Research Paper on MDMA

Introduction

3, 4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is a synthetic drug which has hallucinogenic and stimulating effects on the users (Scinto, 2013). Initially, MDMA was used to treat psychological conditions such as PTSD, and there is ongoing research to assess the potential of the drug although it is currently not used medically (Brodwin, 2017). MDMA was popularized as a club drug initially because of its ability to increase feelings of euphoria and sociability of the users with the abuse of the drug getting an all-time high in the 1990s and the early 2000s (Scinto, 2013). In Ohio today, the use of MDMA has significantly reduced and can rarely be found in its pure form. The street names of the drug are E, XTC, Beans, X, Adams, disco biscuit, lover's speed, STP, Hug drug, Molly, and Ecstasy. MDMA is a stimulant with intoxicating effects, which are exceptionally stronger than other stimulants (Meyer, 2013). For instance, the drug causes memory problem, teeth grinding, sweating, rapid heartbeat, paranoia, addiction and difficulty sleeping when overdosed. According to the 2017 DEA report, American based transnational criminal organizations with Asian background dominate the supply of MDMA in the United States of America. This paper will assess MDMA availability, means of transportation, areas of availability, the distribution channel, how it is used and an approach of reducing the drug abuse in the United States of America.

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Availability of MDMA

The National Drug Threat Assessment of 2013 shows that MDMA availability in the United States of American increased rapidly between 2010 and 2012 and was sold as bath salt which caused significant harm to many Americans (Drug Enforcement Administration. 2013). According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (2015), the highest amount of MDMA comes from China and Canada. The DEA report further reveals that MDMA in the American market is transported from China through the mail and in Canada where it is made in secret locations through the northern border (Drug Enforcement Administration. 2016). Mexican traffickers are highly involved in the trafficking of MDMA within the American borders. MDMA is transported and smuggled to the United States by Asian transnational criminal organizations that operate in the US with links outside with other criminal gangs in the form of powder or tablets concealed in food shipments which makes it difficult for border agents to curtail smugglers (Woody, 2016). Once in the US MDMA is transported by dealers who are motivated to do the business due to the high demand and high returns from the sales. Small peddlers sell MDMA to students and local revelers around club joints where people go out to have fun. The drug is available in almost every region in America mostly in large metropolitan areas and coastal locations where people go for leisure. The top areas believed to have high availability of MDMA is Carolinas in the US (Varandani, 2016). Besides, in Ohio ecstasy availability is high in Cincinnati and Cleveland but there is a significant decline in availability of the drug due to increased surveillance at the northern American border (Starr, Sherba, & Gersper, 2015). Most international smugglers use south Florida and Los Angeles as their region of operations for the importation and distribution of the MDMA (Drug Enforcement Administration. 2016). MDMA availability according to the reviewed sources remains stable and significant in Ohio and other states of the United States of America because smugglers can create new transportation methods before the security agencies eventually outsmart them.

Information on Use

Coastal communities and students are amongst the leading users of MDMA which is smuggled in the United States by transnational criminal organizations with large distributors being found in Houston. MDMA is used as a stimulant and a psychedelic drug which produces distortion of perception, time, increased energy, and high enjoyment of tactile based experiences (Drug Enforcement Administration. 2017). Most of the MDMA used in the United is by college and high school students. Peddlers sell MDMA to students in clubs and other events attended by young people (Drug Enforcement Administration. 2016). In Washington DC similarly, MDMA is sold in tablet and powder forms, and it is essential through mail service from China while a significant amount is smuggled from Canada. MDMA is abused as a controlled prescription drug with many distributors rebranding the synthetic cathinones which are sold in the market as MDMA. MDMA in the market poses a higher health risk to the unknowing consumers as a National Drug Threat Assessment in 2015 indicated that most distributors are selling other drugs purporting them to be MDMA because pure MDMA is expensive and most traffickers are after making profits (Drug Enforcement Administration. 2015). Abuse of MDMA has been reported when it is administered as a controlled prescription drug for PTSD treatment. MDMA according to the DEA 2016 and 2017 report indicate that it is used mainly by local students and young people are the majority during celebrations and music events. In Ohio Starr, Sherba, & Gersper (2015) agrees with DEA report that most of the users are students and young people and MDMA is highly available in colleges and entertainment clubs.

Form of Drug and Usual Routes of Administration

MDMA is available in tablet and powder form which makes oral ingestion as its primary route of administration. Most of the MDMA users use it as a pill which is swallowed orally. Other routes of administration include snorting through the nose and drinking the drug by dissolving it in a liquid. Snorting is an effective MDMA administration route because it takes less time and dosage for the drug to take effect compared to the oral and dissolved drinking approach. This is because the nasal membrane is very porous compared to the intestinal lining and can be absorbed directly into the blood when snorted (Starr, Sherba, & Gersper, 2015).

