ECSTASY FACTS * General * Effects * Short Term Risks * Long Term Risks
DEBUNKING MYTHS
DOES ECSTASY PUT HOLES IN YOUR BRAIN?
No. The “holes in the brain” scan conducted on MDMA users does not reveal actual physical holes or missing tissue in the brain. What it reveals is blood flow activity, and the “holes” represent areas in the brain where less blood is present or traveling. Of course, this means that in those particular areas, serotonin chemicals, serotonin receptor sites, neurotransmitters, and other parts of normal brain functions are not as active as they should be. Such a lack of blood flow can be caused, however, by anything as simple as staying up all night, meaning a brain scan conducted on just a weary person can reveal “holes” in some areas of the brain. Keep in mind the possibility that the MDMA users who had their brains scanned may have been poly-drug users, and the potential effects of those other drugs on their brains. There is also no conclusive data yet to suggest that the decreased blood flow will never pick up again. There have been no human studies yet to prove that the brain damage caused by MDMA will remain permanent, or how problematic such damage may be on the person's daily function.
IS ECSTASY AN ADDICTIVE DRUG?
Pure MDMA is not physically addictive. But many users build a psychological dependence by taking MDMA frequently or repeatedly to re-experience the pleasurable effects again and again. Tolerance can also build quickly with greater use, and some users take higher doses to achieve the same level of effects as previous experiences. A majority of heavy MDMA users, however, are capable of stopping or regulating their use before heavy abuse.
WHAT ABOUT ECSTASY, VIAGRA, AND SEX?
Sexual enhancement off of MDMA only varies from individual to individual. Studies have shown that for some users, the drug can make you sexually acceptant to otherwise non-sexual companions, and that the pleasures of sex increase and lengthen while on MDMA. However, most users report feelings of sensuality and friendship rather than increased sexual desires. Both male and female users also frequently report difficulty achieving erections and orgasms while on MDMA. For recommended reading on these studies, look for the book Pursuit of Ecstasy: The MDMA Experience by Jerome Beck and Marsha Rosenbaum.
IF MY PILL TESTS POSITIVE FOR MDMA, THAT MEANS IT'S SAFE?
WILL USING ECSTASY GIVE ME PARKINSON’S DISEASE?
Like many other conflicting claims about the long-term risks of MDMA use, reliable research is slim on ecstasy’s potential to cause brain damage leading to symptoms and conditions similar to Parkinson’s. Some animal studies conclude that single doses within a night of ecstasy use can lead to severe neuronal impairment and mass loss of dopamine. In the United Kingdom, however, studies have surfaced claiming that MDMA can actually help in the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease symptoms. More info below from Ilsa Jerome, research associate for the
Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, message sent to me December 2004:
"Here you refer to a study conducted in 2002 by GA Ricaurte and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University wherein monkeys and baboons were given what the authors believed to be 2 mg/kg MDMA three times in a six hour period. They used several methods to detect damage to serotonin and dopamine neurons in these animals...
"...As we later learned in September 2003, the authors had not even given these monkeys and baboons MDMA. They instead had been administering methamphetamine. According to the researchers, a container of methamphetamine was confused for a container of MDMA. This switch caused the researchers to retract (essentially 'take back') this study and another far less sensational study, and apparently it interfered with some planned publications. In a report that MAPS obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, it turns out Ricaurte spent a long time afterwards trying to repeat his results but he failed, and through a convoluted series of events, this led to the discovery that the 'MDMA' in this study was not, in fact, MDMA...
"...You can read more about it at our link devoted to this retraction..."
DOES ECSTASY DAMAGE YOUR BACK OR DRAIN YOUR SPINAL FLUID?
The use of MDMA has never directly caused anyone to lose their spinal fluid. Pharmacological studies have been done where researchers administered MDMA into their subjects, then withdrew samples of spinal fluid from the subjects, and analyzed the samples to access the duration and quantity of the drug remaining in the subjects’ systems. Many people who have taken ecstasy at raves have reported having backaches the next day. Since it is MDMA research, not MDMA use itself, that caused the draining of spinal fluid, the backaches are most likely due to dancing or standing on the dance floor for long hours without sitting down or resting.
DO PEOPLE OVERDOSE OFF OF ECSTASY AT RAVES ALL THE TIME?
No. A majority of media reports about MDMA-related deaths at raves are misreported as overdoses. Here are some of the factors that can lead to the misinterpretation:
© 2004
Feel free to email me at lesliu@gmail.com for questions or feedback.
