ecstasy safer than horse riding

[loopyloop]

I think in this matter what it balls down to is the type of drug taker/horse rider you are?

If you only take ecstasy twice a year but ride a highly strung horse everyday in a high risk discipline then yes I'd say you've got more chance of falling off and doing some serious damage.

BUT

If your hooked and taking ecstasy everyday but only ride once every month then your more likely to cause serious damage through drugs?

Although if you've got a happy balance no matter how you look at it, everytime you pop a pill into your mouth you are doing untold damage to your body while feeding what could become an addiction? In turn that addiction is going to force you into crime etc and potentially ruin your whole life?

Personally I'd pick the horse anyday! Atleast that way I know yes I might fall off but the odds are I'm going to come away unscathed and with my organs intact! Plus it makes me look like the innocent well rounded individual my family think I am............

 

[Starbucks]

[ QUOTE ]
I think in this matter what it balls down to is the type of drug taker/horse rider you are?

If you only take ecstasy twice a year but ride a highly strung horse everyday in a high risk discipline then yes I'd say you've got more chance of falling off and doing some serious damage.

BUT

If your hooked and taking ecstasy everyday but only ride once every month then your more likely to cause serious damage through drugs?

Although if you've got a happy balance no matter how you look at it, everytime you pop a pill into your mouth you are doing untold damage to your body while feeding what could become an addiction? In turn that addiction is going to force you into crime etc and potentially ruin your whole life?

Personally I'd pick the horse anyday! Atleast that way I know yes I might fall off but the odds are I'm going to come away unscathed and with my organs intact! Plus it makes me look like the innocent well rounded individual my family think I am............

[/ QUOTE ]

Ecstacy isn't actually addictive though and not really the type of drug people get hooked on and take everyday. Plus it's really cheap! So I doubt many robberies take place to fund someones ecstacy addiction. There is the argment that people might move on from ecstacy to other things of course.

 

[MrsMoobag]

Funny how people who've never taken E think its on a par with smack and the like

My twopence worth - horses have put me in ospital looooooads of times, E never has...but then I have done loads more riding than E

 

[loopyloop]

Sorry, I wasn't trying to imply all Ecstasy takers were smackheads or can't function without it...........

Just a very close friend of mine started off on so called soft drugs and progressed onwards and upwards and turned into a really nasty piece of work, never did find out what happened to her!

I'm also not implying all ecstasy takers are weak or anything else of the sort but it strikes me that once you start something like that then your bound to look for something bigger and better?

Correct me if I'm wrong as I will be the first to admit I'm not the most clued up when it comes to these matters!

Wouldnt it be amusing though if H&H did an article on horse riding ecstasy takers, wouldn't that throw Prof Nutt's statistics into bedlam...........

 

[ladyt25]

I haven't even read the article but it does shock me a little that this thread has shown that some people believe taking ectasy is 'ok' because they take it on the odd occasion and have fun.

I drink alcohol yes (I don't smoke) but the difference is alcohol is legal, ecstasy (and other 'harder' drugs) are not. Also, it may be 'fun' to you personally but the bigger picture is you are funding a much darker industry and, whilst people still think it is ok to experiment on the odd occasion then the illegal drug trade and the horrific crime associated with it is going to continue.

I have friends who take drugs recreationally and they think there's nothing wrong with it but I have to point out, even though these people are only recreational users and believe it doesn't affect them i have to say i would disagree. They have fairly regular and severe mood changes, get stressed about the smallest thing and in general just find it hard to take anything with a pinch of salt or chill out as it were. Personally I think the years of recreational use may well have it's part to play in that.

 

[weevil]

[ QUOTE ]
Common sense would say ... from what I've read...
2 million riders in the UK - 100 deaths=0.006%
Ecstacy users 500,000 - 30 deaths=0.010%

The horsey one is based on someones estimation on here - so not accurate.

I think that is comparable and I work in stats.

[/ QUOTE ]
I wouldn't say that it was comparable. For a start you have only taken the estimated number of "users" and have not factored in the frequency of participation, and have only used the number of deaths as an end point. It is not disputed that Ecstasy caused relatively few deaths - the main concern with this drug is what long-term damage it does to your brain...

 

[amandaco2]

ditto DrWeevil.

