Ecstasy

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MPs have recommended that ecstasy should be downgraded to rank it alongside amphetamines and barbiturates rather than heroin and cocaine. The Home Affairs Committee claims that for many people the drug is no more than a passing phase, that rarely results in any long term harm. However, the drug can damage health, and, for the unlucky few, it can kill. BBC News Online presents the evidence. The case of Lorna Spinks, a sociology undergraduate at Anglia Polytechnic University, who collapsed and died after taking ecstasy pills graphically illustrates the dangers of taking the drug. It is clear that the drug has the potential to kill. Most deaths have been caused by dehydration. Ecstasy affects body temperature, and when combined with dancing for long periods in a hot place there is a risk of dangerous over-heating. However, the medical profession is still unclear as to the exact danger that the drug poses to health. Part of the problem is that many tablets sold as ecstasy are not what purchasers think they are. The amount of ecstasy in a tablet can vary greatly. Tablets have been analysed and some contained no ecstasy but other drugs such as amphetamine or ketamine. Others have been found to contain some ecstasy but mixed with other drugs or a range of adulterants. Some tablets have even been found to be fish tank cleaners or dog worming tablets.