NOT JUST A PARTY DRUG

A 17-year-old Abbotsford girl has died and another young woman from
that city is in critical condition after taking what police say was ecstasy.

More teens in Alberta have died from similar overdoses of the same
illicit drug.

Two years ago, 16-year-old Shannon Raymond of Maple Ridge died in her
friend's house after ingesting, her mother said, alcohol and ecstasy.

Police and health officials are now warning teens about taking large
amounts of the drug, which sells for $3 to $10 a pill.

The 24-year-old Abbotsford woman remains in critical condition after
consuming as many as 10 such tablets at a New Year's Eve party.

Police in Calgary are investigating whether a death that same night
is the fourth there related to ecstasy in as many weeks.

Known to be popular at raves in the past, it has become more
mainstream among teens in recent years and is being used at house
parties and concerts, even, as with the young Abbotsford girl, as a
weight loss supplement.

But ecstasy, also known as MDMA, is often laced with other drugs,
such as methamphetamine, ketamine and cocaine. Those who take it
don't even know what they're putting into their bodies, only how the
pills make them feel often euphoric.

MDMA releases the brain chemical serotonin, elevating mood and acting
as a short-term antidepressant. Affects can last from two to six hours.

The drug causes an increase in body temperature, blood pressure and
heart rate, which can lead to kidney or heart failure, strokes and
seizures, according to Health Canada.

But it's cheap, and accessible a cell phone call away. Drug dealers
even give it away free, the first time.

That could be the last.

Friends of a young Abbotsford man who, in early December, had taken
ecstasy and complained of feeling overwhelming heat, thought he was
just having a typical reaction to the drug. They gave him a frozen
bag of peas to cool down.

Later, while driving around town with them, he became unresponsive.

His parents said he was a good, smart kid.

Was.