 

[Tribal]

This subject can be so huge, as it has been such a taboo subject for so long, I think that has been the problem. Because its illegal and the stigma that goes with recreational drugs, users will just not openly come forward for fear of persecution and losing their jobs etc. I'm either brave or stupid coming on here confessing all.
If you think there are only 500,000 users then you are very mistaken I'm afraid. It is such an underground thing that unless your in "the circle" you will have no idea how many users there actually are. You will be gobsmacked to the point of unbelieving it. There are people from all walks of life and all ages. I know teachers, nurses, bankers, business owners and evening police who use. Most of our parents in the 60s used, a lot of our MPs have used, Tony Blair even! But everyone in high authority who has been caught only ever say 'it was a mistake a one off and I'll never do it again'. They say this just to save their jobs and save face. Look at Phelps the swimmer who has just been caught smoking the weed, can you honestly tell me he is sorry because he smoked it, or was he sorry because he was caught and wanted to save his sponsorship.
The long term affects will be hard to realise because they have no human subjects to test on, and no one will come forward confessing thier years of using illegal drugs. It is such a catch 22 situation.
There are loads of things on this planet that can have damaging effects to our bodies, but most are only damaging to a selected few or to those who have addictive personalities.
I know what are the really harmfull and addictive drugs, I watched the films, the tv ads highlighting them so I've made a choice not to go there. If I knew I had an addictive personality then I would make damn sure not to touch anything that was addictive and that would include alcohol and cigarettes. Just take a look at fat people they are more likely to have an addictive personality than a thinner person. Over eating does so much damage to your body and organs.
Many of you on here even think ecstasy is addictive, how wrong are, but why is that? Is there not enough information being made public for you to know what drug does what. It seems not.
You will always get someone who is intolerant to something, even nuts (lets ban them shall we). The people who know they have a problem and still chose to use and abuse be it alcohol or whatever you dont blame the rest. Most people have to be made acountable for their decisions. Its not my fault they were stupid and took heroine they knew like I did the consequences, that why I steer clear. Its not your fault they kept drinking to be an alcoholic when they knew like you did that it can be addictive. Its all the same.
If you think that legalising it would not stop the nasty criminals then you are also wrong. If it was legal why would I risk buying a poor quality and possibly life threatening Ecstasy pill from some backstreet trader, when I could get a good quality and safe one from my local chemist. If you take away the need you take away the supplier its as simple as that. And whats our moto 'Buy British' LoL

Oh and excuse the bad spelling

 

[Tribal]

And being that I'm trying to be honest and open, stupid or brave. If anyone does want to ask me any questions about it, then I will try and be as honest and informative as I can if it will be any help in getting people more informed.

 

[Mithras]

I think its worrying that someone in that position has made such an uninformed and manipulative statement. He has completely ignored the long term health detriment from ecstasy use and the associations with other harmful addicitive behaviours. He has of course ignored the health benefits of horse related activities, from exercise and being out in the fresh air. He has ignored the vast number of safe horse riding activities that take place, particularly when compared with use of ecstasy, which in the main, takes place amongst the young and already healthy. His whole premise is odd and not a suitable statement for someone in that position to make (is he swayed by being a former recreational drug user in his youth himself which quite a high proportion of labour advisers seem to be).

 

[Decision_Tree]

Proff Nutt.... the name sums in all up IMO.

Sports are things that should be encouraged as much as possible and drugs should be hit down on hard.
Natural highs from sports are healthy and something all people should get in life. keeps you fit and i think its essential for wellbeing.

The overall message sent by this article is shocking i think. I know its about risk taking but not all people will see it as intended. it could be used to try and lower the class of this drug which i think its wrong or be used by people to justify their taking of the drug.

 

[phaseone]

[ QUOTE ]
even though these people are only recreational users and believe it doesn't affect them i have to say i would disagree. They have fairly regular and severe mood changes, get stressed about the smallest thing and in general just find it hard to take anything with a pinch of salt or chill out as it were. Personally I think the years of recreational use may well have it's part to play in that.

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Exactly

If some of you think that using E does no harm and causes no change in you in the short/long term, maybe ask those around you what they notice. What they really notice. I have seen mothers totally unable to respond to the needs of their young children when they have been clubbing and used E.

I have seen young women and men who experience vivid flashbacks many months after stopping the drug. If you talk to young people who have a habit on hard drugs they will frequently describe taking E originally when they went out to have a good time.

This Prof Nutt in my view should not be in the position he is in. People like him were responsible for the mess up over cannabis.

His comparison to equestrianism made me laugh. Yes, horse riding is dangerous. But it doesn't cause children to be cruelly neglected and abused, or lead to long term mental health problems. Horses help children learn about compassion and responsibility. They help adults unwind and enjoy themselves. Equestrianism doesn't cause mental ill health. Horses heal.

 

[amandaco2]

[ QUOTE ]
Yet I'm frowned upon and your not, yet your odd tipple is more damaging and mine is not, where is the justice in that?

[/ QUOTE ]

sorry i dont know of ANYONE who has died from a glass of red wine.
I DO know people who have died from taking one E.
i would think you will find the 'odd tipple' is actually of some benefit.
the odd E is far more risky!