[ OUR OPINION ]

Switching from ice
to Ecstasy still risky

THE ISSUE Surveys indicate fewer Hawaii high school students are trying crystal meth, but more are taking Ecstasy.

AN apparent decline in the number of Hawaii high school students using crystal methamphetamine should give no solace to parents concerned about their children's abuse of drugs. Many teenagers simply have turned to another drug, a cousin of crystal meth known as Ecstasy. Parents need to learn more about the health dangers of these drugs and pass on the information to their children, along with the stern reminder that they both are highly illegal.

Surveys conducted by the state Department of Health show that the percentage of high school seniors who reported having tried methamphetamine has steadily decreased from 11.7 percent in 1989 to 5.3 percent last year. The modern-day subclass of pills dubbed "speed" in the 1960s became popular in the 1980s in crystallized form, or "ice." The crystals are heated and the fumes inhaled, similar to crack cocaine.

The surveys also show that the percentage of Hawaii high school seniors who reported trying Ecstasy increased from 5.3 percent five years ago to 10.6 percent last year. Ecstasy -- the chemical name is 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, or MDMA -- is among a group of mind-altering substances known as "club drugs" because of their popularity at night clubs and "raves."

Use of crystal meth became widespread in the late 1980s in Hawaii, where it was smuggled from Taiwan and South Korea, but it soon extended to California and now is sharply on the rise in the Midwest. Ecstasy's use rose dramatically on the mainland in the late 1990s, and the Hawaii study shows the trend has been quick to arrive in the islands.

Crystal meth's immediate down side includes the possibility of heart failure, stroke and brain damage. Its long-term risks are fatal kidney and lung disorders, brain damage, blood clots, malnutrition, erosion of immune systems and a range of behavioral problems, which can result in homicidal or suicidal thoughts.

Scientists are only beginning to learn about the dangers of Ecstasy, but studies so far indicate that merely experimental use could have long-lasting effects. Researchers reported last September that even one night's use of the drug could damage nerve endings in the brain, impairing memory and even increasing the user's odds of getting Parkinson's disease.

Skeptics criticized the study because it was based on tests of monkeys and baboons. However, a British study of nearly 600 working professionals last month concluded that Ecstasy users are more likely to suffer depression because of its effect on key chemicals in the brain that regulate mood.

"People often think taking Ecstasy just once or twice won't matter," said London Metropolitan University researcher Lynn Taurah, "but we're seeing evidence that if you take Ecstasy a couple of times you do damage to your brain that later in life will make you more vulnerable" to clinical depression.

That is a risk not worth taking for a brief euphoria.