Picture 1: MDMA Powder and Tablets (National Institute on Drug Abuse. n.d.)

Federal Schedule of Drugs

MDMA is a Schedule 1 drug according to the federal schedule of drugs, and they are drugs with no current medical treatment use in the United States of America. MDMA is a controlled substance and lacks accepted safety for use under any medical supervision. Schedule 1 drugs such as MDMA have a high potential of being abused which makes them illegal and cannot be prescribed for clinical use under any circumstance (Drug Enforcement Administration. 2016).

The Best Strategy for Combating the Sales and Abuse of MDMA

Combating the sales and abuse of MDMA requires a multi-agency approach to ensure increased policing, implementation and education of the public which can help to mitigate the rising use of MDMA especially amongst the young people. Combating the use of MDMA today should be focused on educating the young people on the dangers of the drug as well as sealing the existing loopholes through which the drug finds its way to the American consumers. Community and school-based education programs, but the SBIRT program only focus on brief intervention and referral for treatment (Christie et al., 2017). A new MDMA prevention method should incorporate drug education in the education curriculums which is more proactive compared to the existing prevention strategy that intervenes on particular cases.

Aggressive Education and Awareness of MDMA Dangers

Educating the masses on the dangers of MDMA can be used as a strategy for ending the abuse of the drug. Most of the people who use MDMA are not aware of the risks and the health risk that MDMA poses to their health due to negative information that is created by the drug distributors. Most people view MDMA use as a recreation opportunity where it is mostly used for pleasure especially in colleges and universities. The Drug Enforcement Agency should take a new approach of combatting the abuse of MDMA through collaborations with the education ministry to incorporate drug awareness in education curriculums. Federal financial resources should be invested towards educating the youth on the dangers of using MDMA which will help reduce the amount of money that the federal government spends in rehabilitation centers for the treatment of MDMA addiction and treatment of side effects.

Strengthening Border Surveillance and Regulation of Mail Service

Asian transnational criminal organizations smuggle MDMA that is sold in the United States of America by taking advantage of the existing loopholes in the cross-border trade such as inadequate surveillance of food products and corruption by customs officials. The northern border with Canada is the primary transit route for MDMA from Canada where it is produced. Increasing surveillance and regulation of cross-border trade can be used to reduce the amount of MDMA getting in the American market which will reduce abuse because reduced smuggling will increase the drug price and make it inaccessible to many. Mail services from China which has been noted to be a vital source of MDMA should be investigated using technology and sniffer dogs which will discourage mail smuggling. More federal government resources should be channeled towards acquiring surveillance equipment to be able to inspect food products on transit for MDMA without destroying the goods on transportation.

Conclusion

Drug diversion has caused increased use of MDMA, which leads to overdose hence causing various adverse effects to users. Despite the Schedule 1 regulation against MDMA use many young people use the drug to experience euphoria and increased energy especially in entertainment clubs and school environs. Penalties for importing or selling of MDMA have been strengthened as severe actions are taken against the smugglers and jail times also have failed to curtail the smuggling and use of the drug. The Asian transnational criminal organizations continue to smuggle MDMA across the northern border from Canada where it is produced in clandestine locations in Canada. Increased surveillance of the north border and education of the American youth especially in schools of the dangers of MDMA can be used to reduce the abuse of the drug.

References

Brodwin, E. (2017, August 29). Tech: Ecstasy just crossed a major hurdle on the path to being legally prescribed as medicine. Retrieved from https://www.pulselive.co.ke/bi/tech/tech-ecstasy-just-crossed-a-major-hurdle-on-the-path-to-being-legally-prescribed-as-medicine-id7225469.html

Christie, C., Baker, C., Cooper, R., Kennedy, C. P. J., Madras, B., & Bondi, F. A. G. P. (2017). The president's commission on combating drug addiction and the opioid crisis. Washington, DC, US Government Printing Office, Nov, 1. Retrieved from https://www.doh.wa.gov/Portals/1/Documents/2300/2017/PresidentsCommissionOnCombatingDrugAddictionOpioidCrisis.pdf

Drug Enforcement Administration. (2013). National drug threat assessment summary. US Justice Department. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration; 2013. Retrieved from https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2018-07/DIR-017-13%20NDTA%20Summary%20final.pdf

Drug Enforcement Administration. (2015). National drug threat assessment summary. US Justice Department. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration; 2015. Pub. Retrieved from https://www.casede.org/BibliotecaCasede/2015_NDTA_Report.pdf

Drug Enforcement Administration. (2016). National drug threat assessment summary. US Justice Department. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration; 2016. Retrieved from https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2018-07/DIR-001-17_2016_NDTA_Summary.pdf...