Date: Sun, 27 Nov 1994 10:36:19 GMT
Subject: Ecstasy test results in Britain

Trends in Quality
Nearly everyone believes that the quality of E has gone down, and our
test results certainly confirm that impression. However, samples tested
at Aldermaston show that in fact quality has improved over the past year.
More samples of drugs described as Ecstasy are found to contain MDMA than
the substitutes MDA and MDEA, and they tend to be stronger.
One reason is that the fat white pills ("Snowballs") were MDA and all
came from one source, a government laboratory in Latvia, which was
desperately short of foreign currency after splitting from the Soviet
Union. This was practically the only source of MDA and the pills they
produced were always well made, pure and strong. But two years ago the
operation was closed down after German police intercepted a consignment
of ten million (!) at Frankfurt airport, and very few are now left.
Similarly, there has been less and less MDEA since its manufacture in
Holland was outlawed in July 1993.
As always, about 10% are fakes - aspirin or other substances with no
effect - and another 5% are other drugs such as amphetamine, sometimes
mixed with other drugs. That leaves 85% Ecstasy-type drugs, of which 70%
is MDMA (the real thing); 20% is MDEA and 10% MDA. These are not found
mixed with other drugs, in particular heroin has never been found mixed
with Ecstasy-type drugs, apart from such small traces as to be inactive.
The National Poisons Unit has found paracetamol, pseudo ethedrine,
amphetamine, caffeine, codeine and dihydracodeine in tablets, but they
test for the presence of drugs, not quantities, so these include traces
too small to be active.
Buying Ecstasy is always a gamble, but the odds of getting pure MDMA are
improving and are now twice as good as two years ago. The strength of
Ecstasy is also increasing, and has gone up from about 90mg to 100mg over
the past year.
By contrast, amphetamine has been found mixed with various other drugs
such as Ketamine, LSD and even heroin.
MixMag tested three different 'Doves' (one had finely marked feathers,
the other two were crudely pressed, one with a blodgy rounded tail and
the third a pointed tail. The other two had score lines but no other
markings. The article did not make it clear which was which, but two 
'Doves' and one as 'Orgasm' contained MDMA and MDEA. The third 'Dove' was
paracetamol plus pseudoephedrine ("a stimulant found in cough mixture"). 
"White burger" was simply paracetamol.
Newham Drugs Advice Project has recently sent samples to a laboratory,
and they report that one of these contained caffeine and Ketamine. They
also insist that warfarin, an ingredient of rat poison, has been found.
This may sound horrific unless you know that warfarin is also a
prescription drug given to humans. Newham only test samples of drugs that
they have had bad reports about, and the lab they use does not
distinguish between traces and active quantities.
Test Results
England
These are the first of monthly test results on samples of Ecstasy bought
in Britain by people we trust as typical of what around the country. We
will not test any other samples - to avoid hype by a dealer sending in
one good E and when the test results were published selling loads of
identical-looking duds. The testing is carried out in a
government-licensed laboratory and is arranged by myself, but I do not
handle samples nor can I reveal which laboratory is used. This is
necessary for out tests to continue. DO NOT SEND SAMPLES.

The results
"White Dove" from Liverpool/Yorkshire
Users' verdict: "Very impressed with the effect."
Active ingredients: 130mg MDMA

"White Clover" from Yorkshire. Wheat colour.
Users' verdict: "Hardly any effect, but cheap". [7 pounds]
Active ingredients: 20mg caffeine. 

"Green Clover" or "Shamrock". Green with same stamp as "White Clover". 
Users' verdict: "Feeling similar to Acid. Unsure of what was happening
and very difficult to get into. However, once dancing and over the sort
of paranoid feeling, the effect is very good. Some users experienced
tripping for hours."
Active ingredients: None. 

"Strawberry", a large tablet with strawberry colour and strawberry smell
Users' verdict: "A very good high is reached very quickly - a kind of
floating feeling making you unsure of your surroundings as though you are
in a totally different planet or on a different dimension. You go up very
quickly and come down quite soon after, so its very tempting to take more
to reach the original buzz." 
Active ingredients: Ketamine, Ephedrine, Selegiline

"White Dove" from London 
Users' verdict: "Produces a good effect."
Active ingredients: 130 mg MDMA

"Sitting Duck" 
Users' verdict: "Dodgy."
Active ingredients: Ketamine, Ephedrine, Selegiline.

These results are surprising and bad news. The Strawberry and Sitting
Duck contain unpleasant mixtures. Ketamine is an anaesthetic that
produces stronger hallucinations that LSD and a feeling of separation
from one's body. Ephedrine and Selegiline are both prescription drugs
without listed mental effects: Ephedrine is used to ease coughing in
children and Selegiline is prescribed to old people with Parkinson's
disease. But Selegiline is also a MAO inhibitor, and that could be
dangerous when combined with other drugs including MDMA. The lab that
analysed these said that everyone should be warned not to take them.
Its interesting to compare the reports from users with what they were
taking. They confirm that its not just what a pill contains that counts.

In addition, a friend recently bought two pills sold as Ecstasy in the
South of England, and had then tested in a government laboratory.
"Californian Sunrise" - a pale yellow pill with no markings except a
score line - and a "Dove". Both contained MDMA only. Newham Drugs Project
in London recently had one sample tested which turned out to be caffeine
and Ketamine.

Scotland
Glasgow University tested 15 different samples of locally-bought
"Ecstasy" after several "Ecstasy-related deaths" earlier this year. They
found that 14 out of 15 were pure MDMA and one was pure amphetamine with
traces of MDMA.

Denmark
Three samples bought in Copenhagen in October.
Transparent capsule containing grey/white powder was 130mg MDMA.
Large blue-grey pill with a dolphin on one side and a score line on the
other was 130mg MDMA.
Small white pill with no markings "Like a birth control pill" was 150mg
MDMA.

Results of recent tests complete with colour photos will be posted soon.
The location will be announced here on alt.drugs.
My book E for Ecstasy is completely sold out, but a revised edition is
freely available on Internet in two locations. You can download the book
in two files located at: ftp://ftp.hmc.edu/pub/drugs/mdma/e.for.ecstasy.Z
and e.for.ecstasy.append.Z. You can also browse through the book
on-screen and find references using hypertext: use World Wide Web and do
a Lycos search for Ecstasy. The next printed edition is due by the end of
February 1995.

[ NOTE:  I've been informed that LSD was not tested for in these samples and
  that the Green Clover sounds like it might have been LSD.
					-- lamontg@u.washington.edu 12/12/94 ]

