Australia: Drug Researcher Says Ecstasy Safer Than Binge Drinking, Causes Flap
Responding to recent data suggesting that young Queenslanders are switching to ecstasy in the wake of a steep increase in the state government's tax on popular "alcopops," a leading drug researcher said the young people would be better off taking small amounts of ecstasy than going on drinking binges. Unsurprisingly, the comments have attracted criticism from some quarters.
ecstasy pills
Illegal drugs kill about a thousand Australians a year, but alcohol kills around 20,000. According to a 2004 government study, 19% of 18-to-24-year-old men and 11% of women in the same age group had engaged in binge drinking -- defined as seven drinks or more at a sitting -- at least once a week over the past year.
Ecstasy is "cheaper and safer" than excessive alcohol consumption, Najman said. "Even drug-related problems, including psychotic episodes and violent behaviour are not seen with ecstasy, as they are with amphetamines and alcohol," he said.
University of Adelaide PhD student Emily Jaehne attacked Najman's statement on two counts. She said ecstasy was often adulterated, but that is an artifact of prohibition, not a property of the drug itself. Her second count, that ecstasy causes potentially serious increases in body temperature, was stronger. "When taken at hot nightclubs or rave parties the heightened effects could lead to severe brain damage or death," Ms. Jaehne said.
But while the risk of death from using ecstasy is real, it is also infinitesimal. According to a 2004 study of national death statistics, 12 people died of ecstasy-related causes in Australia between 2001 and 2004.
Still, that didn't stop Jo Baxter, director of Drug Free Australia, from calling Najman's comments "irresponsible" and dangerous. "There is no guarantee that if young people hear a message of so-called 'safe use' from people in authority, that they will use only small quantities. Taking ecstasy is like Russian roulette. No one individual knows exactly what it will do to their body chemistry," she said.
"A person in Professor Najman's position and with his qualifications is showing an extraordinary lack of responsibility, if his views have been reported accurately," Baxter continued. "The other aspect is that we seriously have to question why our young people are feeling the need to take drugs in order to 'have a good time.' We need to be giving our young people reasons not to have to rely on drugs for their social events. If we can reduce the demand, the huge volumes of ecstasy now coming into Australia would have no market."
Good luck with that, Mrs. Baxter.
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redditReduce Demand
Comment posted by consfearacy on Fri, 09/05/2008 - 10:22pm- consfearacy
Drug prohibition has been trying to reduce demand for how long now? 100 years? People like to get high. It`s a fact of reality. Drug prohibition has never been about the reduction of use. The roots of drug prohibition rest in the U.S.A. The records of history show it to be rooted in racists and bigoted ideaology. Look it up for yourself. Start with Anslinger. The idea of a drug free America [Australia] is hilarious. Imagine having an ecstasy high and hanging out with Willard The Killer boxing Kangaroo. It would be a much safer alternative to getting drunk and trying to box with Willard. You can bet on it.
Big amount, small amount
Comment posted by Malkavian on Mon, 09/08/2008 - 10:23amThe researcher is probably right, but lots of people reading the about this research will probably wonder why "Ecstasy" needs to be consumed in small amounts to be less dangerous than alcohol. The predictable answer to this logic must be a "duh, drinking a small amount of alcohol is also less dangerous than binge drinking".
It's even a kinda valid argument - because won't people just binge on Ecstasy too?
Don't take this the wrong way, because I'm all for Ecstasy and I know it's a remarkably benign substance.
And those deaths because of Ecstasy`Damn, they have me puzzled to no end. I read the draft of a trial with Ecstasy that some of our Danish scientists were involved in (A PET Study of Effects of Chronic 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, "Ecstasy") on Serotonin Markers in Göttingen Minipig Brain). The interesting part was that they had to go as high as 20 mg/kg for those mini-pigs before even seeing adaptations in the brain (which would disappear in 2 months of abstinence), but even at this ridiculous amount of MDMA not a single pig died and temperatures were only elevated slightly.
Thus one can't help but wonder if the majority of those "Ecstasy deaths" are really a consequence of impure drugs, a particular mixture of drugs (e.g. with alcohol and amphetamines)?
So much just doesn't make sense with Ecstasy. I know a Danish paramedic and he could readily report how "some young dude they brougt in is lying right over there and he's a totalt vegetable ... and he ate just one Ecstasy pill". Makes NO sense at all
The problem with prohibition
Comment posted by Anonymous on Thu, 09/11/2008 - 5:47amOne of the major issues of having drugs people like to use be illegal is that there will be no controlling of how the drugs are made and what they actually contain.
I would guess most xtc contains more caffeine and meth than MDMA.
Good resource -> Ecstasydata.org
Exactly - Its the impurities
Comment posted by Anonymous on Wed, 12/10/2008 - 9:25amWhen you've got some amateur chemist trying to create it in his kitchen its not going to be safe. If it was allowed to be made in a safe environment without two bit hoods cutting it up to make some extra money then there wouldn't be these problems. But I digress, alcohol is also very addictive and damaging to ALL organs
Hello, It's 'Drugs... including Alcohol' NOT 'Drugs & Alcohol'
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 09/05/2008 - 2:49pmGood for Professor Jake Najman, director of Queensland's Alcohol and Drug Research Center... speaking truth to power can be tough, not to mention deadly dangerous, when dealing with extremely deadly christian fundamentalists accustomed to killing or incarcarating those that dare to disagree with their delusions, deceptions, and dishonesty when worshipping an ancient evil doltish deity... mental masturbation of the sickest form... but!
When researchers incorrectly seperate the drug alcohol from the 'drug' equation you end up with a false, and deadly, bias towards the drug alcohol... which of course is the original gateway drug & benefits mightily from the 'cloak of social acceptability' bestowed upon it by our predominantly eurpoean ancestors.
I would suggest correcting the name of the 'Queensland's Alcohol & Drug Research Center' to its correct name 'Queensland's Drug... including Alcohol Research Center'. Make NO mistake: ALCOHOL IS A DRUG and to call it something else is a lie... the well honed specialty of the purveyors of gods & gov'ts... not the scientific community!
Ecstasy, as I recall, was a very safe & effective drug used by the psychiatric community for decades... without the deadly consequences that occasionally occur with irresponsible drug use by minors at raves who forget to hydrate themselves when dancing all night.
Truth is treason in the kingdom of lies!
Billy B. Blunt
Tacoma, WA