ECSTASY DRAINS BRAIN

Drug's Temporary Euphoria Comes At Cost, Lecturer Warns

Michael Faustini and Stephen Athanasoulias have never been to a rave.
They've never tried the popular recreational drug ecstasy.

And after an hour listening to Elaine Waddington Lamont yesterday, the
Grade 9 students at Loyola High School agreed they weren't missing much.

"It's a waste of money and time," said Stephen, 14. "It makes you do stupid
things."

The drug's effect on the body goes far beyond the duration of an all-night
dance party, noted Waddington Lamont, a PhD student at Concordia's Centre
for Studies in Behavioural Neurobiology. Over the last few days, she's been
warning students about ecstasy as part of Brain Awareness Week - a series
of lectures organized by the Douglas Hospital.

"I don't think (teenagers) really think a lot about it," Waddington Lamont
said. "They don't really realize that the euphoric effect they get from
ecstasy has a bad effect on the brain."

For one thing, repeated use of ecstasy - chemically similar to the
stimulant amphetamine - produces long-term and possibly permanent damage to
brain cells, or neurons.

The drug depletes the brain of serotonin, an important neurotransmitter
that plays an important role in the body's regulation of mood, sleep, pain,
emotion and appetite. Animal research from the U.S. has shown that one
10-mg dose in rats can decrease serotonin levels for up to two weeks.

Waddington Lamont said it's important to raise awareness about the danger
of ecstasy because many teens still believe it's just a fun party drug: "It
feels good, so people keep doing it."

In Montreal, police have intercepted large quantities of ecstasy at Dorval
and Mirabel airports since April 1 - cargo shipments with an estimated
street value of more than $30 million and parcels seized from passenger
luggage valued at more than $7 million.