Poppin’ up everywhere
By Alex Chen
Sept. 29, 2010 2:05 a.m.
Rising to great prominence in the 1960s, hallucinogenic drug use has created an influential counter-culture that has helped fuel its recreational use into the new century.
Especially in college surroundings where students are suddenly thrust into an independent and experimental environment, the use of such “psychedelic drugs” has continued to be a means of recreation.
According to a 2008 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study, approximately 9.1 percent of college students and 16 percent of young adults aged 19-28 reported using hallucinogenic drugs at some point during their lifetime.
The classification includes popular drugs such as hallucinogenic mushrooms, LSD and mescaline. These drugs are especially known for their visually altering effects when consumed.
“With eyes closed, individuals can report powerful aesthetic experiences, pleasing images of patterns of color, of scenes of nature, sometimes thematic visions with eyes closed, almost as if in a dream,” said Dr. Charles Grob, a professor of psychiatry at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance.
In the college environment, the most commonly used of these drugs is MDMA, or ecstasy.
But this drug is not quite a hallucinogen, Grob said.
“It’s in a unique category known as entactogen,” he said. “It has a chemical structure similar to both the hallucinogen mescaline but also to ephedrine, so it’s got some unusual aspects to its chemical structure.”
These narcotics have become ingrained in modern youth culture, especially with the rise of the rave scene.
“Everything is amplified,” said a UCLA student who has used ecstasy three times at raves and wishes to remain anonymous.
“Music is better, everything is better.”
But while the social stigma surrounding hallucinogens has been generally negative ““ since the best known ones are illegal in the U.S. ““ knowledge of these drugs’ effects and harms are not fully understood.
Hallucinogens affect the body’s serotonin system, which is responsible for not only the regulation of mood, but also cognitive functions, such as memory, said Karen Miotto, medical director of the UCLA Addiction Medicine Clinic.
As new studies into the clinical functions of hallucinogenic drugs begin to take place, the full range of harms and effects are beginning to come to light.
Because hallucinogens do not cause a physical dependence, they are not viewed as having the same addictive potential as other narcotics, Miotto said.
In addition, though adverse effects can occur from single use, the toxicity of such hallucinogens seems to be proportional to the amount and extent of their use, Miotto said.
She added that long-term use has been shown to lead to mental degradation.
“Back in the 60s when you saw individuals taking LSD on a fairly frequent basis, they experience some degree of cognitive disorganization.” Grob said. “Reality was no longer as compelling as the altered reality if one is taking it on a regular basis.”
But while such cognitive degradation can be seen with prolonged use, some frequent users believe they have not suffered any adverse effects from hallucinogenic use.
“I’ve tried LSD about 10 to 15 times,” said another unnamed UCLA student who claimed to have had no noticeable mental side effects from the use. “We always have a good friend who is sober in case anything unexpected happens so I haven’t really had any “˜bad trips’.”
But while some may not experience harmful effects from hallucinogenic drug use, experts said care should still be taken when such drugs are used.
“It’s like any other risk,” Miotto said. “It’s important to be knowledgeable about the effects of the drugs and the adverse effects of the drugs.”
