Major UK study examines the long-term effects of Ecstasy use

Ecstasy use is widespread across the globe, and has been for more than 20 years now. If you haven't used it yourself, chances are that several of your acquaintances have - and it's recognized as an integral part of the rave and nightclub scenes. While there are occasional deaths and more frequent hospitalizations related to Ecstasy use, some argue that as illicit drugs go, it has far fewer negative effects than the real bad boys - heroin, crack, ice - so why is it treated by lawmakers as a class A or schedule 1 drug with penalties attached to it as severe as with heroin? Many times the argument has been made that Ecstasy's long term effects on the brain aren't well understood - but a recent UK review by a government advisory council has sifted through more than 20 years' worth of evidence to come to the conclusion that yes, Ecstasy can be shown to cause cognitive impairment, memory loss and depression. But the effects are so slight that users still fall well within the normal ranges. The report concludes with a recommendation that Ecstasy be re-classified down to the level of class B drugs like marijuana.

History and classification of MDMA

MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methamphetamine) was first discovered nearly 100 years ago by German chemists who were trying to create substances that controlled abnormal bleeding. It was dropped at the time in favor of other compounds, but resurrected in the 1950s as part of American and German army research into various psychotropic substances.

It first appeared as a rare street drug in the 1970s, and was regularly used by some psychotherapists to help patients be less defensive and more open in their therapy sessions. In the United States, Ecstasy was legal and unregulated until mid-1985, but at this point, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) classified MDMA as a Shedule 1 drug, putting it on a par with the most dangerous and least medically useful drugs in circulation, such as heroin.

This classification was widely disputed, including by the judge overseeing the initial classification hearing, who recommended that MDMA should be classified as a Schedule 3 controlled substance - essentially a prescription medication - because it had a significantly lower potential for abuse than schedule 1 or 2 drugs, accepted medical uses, and moderate or low levels of physical dependence among users. Essentially the DEA overruled its own Administrative Law Judge in the decision to classify MDMA as Schedule 1 - and more recently, moves from the U.S. congress have seen penalties for MDMA possession and trafficking leap by nearly 3,000% to a point where possession of a gram of ecstasy is treated the same as possession of a gram of heroin.

Effects of Ecstasy

Despite the harsh legal treatment attached to it, Ecstasy has become an exceptionally popular party drug since the mid-1980s, due to its cheap manufacture, wide availability and association with the dance music scene in many countries. Users experience a sense of euphoria, a feeling of connection and intimacy with others, a reduction in anxiety, a sense of peace, self-acceptance and empathy - as well as a long-lasting surge of energy that lets them dance for hours on end.

It operates primarily by causing the release of a surge of serotonin in the synapses of the brain. Once the brain's store of serotonin is depleted through an MDMA rush, it can take several days to build back up again to normal levels, meaning that users often experience depression and lack of energy a few days after using the drug.

Long-Term Effects of Ecstasy

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