DABBLERS IN ECSTASY TOLD - BEWARE

Researchers Find Even Light Use Of Drug Too Much

LONDON - Even light weekend use of the party drug Ecstasy might
harm intelligence, a new study suggests.

German scientists report that weeks after partying, those who used
Ecstasy along with marijuana performed worse on intelligence tests
than people who just smoked pot or took no drugs at all. Their results
are reported this week in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and
Psychiatry.

Alan Leschner, director of the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse,
said the study provides the first clear demonstration of what was
predicted from earlier studies that linked the drug to changes in the
brain.

"If your brain is getting zinged, then you ought to have some kind of
deficit in cognitive ability, and here it is," Leschner said.

"There is this misconception that it's a benign, fun drug, and it's
not."

Ecstasy users call it the "love drug" and say it can break down
barriers and make people trust each other.

Ecstasy, chemically known as MDMA, has been popular among club-goers
in Europe for years and has become increasingly widespread in Canada
and the U.S.

An inquest is being held in Toronto now into the death of Allan Ho,
20, who died after taking the drug and collapsing at a rave last fall.

Previous studies have suggested the drug can cause a long-term
decrease in a brain chemical involved with thought and memory.

Other research has indicated Ecstasy can impair brain function, but
mostly investigated people who used it more often or with other drugs.

The latest research, by scientists at the University of Aachen in
Germany, involved 28 Ecstasy users in their mid-20s. They also were
pot smokers.

The study compared the group to two others of the same size, age range
and education level - one consisting of drug-free people and another
of people who smoked pot.

The Ecstasy group performed just as well as the other two on simple
tests of alertness, but worse in more complex tasks of attention, in
memory and learning tests, and in tasks reflecting aspects of general
intelligence.