TEENS LEARN SPPED KILLS

A growing number of Victoria teens are taking a joy ride on crystal
meth, unaware that just one trip down this dead-end road can result in
a painful if not deadly crash.

That's according to Victoria Dr. Doug McGhee, who directed a
documentary called Reduce Speed, a film about crystal methamphetamine,
to be released today.

"The bottom line is, of all drugs out there this seems to be the most
worrisome one," said McGhee. "This is a pretty dangerous drug that
kids are using in Grade 8 and 9 in Victoria. That's my focus."

The truth about this increasingly popular synthetic stimulant is that
it is extremely addictive -- comparable to crack cocaine. And although
a growing number of young teens are ready to experience its high, few
are prepared for the lows.

"It's a terribly depressing withdrawal," said McGhee. "All those
things in exactly the same amount that it was given to you ... are
taken away from you afterwards."

"So if a drug makes you feel like you belong and you're smart and
you're sexy (on the withdrawal side) it makes you feel like you don't
belong, you're stupid and you're by no means sexy."

Youth on crystal meth are three times more likely to commit suicide,
according to the $10,000 film -- produced in part with grants from the
Police Foundation of Greater Victoria, the B.C. Ministry of Public
Safety and Solicitor General, and the Vancouver Island Health Authority.

With high-dose repetitive use, addiction can manifest in just weeks,
yet withdrawal can last from six months to a year, said McGhee.

"I think kids are drawn to crystal meth because of that high, that
initial rush that you get," says Kathryn, a Victoria outreach worker.
"It's that cheap form of cocaine."

Around the world, more people now use amphetamines and
methamphetamines than cocaine and heroin combined.

"It made me feel better than everyone else," says one girl in the
film. She figured she'd use in Grade 9 and get her act together by
Grade 12.

Another female says: "Once I lost all the weight I was too far gone to
quit."

The local wave of crystal meth use originated in Hawaii. From there it
swept up the West Coast.

"We're seeing a shift where we're catching up to the rest of the
world," said Vancouver RCMP Cpl. Scott Rintoul, an expert in designer
drugs.

McGhee's focus is youth -- preventing Grade 8 and 9 students from
trying it and addressing Grade 12 students who may already be exposed
to it.

"Our goal is to get it out to every high school on Vancouver
Island,"said Ron Thompson of the Centre of Excellence in Video and
Multimedia Production, which produced the film.

McGhee admits showing the gritty 22-minute documentary to Grade 8
students may prove a hard sell. Still, he would like to see it have
broad distribution -- in classrooms, private screenings, television
and maybe even the Internet.

"I wanted a valid tool for youth and I realized it needed to be youth
speaking," said McGhee. Five young people are interviewed. They remain
anonymous.

The teens start thinking it will be a one-off. Soon they lose
themselves in the drug, social networks crumble, productivity drops,
relationships wane -- and eventually the security of housing, food and
safety is at risk or slips away.

When money dries up they steal, deal or sell sex to buy drugs -- now
needed to stop the pain.

It's a consequence that is rarely discussed in clubs where pills are
pushed as providing love-inducing highs.

According to Rintoul, from a sample of 265 pills sold as Ecstasy in
the rave and club scene in Vancouver, 65 per cent turned out to be
crystal meth. Only 18 per cent was actually Ecstasy.

For dealers the profit margin is huge and for buyers it's a sweet deal
until addiction sets in-- one point (one-tenth of a gram) sells for
just $10.

At the end of the day, McGhee says to youth: "It's a pretty nasty
drug."

The Victoria doctor hopes when youth hear that from their peers
they'll take part in a community effort to Reduce Speed before it's
too late.