DANCING WITH DANGER AS CRYSTAL METH USE ON RISE

A growing number of Edinburgh clubbers are using potentially deadly
dance drug crystal meth, experts warned today.

A recent survey of clubbers in the Capital by the Crew 2000 advice
centre found one in ten had used the Class A substance, or had a
friend who tried it. Users of the highly-addictive drug are typically
between 28 and 32, although some are as young as 18.

Many are middle-class backpackers who "developed a taste" for
methamphetamine while travelling in the Far East.

Crystal meth - or "ice" - gives users a huge rush followed by a long
lasting feeling of euphoria, but it also causes paranoia, confusion
and violence. It is highly addictive when smoked and can lead to
brain damage and severe psychiatric problems. An overdose can result in death.

Staff at Crew 2000 said one user in his early 40s came for help after
developing "huge psychological problems".

John Arthur, the centre's coordinator, said the number of users was
"rising, but not dramatically". He added that the substance remained
a "specialist niche" in the city's stimulant drug market which is
dominated by cocaine and Ecstasy.

Crew 2000 also conducted a test which found details of many of the
ingredients for crystal meth could be downloaded from the internet
then sourced from high street chemists. Mr Arthur said: "It's
possible that people will start making it themselves in Edinburgh but
in truth, we haven't really seen that. I know of one man in Edinburgh
who was making it himself, but it was for his personal use."

Lothian and Borders Police today said they were yet to make a seizure
of the drug in the force area.

Crystal meth factories, often run from private homes, have been
involved in dozens of explosions in the United States and elsewhere,
as the potent cocktail of ingredients is cooked up.

A West Lothian couple are currently facing extradition to the US on
charges of providing chemicals for crystal meth worth up to AUKP40 million.

Kerry Ann Shanks, 28, and Brian Howes, 43, were arrested in Bo'ness,
in January. The chemicals are legal in Scotland, but are regulated in the US.

Mr Arthur said: "Crystal meth has been around in Edinburgh for at
least five years but it's not highly popular.

"The users were mostly people coming back from the Far East, where
it's very popular. Places like Thailand. It tended to be young
middle-class backpackers who developed a taste for it before they
came back. They have tended to use it responsibly, maybe once a week
and associated with going out clubbing. They don't use it chaotically.

"Crystal meth is available in the city but you have to really look
for it. It's mostly sourced through friends, like most drugs.

"I know that the police and ourselves are keeping an eye on the drug
to watch for any big increases."

A police spokesman said: "We have not made any seizures of
methamphetamine in Lothian and Borders. But our officers are aware of
the drug and are monitoring the situation."

In January, crystal meth was reclassified from Class B to Class A in
the UK, meaning that anyone caught dealing or making it faces prison.
People who use the drug will face up to seven years in jail and an
unlimited fine, while dealers could get life behind bars. THE FACTS

Crystal meth can have side-effects which leaves users a physical and
mental wreck.

Users have reported suffering from the sensation of their flesh
crawling with bugs, leaving them compulsively picking infected sores.
Rapid weight loss is another symptom while the drug can also cause
paranoia, hallucinations, insomnia, aggressive and erratic behaviour,
and panic attacks.

Methamphetamine addicts may lose their teeth abnormally quickly. The
American Dental Association says this condition - "meth mouth" - "is
probably caused by a combination of drug-induced psychological and
physiological changes resulting in xerostomia [dry mouth], extended
periods of poor oral hygiene, frequent consumption of high calorie,
carbonated beverages and tooth grinding and clenching."

The drug can cause withdrawal-related depression and amphetamine
psychosis, mainly due to sleep deprivation. Muscle breakdown, which
leads to kidney failure, can also occur.

Oral use of crystal meth takes about half an hour to produce effects.
The effects are almost instantaneous when smoked, and nearly as quick
when snorted. The effects can last four to six hours when smoked.