Testing It Up

Ecstasy is even more likely to result in accidental death than even speed or crystal meth in young healthy adolescents who try the drug for the first time according to a study on stimulant-deaths in Britain between 1997 and 2007. During that study it was found that the majority of those who died after using ecstasy were younger and healthier than those who died as a result of taking amphetamines. The finding id unsettling as the majority of those who use the drug are the ones who are most likely to die from its use.

The data used for the study came from the National Programme on Substance Abuse Deaths database and the British Crime Survey. According to the data 832 people died from taking speed and crystal meth over the course of the 11 year study period, while 605 deaths were related to ecstasy. While the study did establish that adolescents between the ages of 16 and 24 seemed to suffer most from excessive intake of ecstasy the exact cause wasn’t clear though the developing state of the brain at this age could be the cause.

“Ecstasy and amphetamines are very similar — they are part of the same pharmacological group,” Schifano the head of the study said. “But ecstasy does seem to show an intrinsic toxicity that is higher than that of amphetamines.”

Ecstasy has been given many names throughout the decades. Before it became Ecstasy, it was known as MDMA, a by-product of the drugs manufactured by Merck to stop abnormal bleeding in the early 1900s. As early as then, scientists have already recognized the potential of MDMA as a therapeutic drug. In fact, both Germany and the United States did research on the potential of the drug as a brainwashing agent.

In 1976, MDMA was synthesized by Dr. Alexander Shulgin for use in psychotherapy. This usage was reputed to be a success. The drug was then called Adam to signify hope for psychotherapy patients. However, the drug came into the hands of non-psychotherapists who abused the drug for recreational purposes. Companies that manufactured the drug for such a purpose called it Ecstasy for marketing. The drug became so popular that it attracted the attention of the US Senate. It was then classified as a Schedule I drug that has no medical benefits.

For full version of this article, please visit “From Adam to Ecstasy: How the Drug Known as MDMA Got Its Names“.

A new drug testing product called HairConfirm is raising concerns that parents could become paranoid and invasive of their children’s lives. The hair drug test, which has become available in Australia is marketed as a test for use of drugs like marijuana, heroin, ecstasy, and cocaine among others. The product also claims to detect the frequency of drug use at a more accurate rate than either urine or saliva tests because of the 90 day retention of drug use evidence in the follicle.

The problem is that parents with concerns about teen drug use can resort to unethical tactics to get hair for testing and cause stress between the child and themselves without knowing if there is any reason for concern. Once a hair sample is acquired all that has to be done is wrapping it in the special foil and sending it off for a lab test in the US. This ease of use makes it seem less invasive and more tempting for the parent involved.

Trust is a valuable commodity that is sometimes overlooked when we’re concerned, but it’s better to discuss drugs with our children and ask them for the sample if it will relax frazzled parental nerves. While it may still bother your child you’re testing them at least you haven’t violated their privacy and taken it without talking the matter over which would be far worse for both the parent and the child’s emotional well-being.

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The battle against teenage drug use is a global war. With more and more teenagers falling to the wayside, including high-profile teenage celebrities, other cities the world over are also fighting the same war.

As 2008 came to a close, a seventeen-year-old schoolgirl from Hongkong was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison for trafficking kentamine and ecstasy. The sentencing followed a rejection of her plea for leniency, which is just right, in my opinion. It is one thing to be seventeen and get caught using prohibited drugs, but the selling of these drugs is a heavier and an entirely different offense altogether.

The young teenager couldn’t help but break down in tears after hearing the verdict. She shared the same fate with her nineteen-year-old boyfriend.

As if their ages were not shocking enough, these two teenagers were actually arrested along with their even younger fifteen-year-old neighbor, who was charged with possession of kentamine and ecstasy. The young girl was given a lighter sentence and was sent to a rehabilitation center. The two older teenagers, on the other hand, were caught selling ecstasy to an undercover officer which is why they ended up with heavier sentences.

The rise in incidents such as these has resulted in the devotion of more efforts towards addressing the issue of teenage drug abuse by the government of Hongkong. They especially took notice when five students of a government secondary school in Fan Ling were caught selling and using kentamine on campus in June 2007.

