Pubdate: Sun, 10 Apr 2005
Source: Sun Herald (MS)
Copyright: 2005, The Sun Herald
Contact:  http://www.sunherald.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/432
Author: Robin Fitzgerald
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

METH GETTING YOUNGSTERS HOOKED

South Mississippi officials say they fear methamphetamine use among
teens will reach epidemic proportions if they don't push public
awareness of its dangers.

Meth users in the six counties primarily are young adults, though
narcotics officials say they're starting to see juvenile and teenage
users.

Just as meth use ran rampant among adults some 20 years ago on the
West Coast before interest swept east, officials believe the backlash
of popularity among teens also will spread here.

A "pre-emptive strike" is needed to lock in kids to safe choices
before they get hooked on meth, said Picayune police officer Darby
Shelton, a school resource officer.

"Kids in high school are on the edge of trying meth," Shelton said.
"They're going to have others tell them meth will keep you awake while
you study or party, pep you up or help you lose a few pounds. But they
won't tell them meth will keep them awake for two weeks straight, make
them paranoid schizophrenic and rot their teeth out."

Officials such as Cmdr. Louis Miller of the Narcotics Task Force of
Jackson County say meth users "are getting younger and younger."

"We recently found a 15-year-old female helping cook some meth," said
Miller. "She bailed out of a second-story barn to run from us."

Real-life horror stories show the dangers associated with meth, he
said, pointing to recent headlines: A man burned in an alleged meth
lab explosion in Moss Point died from his injuries Wednesday. A meth
lab using the red phosphorous cooking method in a Pascagoula hotel
prompted officials to condemn 20 rooms in February.

Meth, made with drain cleaner, camping fuel and other noxious
ingredients, is a stimulant or an "upper." And "uppers" are easy for
youth to obtain, according to nearly 20 percent of Long Beach students
responding to the latest PRIDE survey on alcohol, drugs and violence.

The statewide survey shows students in grades 6-12 are more likely to
use alcohol, tobacco and marijuana than other drugs.

"We know meth is out there," said Carolyn Anderson, executive director
of the Long Beach Substance Abuse Task Force. "We don't need to bury
our heads in the sand over meth or other drugs."
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MAP posted-by: Derek