MDMA, called “Adam,” “ecstasy,” or “XTC” on the street, is a synthetic, psychoactive (mind-altering) drug with amphetamine-like and hallucinogenic properties. Its chemical structure (3-4 methylenedioxymethamphetamine) is similar to two other synthetic drugs, MDA and methamphetamine, which are known to cause brain damage.
Health hazards
Beliefs about MDMA are reminiscent of the claims made about LSD in the 1950s and 1960s, which proved to be untrue. According to its proponents, MDMA can make people trust each other and can break down barriers between therapists and patients, lovers, and family members. Many of the risks users face with MDMA use are similar to those found with the use of amphetamines and cocaine.
Risks include:
Psychological difficulties, including confusion, depression, sleep problems, drug cravings, severe anxiety, and paranoia – during and sometimes weeks after taking MDMA. Even psychotic episodes have been reported.
Physical symptoms such as muscle tension, involuntary teeth clenching, nausea, blurred vision, rapid eye movement, faintness, and chills or sweating.
Increases in heart rate and blood pressure, which are a special risk for people with circulatory or heart disease.
Recent research findings also link long-term MDMA use to damage to those parts of the brain critical to thought and memory. It is thought that the drug causes damage to the neurons that use the chemical serotonin to communicate with other neurons. In monkeys, exposure to MDMA for 4 days caused brain damage that was evident 6 to 7 years later. This study provides further evidence that people who take MDMA may be risking permanent brain damage.
Also, there is evidence that people who develop a rash that looks like acne after using MDMA may be risking severe side effects, including liver damage, if they continue to use the drug.
MDA, the parent drug of MDMA, is an amphetamine-like drug that has also been abused and is similar in chemical structure to MDMA. Research shows that MDA destroys serotonin-producing neurons in the brain, which play a direct role in regulating aggression, mood, sexual activity, sleep, and sensitivity to pain. It is probably this action on the serotonin system that gives MDA its purported properties of heightened sexual experience, tranquility, and conviviality.
MDMA is also related in its structure and effects to methamphetamine, which has been shown to cause degeneration of neurons containing the neurotransmitter dopamine. Damage to these neurons is the underlying cause of the motor disturbances seen in Parkinson’s disease. Symptoms of this disease begin with lack of coordination and tremors and can eventually result in a form of paralysis.
The book Brave New World, written in 1932 by Aldous Huxley, provided readers a shocking portrayal of a future in which all babies come from test tubes, free love prevails, and citizens are bred according to letter-graded castes. Though it is now 70 years old, the book seems startlingly familiar, in certain respects.
The government in Brave New World kept the population artificially happy and complacent by the use of soma, a mind-altering drug. Soma was given to people as a reward for excellent service to the government. It allowed them to go on a “soma holiday.” As someone told the protagonist of Brave New World, Bernard Marx, “Glum, Marx, glum – what you need is a gram of soma. Take a holiday from reality whenever you like, and come back without so much as a headache or a mythology.”
The government hypnotized citizens from birth into believing such sayings as “One cubic centimeter cures ten gloomy sentiments,” and “A gram is better than a damn.” Little tablets of soma provided a pleasant, mindless escape from the real world, and kept society complacent and docile. At any sign of unhappiness, people instinctively took a little soma, and escaped their troubles.
Frightening, isn’t it? The use of a government-sanctioned, mood-altering drug keeps an entire population of people artificially, chemically happy. People are urged to never feel unhappy, and to quickly remedy the situation by the use of artificial substances.
Modern psychiatric medicine prescribes drugs such as Prozac to those people who feel down or depressed due to chemical imbalances in their brain. Prozac is an example of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), meaning it works by blocking the reuptake of serotonin in the synaptic clefts after it has been released. This allows serotonin to remain present longer after the firing of neurons, producing an effectively greater concentration of serotonin. For people with naturally low levels of serotonin, which often results in depression or feelings of despair, drugs like Prozac prove to be a solution that allows them to lead more normal, happier lives. Available by prescription only, Prozac should only be used in those cases where it is medically necessary.
But what about the rest of us, who have normal levels of serotonin but still aren’t satisfied with the ups and downs of daily life? For us, the latest craze is St. John’s Wort, touted as a natural, herbal way to lift our mood. The pretty little yellow flowers on the St. John’s Wort plant seem innocent enough. In reality, however, St. John’s Wort acts as a mild SSRI, like a gentler form of Prozac.
You’d think that the government, to prevent excessive and potentially unsafe usage, would heavily regulate a mild form of Prozac. However, exactly the opposite holds true. No regulation of St. John’s Wort exists. The Food and Drug Administration cannot regulate what it deems “herbal supplements.” Therefore, no safe dosage has been established, the claims for St. John’s Wort have not been officially tested, and manufacturers and distributors of St. John’s Wort are free to do as they please, make outrageous claims, and sell dosages as large as they wish.
Since when does being labeled “herbal” make something safe? Once the drug Ecstasy was banned, another commercially available drug called “Herbal Ecstacy” [sic] was heralded as its substitute. The “natural” ingredients in Herbal Ecstacy and its wide availability lead many to believe in the safety of the drug. However, nothing could be farther from the truth. The drug, while containing plant-derived substances, is far more dangerous than your garden-variety mint sprigs. It has been cited in the death of at least one person, and is responsible for adverse effects in hundreds of other people. Yet the FDA cannot regulate it, because it still qualifies as an “herbal supplement.”
We need to stop believing that anything “natural” is completely safe to use casually, and we need to use a bit more caution before consuming herbal products. Otherwise, the social repercussions can be downright scary.
In contrast to studies of illicit users, the few controlled clinical trials with MDMA in healthy volunteers have reportedly not found evidence of cognitive changes, despite cerebral blood flow alterations in one study. The possible risks of neurotoxicity must be considered when assessing the potential administration of MDMA to humans.
There is little doubt for the majority of those that have experienced this drug that they have shifted or changed at some emotional level. That is not surprising, considering that ecstasy was specifically designed for this purpose. However, the question that begs to be asked is, “Are these changes positive and do they really have an effect throughout the life of the user?” Again, taking a mind altering substance and weighing the risk against the benefits is always an area best left to individual judgment.
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