DOPE LESSENS ECSTASY HARM

THE harmful effects of ecstasy on brain cells and people's moods could be
lessened by smoking dope at the same time, a world-first study by
Australian researchers has found.

Sydney University associate professor of psychology Iain McGregor and a
research team found in experiments on rats that ecstasy causes anxiousness
and a depletion of brain messenger cells.

However, when rats are given ecstasy and cannabis together they have less
depletion of brain cells and are less anxious. While they are not as badly
affected as rats given cannabis alone or no drugs, the effects are not as
bad as those brought about by ecstasy use alone.

Dr McGregor said the study was done because about half of ecstasy users at
dance parties also used cannabis.

Because ecstasy is toxic to nerve cells it can lead to depression, anxiety
or memory loss.

The results of the study will be presented at a meeting of the Australian
Neuroscience Society in Sydney next week.

Dr McGregor said he believed the reason cannabis use lessened the effects
of ecstasy was because cannabis cools the brain. Many of the harmful
effects of ecstasy are believed to be caused by the drug's overheating of
the brain.

However, Dr McGregor said there may be other harmful effects associated
with combining the two drugs that the study did not monitor. He said
generally combining drugs was very dangerous and could have unintended
consequences.

"It is not a rational approach to safeguard your health to take two drugs
instead of one," he said.