Why Ecstasy Researcher Is Smiling

wired news ^ | 9 12 03 | Kristen Philipkoski

[freepatriot32]

When the results of a widely publicized study last year showed that ecstasy could cause Parkinson's-like brain damage, it seemed unlikely that the drug would ever be considered a viable form of therapy.

The drug, a staple among teen ravers, was considered by experts to be too dangerous to warrant further study.

[freepatriot32]

Underground therapists around the country are so sure ecstasy can help people with psychological problems that they risk jail time to treat people with it.

Thats just sick that medical school gradutes which psychiatrists are have to hide from asscroft and the dea members who havent gone to one hour of medical school. When the hell are the american people going to wake up and force these american gastop agent out of goverment ?

[freepatriot32]

ping

[Cicero]

I wouldn't rush out and start taking Ecstasy. This retraction doesn't prove it's harmless. It only admits that the experiment was screwed up.

Chances are, it's as dangerous as most people assumed before the experiment was originally announced. That's why you keep reading news stories about people dying from it.

[whd23]

What a maroon!

Don't like the current laws on the books? Don't blame the enforcement official, blame the LAWMAKERS! Guh

[toothless]

"I wouldn't rush out and start taking Ecstasy. "

Whew, thanks for the warning!

[PBRSTREETGANG]

But the scientists who conducted that research have retracted it, saying they mistakenly administered methamphetamine, not ecstasy, to the primates they studied.

Great job overseeing that experiment! Wonder how much grant money they received? So can we presume that "meth" causes Parkinson's-like brain damage?

[Wolfie]

40% of the primates died. Any thinking researcher immediately says to himself, "Gee, do 40% of the people who take X every week die?", and realizes something is amiss a hell of a lot sooner. I think the Ricaurte got caught fudging his experiment to please his masters and is trying to cover his ass.

[CatoRenasci]

Oh, man... just take a pill.... and chill.....

< /irony>

[jayef]

Uh, not exactly. Most of the new stories you read are just as politically motivated as these hacks were. As with this experiment, most of the deaths you read about are not due to ecstasy (MDMA). Most of the deaths you read about are due to a dangerous coctail of alcohol and DXM. These are not ecstasy deaths. Is ecstasy harmless? Like most intoxicants, the answer is no. There are things you can do to mitigate neurotoxicity and as with any intoxicant, moderation is usually the best practice.

[Wolfie]

Dehydration and heat stroke are the leading cause of death in X users. Its one of the reasons that organizations such as DanceSafe advises users to drink lots of water, and one of the reasons that the Feds consider bottle water to be drug paraphernalia.

[jmc813]

WOD Ping

[big gray tabby]

What's really messed up is that the monkeys missed a great buzz and got crank instead. The last words they heard as their hearts exploded was, "Oops".

That's messed up.

[DBrow]

A Gram Is Better Than a Damn

[jayef]

Yes. For those that actually do get MDMA. I would argue that most of the deaths you see reported in the papers are DXM related. I tell anyone that will listen, don't buy pills at the club. Test what you buy. Of course if Ashcroft had his way, you wouldn't be able to get test kits.

[DBrow]

"That's why you keep reading news stories about people dying from it."

Some do die from MDMA, but it is probably the easier-to-make PMA that is the culprit. This acts a little like MDMA at 60 mg or so, but if you take more your body temp gets way too high and you run the risk of death. People expecting MDMA effects are likely to re-dose to get the roll going, and doom themselves unknowingly to a 109 fever or better. To a reporter though, the difference between PMA or PMMA and MDMA is unimportant.

You also have to consider that outside a clinic, you rarely have a clue what other goodies the dead roller was eating- like EtOH and DXM as mentioned above, or 2-CT-7, or nitrous, or methamphetamine.

Does not matter in practical terms- someone ate some pills and died.

BTW it is easier to make because the starting material is not as tightly controlled as is the start material for MDMA.

[Trailerpark Badass]

The last words they heard as their hearts exploded was, "Oops".

You sure it wasn't, "Hey, watch this!"?

[StriperSniper]

Don't like the current laws on the books? Don't blame the enforcement official, blame the LAWMAKERS!

There is enough blame to go around to all three branches, checks and balances. Take the Texas sodomy case for example. if it wasn't for the sudden enforcement of the statute, it would never have gotten to the courts who have now done more damage by inventing new 'rights'. They all share reponsibillity for defending that musty old document known as the Constitution.

No, I'm not saying that there is a Constitutional right to take Ecstasy, but it is silent on the issue and should be left to the states or (Horror!) the people.

[DannyTN]

"Underground therapists around the country are so sure ecstasy can help people with psychological problems that they risk jail time to treat people with it."

"Underground therapists" obviously means dope dealers, not professional psychiatrists. Professionals are unlikely to risk their professional license to promote a drug that has no scientific backing and with which they would have no other familiarity with unless they are taking it themselves.

[BrooklynGOP]

"Underground therapists" obviously means dope dealers, not professional psychiatrists dope dealers.

[MrLeRoy]

Researchers have gained government approval to test the drug "Ecstasy" as a treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder for the first time since the drug was criminalized in 1985.

[...] In the 1970s, MDMA was used by many psychiatrists to treat the disorder. Some psychiatrists believe the drug can allow victims to have a cathartic moment, releasing their emotional stress over an incident.

Treatment using MDMA stopped as the federal government began to crack down on the drug for its recreational use.

- Associated Press, November 6, 2001