Harm Reduction * Debunking Myths
WHAT DRUGS ARE IN ECSTASY? IS THERE HEROIN OR CRACK IN IT?
The term ecstasy refers to the stimulant-based entactogen drug, MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine). Illegal MDMA is sold on the blackmarket in tablet or capsule form under different brand names characterized by a variety of shapes, colors, and appearances. Drug dealers may sell pills as “ecstasy,” even though there may be other drugs in the pill or no MDMA at all, for various reasons including:
Heroin and crack are among many substances believed to be in ecstasy. But heroin and powdered cocaine are almost never found in pressed tablets sold as MDMA. Crack cannot exist in pill form because it is a type of cocaine consumed through smoking. Far more common adulterants DanceSafe has come across include MDA, amphetamines, ephedrine, ketamine, and caffeine. More potentially harmful adulterants such as DXM and PMA have also been found.
IS ECSTASY A NEW DRUG?
MDMA was first invented in the early 1910s by a German pharmaceutical company. It was briefly researched in animal experiments during the middle of the century. Major use among humans did not begin until the 1970s, when chemist Alexander Shulgin re-synthesized MDMA and produced the first published writings on its effects. MDMA then came to be used as a popular and effective therapeutic tool up until it was made illegal in the U.S. during the mid 1980s. Ever since, MDMA has continued to gain popularity among an increasing number of users around the world.
As far as ecstasy and Viagra, the notion that ravers and clubbers use this combo for all-night dancing and sexual activities at parties is somewhat speculative and suppresses the likelihood that such a combo is actually being experimented with by mostly non-partygoers. Contrary to popular belief, behaviors such as oral sex and intercourse are practically unheard of at raves, although kissing and making out (even among strangers) can be common. If MDMA and Viagra combos are being taken by ravers and clubbers, the sexual activities are much more likely to be taking place at home after the party. Whatever the user population, however, a danger of this drug mixture is simply the fact that no serious studies have been done on the possible risks of interaction.
IS ECSTASY EVER SLIPPED IN PEOPLE'S DRINKS?
There have been no known cases. Because MDMA almost always comes in pill form and has a slightly bitter taste to it, it would be rather easy to spot in a drink. But another drug, GHB (gamma-hydroxbutyrate), has been cited in numerous such cases. GHB usually comes in a clear and odorless liquid form, or in a powder form that is commonly mixed into drinks. One of the slang terms for GHB is liquid ecstasy, which may contribute to the misguided association of MDMA with GHB cases.
Regardless of what drugs do or don't turn up in your pill via DanceSafe's adulterant screening services, how safe or good the pill is will be up to you to decide. The ecstasy testing kits only reveal the presence of MDMA and a number of other drugs. If the test turns up positive for MDMA, it does not guarantee that the pill is 100% pure MDMA, or that the pill doesn't contain other undetectable drugs. Remember, MDMA itself has its own risks, just like any other drug, whether it's legal or illegal, real or adulterated.
Because of all this, it is assumed that the overheating in such deaths is caused directly by MDMA toxicity in the user's system, the same way victims die with fatally high body temperatures from PMA or methamphetamine overdoses. But for a user to die directly of an ecstasy overdose, their body would have to be intoxicated with the equivalent of probably a few dozen or more pure MDMA pills, far more than the average dosage taken for a recreational experience.
Recent research has also proven that for rats, MDMA does not necessarily increase body temperature. Rather, it reduces the body's ability to regulate its own temperature, making the rats more sensitive to their environment. If these findings are applicable to humans, then in an excessively cool environment for example, an MDMA user’s body temperature can drop to dangerous levels, possibly leading to hypothermia.
But in a hot environment such as a crowded rave, someone on ecstasy is under increased risk of overheating. Other factors such as poor ventilation inside the rave, ongoing physical exertion such as dancing all night, and not drinking enough water will furthermore increase these risks. Thus, the majority of ecstasy-related deaths from raves misreported as overdoses have actually been caused by a combination of hot environments, inadequate replenishment of bodily fluids, and the use of as little as one pill of MDMA. There are few documented cases of MDMA users dying with fatally high body temperatures after taking the drug in a cool, temperate environment. Probably, these deaths were the result of serotonin syndrome, a rare possibly genetically-based condition induced by serotonin-releasing drugs.
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