COLD RELIEF AN EASY-ACCESS HIGH

Teens Find 'Crude Meth' In Medicines Available On Store Shelves

SURVIVOR: Tyson Hart, 17, of Loveland, was taking 16 pills of
Coricidin HBP Cough & Cold, or 'Triple C,' a cold medicine, each day
to get high. He went to Pathways to Recovery for treatment after he
was caught shoplifting the drug.

Signs to watch for:

# Boxes or bottles of cold medication found in bedrooms or backpacks #
New sleep problems # Loss of appetite # Weight loss # Reclusive or
defiant behavior # Dilated pupils # Cutting school # Change in friends
# Declining grades # Loss of interest in hobbies or favorite
activities # Unexplained disappearance of household money # Visits to
pro-drug Web sites

Suspect drug use?

If you think your child is abusing cold medications,
call:

# The Center at 495-0084 # TEAM Fort Collins at 224-9931

Tips for parents

What parents can do to prevent drug abuse:

# Know where your teen is and what he or she is doing # Get your teen
involved in activities such as sports or after-school clubs # Know
your teen's friends # Be informed about the dangers of drugs and be
informed about what's out there # Talk with your teen

Sources: Coloradoan research, Partnership for a Drug Free America

Health consequences

Possible health effects associated with use of dextromethorphan:

# Increased body temperature # Nausea # Abdominal pain # Vomiting #
Irregular heartbeat # High blood pressure # Headache # Numbness of
fingers and toes # Loss of consciousness # Seizure # Brain damage #
Death

On the Internet

For more information visit

www.drugfreeamerica.org/dxm/

Source: National Drug Intelligence Center

Cold medications can seem like heaven when you are coughing
uncontrollably and drowning in mucous.

But as all too many Fort Collins teens are finding out, that's not the
only time those over-the-counter drugs can bring on a euphoric effect.

Local youth advocates say an alarming number of Larimer County youths
are abusing cough syrup and cold medications such as Coricidin HBP
Cough & Cold, commonly known as "Triple C."

Taking as much as 10 times the recommended dose, kids across the
United States are "robo-tripping" their way to hallucinations and
euphoria not unlike the effects produced by methamphetamine.

"It's just crude meth," said Dr. Don Beard, a semi-retired
pediatrician and a consultant with The Center, a Fort Collins-based
youth treatment organization. The pseudoephedrine found in Sudafed and
other cold tablets and the dextromethorphan, or DXM, found in many
cough suppressants are base ingredients for making meth.

Affecting the basal ganglia, or pleasure center of the brain, the
drugs produce euphoric effects but also can result in increased body
temperature, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, seizures, loss
of consciousness, brain and liver damage, respiratory distress and
even death.

Laurie Klith, executive director of The Center, said some local teens
are abusing pseudoephedrine and DXM. From October 2003 through this
month, 39 youths at The Center have admitted to taking Triple C and
drinking Robitussin cough syrup, Klith said.

Tyson Hart, a 17-year-old from Loveland, is one of
them.

"The first time I tried it was about a year ago," said Hart, who
became clean in May after he was arrested for stealing
over-the-counter medicines from Safeway. "I tried it once, and it just
made me feel like I was drunk. After that, I got hooked."

Danielle Garfield, a case manager with The Center, said her clients
describe a sense of unbelievable euphoria, often coupled with
hallucinations. According to the Partnership for a Drug-Free America,
DXM abuse causes distorted perceptions of sight and sound, as well as
feelings of detachment or separation from the environment and self.

"It was just crazy," Hart said. "It was like you weren't even
there."

Pseudoephedrine is a stimulant. Taken in normal doses, DXM is a cough
suppressant, but it has a stimulating effect when taken in large doses.

While some kids use the drugs to self-medicate for attention deficit
disorder and mental-health problems, advocates say the majority are
simply experimenting.

Like most teens who abuse Triple C and other decongestants, Hart began
stealing drugs from local pharmacies to feed his habit.

"We'd grab all the boxes they had there," he said. "We'd go to
Wal-Mart, Walgreen's, Safeway, Kmart."

Because they are legal, nonprescription drugs, the cold medications
often are kept on store shelves, where they are easily accessible to
teens.

Catching on to the trend, however, many local pharmacies are taking
steps to prevent abuse.

Jeanette Yochum, a pharmacist at Walgreen's, 2190 W. Drake Road, said
some Walgreen's stores limit access to cold medicines, keeping them
behind the counter and not allowing customers to purchase more than
one or two boxes.

"It is a problem," she said, noting that theft has become more
common.

Les Moll, pharmacy manager at Longs Drugs, 1538 E. Harmony Road, said
his staff keeps packages with large quantities behind the counter. But
Moll said he hasn't seen a big problem with teens stealing cold
medications.

For two and half months, Hart said he was averaging 16 pills a day.
That's when his attitude changed, and he began fighting with his mother.

On New Year's Eve, Hart came home high, falling down and acting like
he was drunk, said his mom, Kris Johnson, 42, of Loveland. Two weeks
later, after coming home high again, Hart told his mom about his drug
problem.

"In hindsight, he was talking about Triple C and robo-tripping,"
Johnson said, urging parents to listen to their kids with an educated
and discerning ear. "I didn't know what that was."

While dilated pupils, stumbling, drunk-like actions and loss of
judgment are some of the signs, Johnson said Hart abused drugs for
months without her realizing it.

"He was always going to school, doing what he had to do," she said. "I
wasn't seeing a big difference in his behavior."

But at the height of his addiction, Hart became volatile and angry,
and he started running away.

At one point, Johnson discovered 12 empty bottles of Robitussin cough
syrup while unpacking Hart's bags. Weeks later, she got a call from
police saying he'd been picked up trying to steal pills at Safeway.

Not long after, Hart was enrolled in treatment at Pathways to Recovery
and has since thrived in classes at The Center.

"He has totally turned things around now," Johnson said, considering
her family lucky that Hart got a second chance. Not all users are so
fortunate.

"These kids are blowing out of school. They're defiant, running away,
involved in criminal activity," Klith said. "To think that some of
these kids have driver's licenses and they're driving."

Local advocates are urging parents to be aware of the over-the-counter
trend, to learn the signs and to get a little nosy to protect their
kids. That means recognizing that just because a drug is legal doesn't
mean everything is OK.

"We just need to have parents raise their level of awareness," Klith
said. "Ask the questions -- 'Who are you with? What are you doing?' --
and be aware of what's in your kids' rooms."

Garfield said she wishes stores would become more aware and put the
drugs behind the counter.

Johnson said she thinks good communication and making sure kids know
they can talk to their parents without them getting mad is key.

"I think (Tyson) was trying to tell me he had a problem," she said.
"If you find a box of cold medications in your kid's backpack, it's
not because they have a cold."