What causes ecstasy to put holes in the brain?

Ecstasy, known scientifically as MDMA, was once used in psychotherapy and had controversial effectiveness. Since that time it has become a Schedule 1 drug (one that has no medical use and has a high abuse potential). Ecstasy alters perception and is a dopamine agonist by blocking reuptake. It also, increases heart rate and blood pressure, causing a euphoric sensation.

                Several different theories have been proposed as to why it causes cell death. In fact, there has been research that argues that there is no such loss. The theories that say that there are holes however chalk the holes up to cellular death brought on by calcium influx which in large quantities can cause apoptosis (cell death) of the neurons. As more dopamine is used downstream, the overall effect causes over excitability of the neurons than they would typically be used to. Hijacking the reward pathway, the ecstasy causes addiction and in many cases even death because of the complications associated with its use (increased heart rate and blood pressure).

                Also, ecstasy is typically cut causing unknown substances to be a part of what you take. Often pills are the easiest and most accessible way of taking ecstasy but it can be crushed up and snorted as well. Many medical professionals argue that ecstasy is more dangerous than cocaine because it also acts on serotonin release.

For me the most dangerous part about ecstasy is that you don’t know what you are getting. The other things may be controversial about it but the lone fact that it is illegal, possibly cut with an unknown substance, causing it to have an unknown purity which could in of itself be lethal, then it is not worth trying. It is crazy that people decide to use it even after all these other factors. You also don’t know where it came from and therefore the people that create this concoction may do it differently causing it to act slightly different in your system.

This drug has a high abuse potential and partiers and ravers love it because of the extra surge of euphoria you feel upon using but once you come down from it you will find yourself wanting even more than before and so begins the vicious circle of addiction. I would advise anyone to stay away from it regardless if it cause serious brain damage or not. Several studies indicate that a hole in the brain is not entirely accurate and that many other parts of the brain swell upon substance use. The brain is plastic and therefore will change to meet its conditions. The hole in the brain may be possible because of cell death and cause short and possibly long term problems. The issue is that since it is illegal not many studies have focused on it to parse out fact from fiction. With all this being said, it is an addictive and abusable substance that has and can ruin even more lives.

Reference: http://healthpsych.psy.vanderbilt.edu/ECSTASY.htm

Seth Mayfield