Pubdate: Fri, 07 Dec 2001 Source: Edmonton Journal (CN AB) Copyright: 2001 The Edmonton Journal Contact: http://www.canada.com/edmonton/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/134 Author: Andrea Baillie PREGNANT ECSTASY USERS DRINK MORE, SMOKE MORE Expectant mothers who take ecstasy tend to drink more, smoke more and have more unplanned pregnancies than those who don't take the drug, a new study says. "This study is the first to examine the characteristics of pregnant women who use ecstasy," said Dr. Gideon Koren, one of the authors of the report, which appears in the December issue of Neurotoxicology and Teratology. "These women are using not only ecstasy, but often many other drugs of abuse, in addition to higher-than-average rates of alcohol use." Koren said he was surprised at the findings because ecstasy is often perceived as a non-addictive drug that doesn't go hand-in-hand with heavy drinking. "It is depicted as something that makes people relaxed, optimistic, not aggressive, loving," he said. "There is a perception out there that's ... not associated with the stereotype heavy drug user." Participants in the study, which compared 132 pregnant women who used ecstasy with 122 women who did not, used the city's Motherisk pregnancy counselling program between December 1998 and October 2000. In addition to increased smoking, drinking and drug use, the study also determined that pregnant women who use ecstasy tend to be young and single, and frequently report psychiatric concerns, including anxiety, depression and insomnia. Unplanned pregnancies were also more common in the group that took ecstasy. Most women in the study took ecstasy only once during their pregnancy and stopped using the drug when they found out they were expecting. There has been a sharp increase in ecstasy use in the past decade, according to the report, with one Canadian survey citing an eightfold increase in ecstasy use among youth since 1993. Koren is the director of Motherisk and a professor at the University of Toronto. - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart