The drug ICE is getting plenty of attention in Australia at the moment, with the media focussing on ICE almost exclusively. However, other drugs, and in particular ecstasy, are even more widely used and are also causing many issues in the community.
Research by the Australian Drug Foundation shows that nearly 11% of Australians aged 14 years and over have tried ecstasy at some point in time. In addition, 2.5% admitted to having used the drug in the past 12 months. These figures are higher than the comparative statistics for ICE and other amphetamines and methamphetamines, with 7% of Australians aged 14 years and over having used amphetamines and methamphetamines at some stage in their lives and 2.1% using in the past 12 months.
Why do people use ecstasy? Users report a euphoric rush that can last several hours and longer. Alertness, energy and even affection are what make ecstasy popular and give it the common name of the party drug.
The comedown is certainly not a party, however. Users can feel a wide variety of negative symptoms, including exhaustion, anger, paranoia, anxiety and depression.
For regular or long-term users the impact on their lives can be devastating. Issues can include high blood pressure, depression, increased emotional issues, decrease in memory and attention. Users can also report with cracked teeth because people who take ecstasy often clench and grind their teeth.
For occasional users the side effects can also be devastating. While short-term, issues can include overheating, increased blood pressure and heart rate, tremors and nausea. In some cases, ecstasy users have died from taking a single ecstasy pill.
Part of the reason for the danger is that ecstasy users can’t be sure of what they are putting in their bodies. Ecstasy’s prime ingredient is an ingredient called methylenedioxymethamphetamine or MDMA. The issue is, however, that if you take an ecstasy tablet you may be swallowing much more than MDMA, because as the materials to make synthetic drugs become more difficult to obtain, black market producers are adding methamphetamine (speed), synthetic hallucinogens and other chemicals into the mix.
The result can be a combination of chemicals that can be far more dangerous and even deadlier than a pure ecstasy.
Bio:
This article was researched and written by
Integrity Sampling, an Australian company that has helped hundreds of customers throughout Australia with workplace drug and
alcohol testing services since their inception in 2001.
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