Pubdate: Wed, 30 Jan 2002
Source: Contra Costa Times (CA)
Copyright: 2002 Contra Costa Newspapers Inc.
Contact: http://www.contracostatimes.com/contact_us/letters.htm
Website: http://www.contracostatimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/96
Author: Jackie Burrell

ANTI-DRUG FEAR TACTIC MIXES THE MESSAGES

"Just say no" doesn't cut it and the billions spent on drug education 
aren't working either, says medical sociologist Marsha Rosenbaum. 
Addressing a parent education session at Campolindo High School last week, 
Rosenbaum criticized DARE-type drug education efforts and debunked more 
than a few myths.

Rosenbaum directs San Francisco's Lindesmith Center-Drug Policy Foundation, 
advocates for national drug policy reforms, including legalization of 
medicinal marijuana and changes in both the criminal justice and education 
arenas.

"Eighty-one percent of American people have used a drug in the last week. 
Fifty percent use a prescription drug. Paxil, Zoloft and Prozac use has 
tripled in the last year. These are psycho-active drugs," she says. 
"Ritalin? Kids see that one up close ... America is not drug- free and kids 
know it. When they see a line outside Starbucks, they know what that's for."

Despite massive spending and education efforts, "kids are not being 
prevented from using substances. Somewhere there is a disconnect," she 
notes, citing statistics showing that 80 percent of high school students 
will have tried alcohol by the time they graduate, 54 percent have tried 
marijuana and 12 percent have tried Ecstasy.

Rosenbaum's research points to a basic problem with drug education itself. 
The scare tactics frequently employed by educators and parents have 
destroyed the message. A student who is told that both marijuana and heroin 
are terribly addictive and dangerous, soon discovers that marijuana is 
neither. Credibility disappears, along with the critical information that 
heroin is indeed terribly addictive and dangerous.

"Kids have gotten cynical about the message. Exaggerate risks of other 
substances and we have to pull ourselves out of a credibility hole," she 
says. "Honesty is the core of drug education."

Although Rosenbaum was critical of many drug education programs, the model 
she favors is a science-based, frank explanation of risks and safety 
issues, with expert advice available from an on-campus drug counselor. 
Several parents later commented that expert, drop-in advice is already 
available to local teens in a far more confidential format. Visits to high 
school nurses go unremarked by fellow students and passersby.

Campolindo nurse Dvora Citron agrees, "No one has any idea (why they're 
there) :Eheadache, cramps, pregnancy or drugs. And we help facilitate a 
plan of action for long-term follow-up, not an episodic treatment."

A large portion of Rosenbaum's talk focused on Ecstasy, the subject of her 
book, co-authored with Jerome Beck. Patented in 1912, Ecstasy was prized by 
1970s-era psychiatrists for its power to relax patients and lower defenses. 
Users feel euphoric, accepted and extremely loving. It melts away all that 
teen angst, says Rosenbaum, describing its recreational appeal. The drug 
remained legal until 1985, but like many of its illicit colleagues, that 
ban did nothing to stem its use.

"A decade later, Ecstasy was part of the rave scene. Increased use, 
increased availability, increased problems," says Rosenbaum.

Other than increases in seratonin levels, the scientific basis for 
Ecstasy's effects is still not completely understood, but one of the most 
serious side effects is a rapid and severe increase in body temperature. 
The result can be catastrophic in an overheated and dehydrated individual, 
i.e., the typical rave attendee.

"Paxil, Prozac increase seratonin, but it takes two to four weeks to see a 
beneficial effect. There's something else going on with Ecstasy, some 
modulating effect on the pleasure centers," says Moraga pharmacist and 
parent Pat Thompson. "The worst case scenario is brain damage, respiratory 
arrest, but most of the studies, when they're seeing kids in the emergency 
room, they're coming from a rave."

Dr. Alex Stalcup discusses "Your Teen and Addiction" next week in the 
Miramonte cafeteria, as part of the parent education series. The free 
lecture begins at 7:30 p.m., Feb. 7.
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