Ecstasy Users' Memory May Be Hit Twice!

New findings from a research team investigating the effects of the drug ecstasy on memory suggest that users may suffer memory impairments resulting from its use, in addition to the normal impairments of memory which occur with age.

The research team comprises of psychologist Philip Murphy from Edge Hill, along with Michelle Wareing, Catharine Montgomery, and Martin Chandler from Liverpool John Moores University and John Fisk from the University of Central Lancashire.

It had previously been thought that ecstasy related memory impairments constituted a form of premature ageing. The sample included groups of both current users of the drug and former users who had not used it for at least 6 months. The findings suggest that as people who have used the drug grow older, some aspects of their memory ability may become worse than that of other people their age who did not use the drug.

These findings were presented at the Annual Conference of the Psychobiology Section of the British Psychological Society on Wednesday 20th September.

Dr. Murphy, who presented the findings on behalf of the team, commented:

"Our findings relate to what is called 'working memory', which is that part of our memory we use for performing routine daily tasks. We know that normal age related declines in working memory arise from the slowing down of our ability to process information. When statistical adjustments are made to allow for this, age related deficits in working memory can virtually disappear. However, the same adjustments do not remove ecstasy related effects on working memory. This implies that a different mechanism is at work to produce a deficient performance. However, as people who have used the drug grow older, they will still be vulnerable to a normal age related decline in memory performance."

People who believe that they have impaired their own memory ability should not panic:

"We have to remember that we are talking about certain specific abilities when we talk about ecstasy related impairments, and not about all mental abilities," added Dr Murphy. "Impairments are also a matter of degree, rather than total loss. Ecstasy related deficits tend to be related to the extent of lifetime consumption, and the ecstasy users in this sample had, on average, used over 520 tablets. People who have used ecstasy should not panic about the possibility of memory damage, but they should stop using the drug if they have not done so already. If they continue to be worried they should contact their GP or a professional substance misuse counselling agency."