Source: Scotsman (UK)
Contact:  http://www.scotsman.com/
Pubdate: Tue, 26 May 1998
Author: Karen McVeigh

CLUBBERS OFFERED ECSTASY TEST KITS

CLUBBERS are to be offered drug-testing kits which will enable them to fi
nd
out the chemical content of ecstasy tablets.

An English company, which has licensed the product from a company in the
Netherlands, where ecstasy pills are tested routinely in clubs, insists
that the kits will encourage safer use of the illegal drug.

The sale of the A310 equipment, which enables psycho-active substances t
o be
identified in less than a minute, has angered anti-drug campaigners, who
say it will encourage use of ecstasy at a time when the drug's use is in
decline.

It follows recent research which suggested that long term users may suffe
r
brain damage.

Dylan Trump, the co-founder of a Brighton company, EZ Test, insists that
his product will help the estimated 500,000 people who take ecstasy table
ts
every weekend.

"Ecstasy is produced by people no-one knows, there are no standards to
regulate it and no-one has any idea what they're taking," he said.

"Several brands of pill this year were found to contain toxic levels of
atropine, a stomach muscle relaxant with disorientating symptoms. This is
 a
very worrying development and our kit will enable users to know whether t
he
ecstasy they're buying is the genuine drug."

A survey of 35 brands of ecstasy pills in January showed that only six
contained the ecstasy drug MDMA. Most contained amphetamine, while a few
contained ketamine, a horse tranquilliser.

Last night, anti-drug campaigners said the kits would encourage use of th
e
drug.

Phyllis Woodlock, the mother of Scotland's youngest ecstasy victim, Andre
w
Woodlock, who died aged 13, condemned the kits. She said: "People are und
er
the illusion that people die from a bad tablet. But the ecstasy that both
Andrew and Leah Betts took was pure MDMA.

"At the end of the day, it's not what else is in the tablet that harms
people, but how each individual reacts to the substance. The kit can't te
ll
you that."

David Macauley, the director of Scotland Against Drugs, said: "At a time
when we were seeing signs that ecstasy use was on the decrease, the last
thing we need are people who can 'prove' to kids that ecstasy is 'safe'.

"If you're 15 years old, these tests will do nothing but lead you into a
false sense of security, and anything which encourages young people to ta
ke
the drug has to be bad. The issue here is that ecstasy itself is more
damaging than many of the other ingredients."

Denying that the kits would encourage use of the drug, Mr Trump insists
that his main aim is to provide more information to users. He said: "Peop
le
will take this drug anyway and sticking to the 'Just Say No' policy is ju
st
stupid.

"People need to be informed in order to make a choice. Our adverts don't
say 'Buy our kit and take an ecstasy tablet'. I simply saw a means of
introducing some quality control and harm reduction into the market."

Acknowledging that the drug may be harmful, he added: "I am not saying th
at
MDMA is safe. It is still an unresearched substance and the long term
effects are still unknown."

The pocket-sized tests can identify seven main psycho-active substances,
including MDMA and other ecstasy-related substances with varying effects,
as well as amphetamine. They contain chemicals which change colour in the
presence of one of the above substances.

A tiny sample of the tablet is scraped off and mixed with the chemicals.
The result is compared with a colour chart of common drugs. If there is n
o
reaction, the pill does not contain one of the desired psychoactive
substances.

- ---
Checked-by: Mike Gogulski