ECSTASY - FEEL-GOOD DRUG WREAKS HAVOC ON BODY

A major drug sweep in Rhode Island this week has put the spotlight on
the hallucinogenic amphetamine, which has become popular with young
people in their late teens and early 20s.

It makes you happy, huggy and sweaty -- remarkably
sweaty.

That's how several Rhode Island College students described the effects
of Ecstasy, a mind-altering drug that was the focus of an
international drug investigation that resulted in 23 arrests statewide
on Wednesday.

"The reason people like it is that it's, like, ecstasy -- just like
its name," said one young woman, who was among more than a dozen
students who spoke on the condition that they not be named.

None of those interviewed in and around The Coffee Ground, a popular
campus gathering spot, admitted to using Ecstasy. But they spoke with
authority on the experiences of their friends.

They reported that the drug makes people feel good, giving them energy
and a heightened sense of awareness -- not only of lights and sounds,
but also of touch, especially the touch of another person.

"It makes you extremely extroverted," one young man said. "You have no
qualms about going up to a complete stranger and giving them a hug --
and not just a hug, a HUG."

"You want to hug everybody," another woman said. "It makes you feel
like a little kid, that kind of love you had when you were little and
you loved everybody and hugged everybody."

"And it makes you horny," another man said.

"Yeah, that too," another woman said, giggling.

Excessive hugging is one signal that someone is on Ecstasy, many of
the students agreed. An inordinate amount of sweat is another telltale
sign.

"It dehydrates you," one young man said. "I've seen people sweat up a
storm. And they're not just sweating, they're drenched."

That's because the drug speeds a person's heart rate and raises the
body temperature, in addition to giving an extra burst of energy that
causes restlessness and agitation, which produces more sweat.

In fact, Ecstasy is a hallucinogenic amphetamine that creates all
kinds of havoc in the body, from agitation and high blood pressure to
an increased heart rate and elevated risk of seizure and stroke,
according to Dr. Richard Wang, director of medical toxicology at Rhode
Island Hospital.

On the other hand, users say it makes them feel happy and
relaxed.

"It's a feel-good drug," explained Capt. Thomas Oates, head of the
special services division of the Providence Police Department. "It
enhances your senses. . . . It gives you energy and makes you feel
good."

But it can cause serious damage to the heart, brain, kidneys and other
organs, medical experts said. In fact, officials believe the drug may
have been responsible for at least two deaths in Rhode Island so far.

"It's a major concern because a lot of the people who are taking it
feel it's a safe drug. They don't feel that there are any problems
with it. But it is illegal and it's not safe," Oates said.

It's also highly illegal to possess or sell, Oates said, noting that
it's in the same classification as heroin and cocaine under state drug
laws.

But it's difficult to crack down on the sale and distribution of the
drug, Oates said, because it is often sold in small quantities -- one
pill at a time for $20 to $30 apiece.

In fact, the investigation that led to Wednesday's arrests was the
first major investigation specifically into the trafficking of
Ecstasy, according to Atty. Gen. Sheldon Whitehouse.

It was part of an international investigation begun seven months ago
that culminated this week with arrests in the Netherlands and Israel
as well as New York, Connecticut and Philadelphia.

Officials said the drug was being manufactured in the Netherlands,
then smuggled into the United States by an Israeli-based crime
organization. It was then distributed in New York and sold in Rhode
Island and elsewhere.

While Ecstasy has long been popular on the West Coast, it has only
become widely used around here within the past few years,
law-enforcement experts said. The problem is, it's being used by more
people at younger ages. Oates said he's heard of teens as young as 14
taking the drug.

But it's most popular with young people in their late teens and early
20s, especially at clubs and parties -- particularly during all-night
benders known as "raves."

It gives you the energy to party all night, even when you're so tired
you should have collapsed from exhaustion, said one of the RIC students.

Another said: "It's better than drinking. It's quicker and a lot of
time, it's cheaper."

Several students disagreed as to whether it made people act more
foolish than if they had been drinking or taking other drugs. Some
said people who take Ecstasy definitely appear "out of it," while
others said users seemed no more foolish than those who didn't use
it.

"It just makes you feel really happy and you love everybody and you
want to hug everybody and you don't want to come down because you just
love the feeling," yet another woman said.

Not everyone wants to give the drug a try. One said the $30 price tag
was simply too much to pay. Another said he wouldn't buy any man-made
drug, because there was too much risk involved.

Another said Ecstasy was like any other illegal drug: "It's for people
with no minds."