Call for a new approach to campaign against ecstasy

Ireland should aim to reduce the damage caused by taking ecstasy with a
more creative prevention and education campaign, a new report has recommended.

The report, entitled "Ecstasy and Young People", by the National Youth
Federation, says Ireland should learn from the experiences of Britain and
the Netherlands which, it says, have implemented successful awareness
campaigns specifically on ecstasy.

"There should be a particular focus on raves and nightclubs emphasising
harm reduction measures for ecstasy users," the report recommends. "Such a
campaign in Scotland has resulted in no reported ecstasy related deaths in
an 18 month to twoyear period," it said.

In Scotland, dance events are issued with guidelines covering air
temperature and ventilation, free drinking water, rest rooms, as well as
the provision of trained security and medical staff.

According to the report, there has been a massive increase in the use of
ecstasy by young people in Ireland. In 1993 gardai seized 2,000 ecstasy
tablets. This increased to more than 120,000 tablets in 1995.

The report said that the perception of those working with young people was
that the young still regarded ecstasy as relatively safe. The report says
little reliable research has taken place on the physical and psychological
dangers of using ecstasy and that it would probably be 10 to 20 years
before a clear picture emerges.

It adds that short and longterm effects of ecstasy were "highly
individualistic to the user and dependent on a number of factors including
their user's general state of health, their metabolism, the exact contents
of the ecstasy tablet and the precautions they take".

The report criticises most media coverage, which it says tends to be
"sensationalistic".

© Copyright: The Irish Times