MDMA
HEIGHT OF ecstasy
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Who
Summer brings the festivals – and a new young crowd experimenting with MDMA . Kevin Flemen gives the guide to staying safe
is Leah Betts ?’ The question , from a recently qualified social worker on an NPS course , brought home to me some important issues . Leah died in 1995 , aged 18 , after using MDMA and drinking a large quantity of water . Campaigns by her family , the media and advertising agencies saw her posthumously become the ‘ poster girl ’ for the dangers of MDMA . That was 1995 , and my newly-qualified social worker was a baby when this happened . She and a whole cohort of children and young adults have not grown up in the shadow of Leah ’ s death . They didn ’ t read about it in the papers , see the video at school or learn about it from earnest drug educators .
This matters now more than ever . This MDMA-naïve generation are going out at a time when MDMA pills have never been as strong , cheap , or widely available . Alongside the pills containing dangerous adulterants , powder and crystal MDMA may also be adulterated or misidentified .
Alongside the Leah question , I hear another : ‘ Frank – is that still going ?’ The days when the drugs helpline enjoyed TV adverts and a budget allowing for innovative cross-platform promotion are long gone . It became a casualty of cuts along with the club outreach that helped reduce the risks to a generation of young people .
So with exams coming to an end and the festival season underway , it is imperative that those MDMA harm reduction messages are dusted off , refreshed and communicated to the new generation of users .
As ever , drug terms and slang vary from place to place and over time . The drug MDMA is variously known as Mandy , Molly , ecstasy , E and XTC and some young people may not be aware of its ‘ proper ’ name . Terms may link to form (‘ ecstasy ’ had referred primarily to pills , MDMA to powder and crystals ) but this isn ’ t always the case .
Pill strength has increased significantly over the past couple of years and has become a key concern . There is no routine , consistent monitoring of available pill strengths in the UK , so comparisons are partly estimates . Back in the late ’ 80s and early ’ 90s , MDMA pills contained around 80mg per pill and would retail for £ 5-10 .
Looking at the range of pills currently available on dark web sites such as Dream Market , there are a few at the 160mg mark but most claim strength of between 220mg and 250mg , so average pill strength has probably trebled .
New production methods and the massive marketplace that is the dark web have seen manufacturers competing on strength and price , so low cost is no longer indicative of a low-dosed pill . For older users accustomed to swallowing two or three pills at a time , or for younger users with no tolerance , these high dose pills can cause fatal overdoses .
Crystal contamination
Just as pills can vary significantly in terms of dose and composition , the same is true for products sold as powder or crystal MDMA . Alternative substances or adulterants may be present and whereas one can check online for pill warnings , powders and crystals are harder to identify visually .
Looking at submissions to the Welsh testing site WEDINOS , samples bought as powder or crystal MDMA contained a range of compounds including previously legal NPS such as methylone , mephedrone and a-PVP , alongside cocaine , caffeine , speed and a host of other compounds .
There is no easy way for end users to assess pill strength , or the content of powders and crystals . The claimed strength of dark web retailers cannot be relied on , and as fast as ‘ genuine ’ pills are sold online , fake ones are likely to appear on the streets .
Other options for information include Erowid ’ s Ecstasy Data ( www . ecstasydata . org ) the user-run Pill Report ( pillreports . net ) and WEDINOS , ( www . wedinos . org ) from Public Health Wales . Each carries useful information on components or user experience , but little on pill strengths .
Thanks to the efforts of The Loop ( wearetheloop . org ), club and festival pill testing has increased , and at a small but growing number of events it is now possible to have drugs tested and results passed back to users and health professionals in a short timeframe .
14 | drinkanddrugsnews | July / August 2017 www . drinkanddrugsnews . com