaporatingsweat - the result is one cannot unload water as efficiently intoan atmosphere, which is already damp.
Hypothermia sets in which causes the blood to clot or coagulateover a widespread or disseminated area of the circulatory systemand elements in blood which are normally there to block holesare activated.
The blood coagulation process uses the blood's elements involvedin clotting faster than they can be replaced. This leads to anabsolute decline in the quantity of these elements. The resultof this decline mimics the result of anticoagulation; blood eventuallyrefuses to clot. Bruising takes place. Gums bleed. There is hemorrhage.With an ecstasy death, this process takes place very quickly.
Hypothermia leads rapidly to Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation(DIC) and the victim bleeds to death (in the most severe cases)."He continued, "DIC is a complication of the hypothermia.Hypothermia is a complication of the use of the drug and its circumstancesof use."
On of the marked side effects of the Ecstasy use is that the userexperiences incredible thirst and the first inclination is todrink lots of water because of the feeling of overheating anddrinking too much water has reportedly killed several people asa result.
It has been pointed out the main danger of taking the drug isoverheating and water is essential in order to sweat. In turndrinking too much water can be harmful if you drink more thanyour body is able to excrete and consequently the blood can becomediluted which will cause swelling of the bodies tissues. The dangerin that is that the brain cannot swell inside the skull and thepressure can build up to a dangerous level.
Another danger is that Ecstasy masks discomfort and pain and theuser may carry on an activity which under normal circumstancethey would stop. For example, under normal circumstance if a personis dehydrated and hot they will feel sick and look for relief- but under the influence of Ecstasy the normal responses mechanismsare not operating and a persons temperature can reach a fatallevel, only a few degrees above normal, and he or she can literallydrop dead.
In other cases people who are asthmatic have died from attackswhilst on Ecstasy. It can also cause your blood pressure to increase,which can be fatal to a person with a weak heart. There are alsobad reactions recorded for people with allergies and interactionswith other drugs can also cause fatalities in some instances thingsas simple as inhalers used by asthmatics and ordinary over thecounter pain killers like simple panadol.
Using the drug can be a fatal combination with almost any otherform of drugs, alcohol or medication, prescription or otherwise.Users risk losing their life when ingesting Ecstasy -- and asstated last week, and worthy of repeating -- that is certainlynot a very 'fun' idea.
· Many Users ThinkIt Is Safe
· Not So, Say Scientists And Police
· Does It Cause Permanent Brain Damage?
A new drug is sweeping the United States and other countries:a compound called MDMA, also known as Ecstasy. Law enforcementofficials say the drug worries them more than any other. It mayalso be spreading more quickly than any other illegal drug inAmerica. In April, Vicki Mabrey completed this investigation for60 Minutes II. Despite a reputation among many users for being"safe," it is also dangerous: In Florida alone, oneof the few states tracking the phenomenon, there have been atleast 40 deaths involving Ecstasy in the last three years.
MDMA was outlawed 15 years ago, but since then its use has beenskyrocketing.
The drug has a reputation for making users feel relaxed and friendly."With Ecstasy, everyone's your brother, everyone's your sister,everyone's your best friend," says Chauncey Barton. For almosthalf his life, Barton has used drugs, including marijuana, cocaineand speed. None, he says, compare to Ecstasy.
Barton describes taking Ecstasy as the "best feelings you'veever had in all your life condensed into a six to eight hour span....Theycall it Ecstasy for a reason."
This effect probably accounts for the drug's popularity, especiallyat all-night parties called raves. According to one governmentstudy, one out of 12 high school seniors has tried Ecstasy.
Teen-agers aren't the only ones using it. "Ecstasy used tobe associated only with raves but now it has become very fashionable,"says Mike Stevens, an undercover police detective who works thedrug scene in Orlando, Fla.
Stevens says about 80 percent of the people in the clubs wherehe goes undercover are either selling or using Ecstasy.
Many people put Ecstasy in a different category from other drugsbelieving that it is somehow less serious.
Stevens, though, disagrees. "Ecstasy is no different fromcrack or heroin," he says. "But that's the label it'sgotten, that it's kiddie dope."
Ecstasy can cause dehydration, anxiety and exhaustion. Emergencyroom doctors say they're seeing a rise in overdoses, a conditionthat can result in increased body temperature, brain damage andsometimes death. In the last few years, 1,100 cases have beenreported.
U.S. Customs has seized 4 million Ecstasy pills so far this year.That's a tenfold increase since 1997. No one is sure how manymore made it onto the streets.
Nearly all of the Ecstasy pills in the United States come fromAmsterdam, the Ecstasy capital of the world. The Dutch governmentthere is trying to do something about it.
