E for Ecstasy by Nicholas Saunders
Appendix 1: Reference Section

49 The Normalisation of Recreational Drug Use Amongst Young People in North West England by Fiona Measham, Russell Newcombe & Howard Parker, accepted by British Journal of Sociology December 1993

This paper presents findings relating to a first cohort of teenagers in the study. The sample was designed to be representative of gender, social class and geographical area. 70% were age 14 and 30% age 15; 54% were boys; 88% white; 70% Christian; 84% had fathers in paid work and 68% had mothers in paid work.

Illicit drug use has risen to record levels among this sample. 59% had been offered drugs; 36% had tried an illicit drug; 32% had tried cannabis; 14% poppers; 13% LSD; 12% solvents; 10% magic mushrooms; 10% amphetamine; 6% Ecstasy and 1% other drugs. 20% had used a drug within the preceding month and 33% had done so within the preceding year. Girls were more likely to have been offered and to have tried a drug, in contrast to previous surveys that showed more boys had tried illicit drugs tan girls.

Drug use is generally related to alcohol use; those who drink more also have above average consumption of other drugs. However, those who use MDMA drink less alcohol than users of the more popular drugs above. 45% of respondents had had sexual experiences. Of these, 25% had been drinking before their last sexual experience.

Of those who had tried MDMA, nearly all had also tried cannabis, 80% had tried LSD, 76% amphetamine, 69% psilocybin mushrooms and 60% nitrites. But only 4% had tried cocaine and 7% heroin.