Could a Class A drug (Ecstasy) help with Alcohol Addiction?

[Richard-Allen]

There was an interesting article in the Independent Online this morning about a recent trial study that has shown that the taking of methylenedioxymethamphetamine (ecstasy) could offer support for many people who are struggling with alcohol addiction: independent.co.uk/news/scie....

During an eight-week trial in Bristol, 14 people with alcohol problems were given a controlled amount of the party drug, also known as ecstasy, during two psychotherapy sessions. Psychological support was provided before, during and after each session and their alcohol use behaviour, mental wellbeing and functioning data were collected for nine months.

The study, published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, found participants on average consumed 18.7 units of alcohol per week in the months after the trial, compared to 130.6 units before: journals.sagepub.com/eprint...

I think this is very much early days of this study. Although these findings do look promising, and any form of treatment that cuts down on the amount of damage being done to the liver can only be good news.

But, before everyone starts to get excited and begins to make plans to go out to some local rave once lockdown is lifted. It should be noted that early experiments on the effect of MDMA on rat livers do show that chronic administration of MDMA affects liver as well as lipoprotein profile in male rats. The exact mechanism of action needs further investigation.

So, swapping one set of treatments for another, might not prove so encouraging for those with liver fibrosis or cirrhosis.

Richard.

[Hidden]

I think this would open up a whole new can of worms.

[MLB_77]

An alcoholic is likely to become addicted to anything that is mind altering. I would not think that is something to risk. Also, or a true alcoholic the best route is to actually “recover “and just learn to cope with life, not just bandaid with more drugs.

[Richard-Allen in reply to MLB_77]

I prefer not to use the word, Alcoholic as I find this word to be meaningless. A person can have alcohol issues without being addicted. People can therefore become wrongly labelled and be stigmatised for life.

[MLB_77 in reply to Richard-Allen]

Yes, it certainly comes with a stigma!

[Yarkis]

Idk mate. I'm a recovering alcoholic and have done my share of party favors including the one in question. Both drugs hyper-activate similar receptors in the brain. I could see someone subbing for the other, but the addiction would still be there. Curiously a stronger phycoactive Psilocybin, is being studied as a way to remap neural pathology in addiction. Little is known of the interaction, but there's a lot of interesting research. Thanks for the interesting post. Cheers!

[Jm205]

I remember in the mid 2000's when I was partying a lot (did ecstasy quite a bit), even American mainstream media had specials on where they mentioned how it could be life-changing for things like psychosis and depression. Problem is it wrecks your body, especially of sodium. Marijuana legalization seems to be having more than enough positive affect on alcoholism on its own, but even that can trigger a lot of medical issues inside of the body in an alcoholic if they need to be completely clean for an indefinite period of time. I know that firsthand. Depends on age and body. I do wish I had access to true medical grade when my drinking had been at its height. Sometimes all it takes for somebody is a day off to clear your mind, and marijuana's sedative effects are providing that for people, among other things. As someone else mentioned, shrooms would make a lot of sense even for people with wrecked bodies. It is simply non-toxic, and could lead right into meditation.

[JJgut]

You allude to a good point at the end, that swapping one addictive vice for another may not be a good idea for those with fibrosis. I would extend that to say that it's not a good idea for anyone suffering from addiction, whether or not they have liver problems. It would act as a band aid cure at best.

[deanw41]

Ohhhhhh I smell a cross addiction.

[AyrshireK]

Having read the details of the small study I see the drugs were administered alongside counselling and you wonder if the counselling support alone would be beneficial without adding another chemical mix into the equation and whilst the participants who did got through the study reduced their massive drinking intake they still didn't get below the national guideline limit (reducing to 18 units per week).

[Richard-Allen in reply to AyrshireK]

Good points Katie.