Cees Van Doorn is the chief criminal investigator in the southof Holland, where Ecstasy is produced in enormous quantities inwhat are essentially factories. Van Doorn's unit has shut down35 Ecstasy labs in the last five years. But for every one busted,he says, 10 more crop up.
At one former Ecstasy factory, Van Doorn pointed out a machinethat can produce 300 Ecstasy pills a minute. Assuming that itoperates10 hours a day, seven days a week, it can produce morethan 1.2 million pills a week. The cost per pill, for manufacturers:20 cents. On the street that pill is worth $20.
These profits are attracting many to the Ecstasy trade. Law enforcementofficials say much of the drug is being brought into the UnitedStates by Israeli and Russian organized crime.
To users, though, Ecstasy appears to have fewer drawbacks thanother drugs. Unlike cocaine or heroin, which must be snorted orinjected, Ecstasy comes in pill form, which to most seems somehowsafer.
Barton says that when he began using Ecstasy, he thought thatserious problems were very rare. He found out the hard way thatthe drug can be more dangerous. Barton's best friend, Jason Austin,bought about eight pills at a rave in Florida. Barton believeshis friend may have taken as many as five of them.
"The way (Ecstasy) works is you got all this energy, andall this life built up in you," Barton says. "So youhave to dance or do something to get it out. (Austin) tried dancing.He stood up. Fell back down."
At that point, Barton began to get scared. "He was like afish out of water, flopping around on the ground," Bartonrecalls of his friend.
"From what I understand he had 106 degree fever when he showedup at the hospital," Barton says. "Brain damage is supposedto start at 104. He had slipped into a coma and pretty much everymajor organ in his body was bleeding quite profusely." JasonAustin is dead.
According to Duke University pharmacology Professor Wilkie Wilson,an overheating human body begins to go through epilepsy-like seizures."It is a terrible way to die," he says.
Despite Ecstasy's reputation for safety, it can be deeply harmful,Wilson says. "When people ask me about the dangers of drugs,Ecstasy is really No. 1 on my list, because it is one of the veryfew drugs that I know about that genuinely does brain damage,"says Wilson, who has written a respected book about drug use.
Because it makes them feel so good, Wilson says, users are reluctantto believe that the drug can hurt them.
Ecstasy works by affecting one of the brain's key chemicals. Itcauses the brain to release serotonin, a neurotransmitter thathelps control mood. Lack of serotonin can contribute to depressionand can harm areas of the brain responsible for thought and memory.Recent studies suggest that even one dose of Ecstasy can damagethe brain.
"Serotonin is a chemical in the brain that keeps you frombeing depressed," Wilson says. "It creates a wonderfulenvironment, but that's only for the time the serotonin's beingreleased. When the drug effect wears off, you have a brain thathas spilled a lot of serotonin, and now it doesn't have enoughto release the next time that you need it."
Wilson worries that Ecstasy users will permanently harm theirbrains. "This drug is spreading so fast among so many peoplethat I'm really afraid that we're going to have a generation ofdepressed people," he says.
While police try to get Ecstasy off the streets, a Californiaorganization known as Dance Safe takes a different approach. Ithas accepted the drug as a fact of life and is trying to reducethe risk by warning users of the dangers, such as dehydrationand overheating. They're doing something else almost unheard ofin the United States - testing the drug itself to see how muchit has been adulterated by other compounds besides MDMA.
"If the pill tests positive for Ecstasy, that is no indicationof purity," says Dance Safe founder Emanuel Sferios. "Andeven if it is pure, that's no indication of safety. No drug useis safe."
Sferios says that as much as 30 percent of the pills they testare not real Ecstasy, but are substitutes - with PCP, speed orother harmful substances.
"We neither condemn nor condone the use of drugs, but providepeople with information so they can make informed choices,"says Sferios. "The Just Say No philosophy - trying to stoppeople from using drugs - is not working."
Critics say that by testing pills and giving out information,the group is encouraging drug use. Says Stevens: "Do I wantmy daughter getting her pill tested by somebody outside, or doI want somebody to take the pill from my daughter and call meand say, 'Hey, we just caught your daughter out here with twopills of Ecstasy. Could you come pick her up please?'"
But Sferios says that his group has saved lives and that thosewho use drugs would use them whether or not Dance Safe existed.
Ecstasy will probably not disappear soon. Even those who haveforesworn it admit that it can make users feel wonderful. "Ofall the drugs I've taken in my life, I have to say that Ecstasyis probably the sweetest drug I've ever taken," Barton says.
Nevertheless, he says he will never take it again. "I'llnever touch that stuff again. Ever, ever. No, never."