CRACK COCAINE LOSING POPULARITY TO CRYSTAL METH

Crank, rock, crack are all street slang for the smokeable form of cocaine.

Crack is derived directly from cocaine. Cocaine (powder) is dissolved in a
solution of ammonia or sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and water.

The solution is boiled until a solid substance separates from the boiling
mixture. The solid substance, crack cocaine, is allowed to dry and then
broken or cut into rocks" each weighing from one-tenth to one-half of a
gram.

Crack is most typically heated and smoked. The term crack" refers to the
crackling sound heard when it is heated.

One gram of pure cocaine will convert to 0.89 grams of crack cocaine. Crack
is typically between 75 to 90 per cent pure cocaine.

The effects of crack are similar to those of cocaine yet they occur more
rapidly and more intense but do not last as long as a cocaine high.

Smoking crack can cause severe chest pains with lung trauma and bleeding.

Smoking crack also has a more rapid addiction potential.

Smoking crack delivers large quantities of the drug to the lungs, producing
effects comparable to intravenous injection. These effects are felt almost
immediately after smoking, are very intense, but do not last long.

The high" from smoking cocaine may last from five to 10 minutes but the
high" from snorting can last for 15 to 20 minutes.

Crack cocaine is cheap costing approx $5 to $50 per rock depending on the
size and the quality. Supply versus demand also regulates the street price.

In the 1980s there was an increase in the number of street level abusers of
crack cocaine. It was easier to use than injection of cocaine and cheaper
because the euphoric rush that the user desired.

This increase in use reached epidemic stages in some cities across the U.S.
and Canada. The drug crystal meth has since taken over in popularity.

Const. Beth Blackburn is drug awareness coordinator for the central Island.