The Task Force on Youth Drug Abuse has been organized to focus on fighting teenage drug use. It is currently headed by the Secretary for Justice, Wong Yan-lung. Among their proposals is the administration of random urine testing in schools to identify drug use among students, realizing that early detection can play an important role in reforming wayward teens.

The cases of drug abuse in youth have caused alarm to many parents. Surveys have shown that 9.8% of American kids aged 12 to 17 years old used illegal drugs.

Drugs can affect a teen’s ability to pay attention and can thus harm his performance in school. It was also found that kids who started using illicit drugs early in their lives have a greater tendency to abuse it. Drug abuse in teens can lead to other major problems like unprotected sex resulting to teenage pregnancy or sex-related infections like HIV.

Teenage Drug Abuse: Check the Signs

While the presence of these signs may not immediately confirm drug abuse, this list can be a helpful guide to any parent. Common signs that may indicate drug abuse in your teen include:

- sudden drop in grades
- loss of interest in school or in other activities he/she used to love
- disrespect to authority and family rules
- sudden change in appetite and drastic weight loss or gain
- constant irritability and mood swings
- feels negative and acts rebellious most of the times

Drug Tests

Any concerned parent can always have his son or daughter tested for substance abuse – in clinics or at home. To protect his child’s privacy, home testing kits have been preferred. Urine, saliva, hair and nail may be used as specimen for the tests.

I believe that proper guidance and setting good examples are the most effective ways to ensure that illegal drugs are out of our children’s ways. I also believe that trust is a very important value in the family and a conversation between a parent and the child is always better, but I also understand that some parents are left with no choice other than to have their children tested.

We find ourselves in different situations and we deal with them differently. In the end, the important thing is we all think of what is best for our children.

On September 9, 2008, a woman was arrested on drug charges in downtown Columbus by the Columbus State University Police.

University Police Chief Rus Drew has stated that the woman, Shannon Dixon, 21, was arrested and charged with possession of cocaine, trafficking in ecstasy, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug-related items.

Dixon was arrested after an officer patrolling near the Coca Cola Space Science Center saw two women standing around a car parked in the museum lot. When the officer approached the women, a bag of marijuana was spotted on the dashboard of the car. That gave the officer probably cause to commence a search on the vehicle. That is when the remaining items were found.

After a background check, it was found that the other woman was already wanted on burglary and theft.

College Station, Texas saw a drug bust that put two men in jail on Sunday July 6th, 2008. Three different law enforcement stations were involved. They recovered $8,000 and a plethora of illegal drugs inside of a residence.

The Brazos County Special Investigations Unit, the College Station Police Department, and the Bryan Police Department discovered 10 grams of Ecstasy, 28 grams of cocaine, 79 grams of marijuana, 42 grams of prescription drugs, and another 179 grams of marijuana that had been baked into brownies.

The two men arrested were 24 year old Marcus Ealomos and 25 year old Andre Day.

Four men and a 15-year old have been arrested in Scranton, Pa. for offenses that are drug related. An 8 month investigation was conducted that led to the arrest. The defendants were believed to have been trafficking drugs between Scranton and Philadelphia.

One of the defendants had supplied a police informant with 4 ounces of cocaine and 5 ounces of marijuana in Philadelphia, which is what led to the probe by authorities. Shortly after, 4 adults and 1 15-year-old were arrested. The teenager was in possession of $9,700.

A search warrant issued for a residence netted an additional 3 pounds of cocaine, 696 ecstasy tablets, 13.5 pounds of marijuana, and a marijuana growing operation that netted 36 plants.

A judge in Australia sentenced an 18-year-old who was found with ecstasy to 100 hours of community service, three years probation, and…a 2000 word essay? Yes, you read that correctly. The judge ordered the teen to write a 2000 word essay on the dangers of drugs. The drugs that the judge ordered the teen to write about are cannabis and ecstasy.

According to court documents, it was stated that the teen had been using ecstacy for about a year. It was also stated that he had been experimenting with other drugs, which included three years of cannabis use.

The teen has been given three months to write the essay with the title, “The Harmful Effects of Using Cannabis and Ecstacy.” The judge had originally ordered a 3000 word essay, but the lawyer for the teen was able to have it reduced to 2000 words. The reason for the lawyer to argue the number of words was because the teenager struggled in school and would therefore struggle with the assignment.