STORES RESTRICTING COLD MEDICATIONS

Common cold medications will no longer line the shelves at some local
pharmacies to prevent misuse of pseudoephedrine and ephedrine, at the
request of the Alberta College of Pharmacists.

To buy the medications, which contain the main ingredients used to make
methamphetamine, customers will need to request them at the pharmacist's
counter and quantities sold will be limited.

On Tuesday, the Alberta College of Pharmacists requested pharmacies
voluntarily relocate the medications in an attempt to minimize production
of the illicit drug, also known as crystal meth.

"Methamphetamine (crystal meth) is a highly addictive drug that is
affecting individuals and families throughout Alberta," the college said in
a release.

"This step by the pharmacy profession is in support of law enforcement's
efforts to stem the production of meth."

The drug fools the user's brain into believing it has an unlimited supply
of energy.

At $5 to $7 per "point," users can get high for up to 15 hours for less
than the price of a pack of cigarettes, reported The Canadian Press.

A mother, whose 16-year-old son is an addict, called on the province for
more drug detox centres and legislation to give families the power to
commit loved ones for treatment. The mother can't be named to protect her
son's identity.

She told an Edmonton news conference her son probably would have died if he
hadn't been forced to undergo detox and psychological counselling after he
was arrested for committing a crime.

She said the boy has put the family through hell.

"There is no way you can describe living in fear as a parent, every night
wondering if your son is dead or alive," she said.

"We had to change our locks because his behaviour, aggressive and violent
as it becomes with meth addiction, was a danger to our other children."

She said drug treatment is strictly voluntary for young addicts in Alberta,
yet those hooked on crystal meth are so strung out they don't have the
capacity to make a decision to get help.

While many Alberta pharmacies have agreed to pull common cold medicines
from their shelves, some Calgary pharmacies are undecided whether they will
follow suit.

"We don't carry it in great quantities, so it doesn't warrant great
measures yet," said Joe Pham, owner of Cornerstone Pharmacy Ltd.

Pham's store only carries one kind of decongestant, Sudafed, which contains
pseudoephedrine.

"We might move it if it becomes a bigger issue. I know Sudafed is used for
the production of crystal meth, but it hasn't hit this pharmacy yet," he
said. "They're pretty resourceful, those druggies."

Connie Orbeck, owner of the Acadia Fairview Pharmacy, said she hasn't made
all of her decisions yet.

"I trust Alberta (College of Pharmacists)," she said.

"We will take Sudafed off the shelves, but I think we have to talk about
regulating the strength of the medications on the shelves," Orbeck said,
adding one example would be to move any medications containing more than 60
milligrams of pseudoephedrine.

Major pharmacies such as Real Canadian Superstore, Wal-Mart, Shoppers Drug
Mart and Save-On-Foods have already joined, or plan to join, the sales
restriction.

Jade Adedeji, owner of the Medicine Shoppe on 17th Avenue S.W., has already
decided she will join the trend.

"We just got notification (of the request) from the Alberta College of
Pharmacists, so we will probably move them behind the counter within the
next day or so," Adedeji said.

"We had received previous notification asking us to keep an eye on the
volume of the medications sold, and I see no reason why we shouldn't move
them."

The dangerous drug can be made in small makeshift labs in basements, hotel
rooms, garages and cars.

Calgary police discovered a dismantled meth lab in May at the Villa Calamo
apartment building at 1809 17th St. S.W.

To prevent such labs, the Alberta College of Pharmacists has requested that
pharmacies remove all single-entity (single-ingredient) products containing
pseudoephedrine and ephedrine from shelves and relocate them behind the
counter, as well as limiting purchases to a maximum of 3,600 milligrams of
pseudoephedrine and 400 milligrams of ephedrine to each individual per purchase.