Contaminated XTC circulating in Holland
Posted: Sun 14th Nov 2010 06:38 am
Contaminated XTC circulating in Holland
12 November 2010
Tourists looking to get high in Holland should beware of contaminated – and potentially life-threatening – pills on the market.
DIMS, the Drugs Information and Monitoring System, of the Dutch Trimbos Institute, has put out a warning that pills containing high concentrations of PMMA (paramethoxymethamfetamine) are in circulation in the Netherlands and are being sold as XTC or MDMA.
The active ingredient in the pills, PMMA, is chemically similar to XTC, but has a stronger psychological effect. In addition, the pills don't work as quickly which, according to researcher Peter van Dijk, encourages people to take another, “but by the time you start to feel this stuff, it’s already too late.”
Just one pill
Van Dijk warns that people who are not healthy or who have a low body weight can become seriously ill from just one pill, especially if they are taken along with other substances. Taking too many can be life-threatening. In recent months at least six people have died in Norway from PMMA overdoses.
According to Van Dijk, a similar thing happened about ten years ago, when pills containing PMMA got into circulation. That episode eventually lead to multiple deaths.
Four-leaf clover
The pills currently in circulation are white with the imprint of a four-leaf clover. If you think you have taken PMMA, call 112 immediately and let the emergency personnel know that it may be an overdose of PMMA, an XTC-like substance.
For more information go to drugs-test.nl (site is in Dutch, use Google Translate to see an English version).
Source
12 November 2010
Tourists looking to get high in Holland should beware of contaminated – and potentially life-threatening – pills on the market.
DIMS, the Drugs Information and Monitoring System, of the Dutch Trimbos Institute, has put out a warning that pills containing high concentrations of PMMA (paramethoxymethamfetamine) are in circulation in the Netherlands and are being sold as XTC or MDMA.
The active ingredient in the pills, PMMA, is chemically similar to XTC, but has a stronger psychological effect. In addition, the pills don't work as quickly which, according to researcher Peter van Dijk, encourages people to take another, “but by the time you start to feel this stuff, it’s already too late.”
Just one pill
Van Dijk warns that people who are not healthy or who have a low body weight can become seriously ill from just one pill, especially if they are taken along with other substances. Taking too many can be life-threatening. In recent months at least six people have died in Norway from PMMA overdoses.
According to Van Dijk, a similar thing happened about ten years ago, when pills containing PMMA got into circulation. That episode eventually lead to multiple deaths.
Four-leaf clover
The pills currently in circulation are white with the imprint of a four-leaf clover. If you think you have taken PMMA, call 112 immediately and let the emergency personnel know that it may be an overdose of PMMA, an XTC-like substance.
For more information go to drugs-test.nl (site is in Dutch, use Google Translate to see an English version).
Source
