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Comment by ggm | Hacker News Reader

Thats incredibly scary reading.

The good news is that MDMA(along with plenty of other interesting phenylethylamines) isn't neurotoxic . All the hysteria was the result of bad science and there's actually evidence that MDMA use might improve sleep efficiency. http://www.maps.org/news-letters/v06n1/06108neu.html

I thought it was definitely neurotoxic IF used at high frequency and/or dosage.

Be careful with dismissing the warnings as hysteria.

Enjoy MDMA responsibly: right dosage and long periods between. This also happens to make the experience much, much better :)

Are you really citing a paper from 1995?

I mean I’m a user of illegal drugs and would rather be safe than sorry. If you look at the mechanics of MDMA, it’s basically forcing your brain to release serotonin from the floodgates in a way that can damage neurons.

Drug tolerance is real. Personally I’d rather be safe than sorry.

In some fields the best papers are the oldest ones and all subsequent work adds basically nothing except someone got a phd out of it. Give old and original research a chance, it is often very high quality.

Look into Alexander Shulgin and other intelligent old people who've openly used MDMA for decades and you won't see a lot of obvious brain damage.

The money shot in the conclusion is:

Although common recreational doses of MDMA don’t seem to be neurotoxic, it’s important to practice moderation.

I wouldn't call that "incredibly scary", more like "concerning".

I don't do pills. When I did do things, long long ago in another galaxy, behind the statute of limitations veil, I don't recall people being very good about not doing things to excess. Also, I am told a constant issue with pills is dosage is deeply uncertain, hence the MDMA deaths issue at Australian festivals, and the pressure for pill testing.

"Also, I am told a constant issue with pills is dosage is deeply uncertain, hence the MDMA deaths issue at Australian festivals"

I'll admit I haven't kept up with the research since I stopped going to house (now known as 'EDM' apparently) parties 20 years ago, but back then it was well known that 'mdma deaths' were actually people dying of dehydration or because of hearth issues due to combining mdma with other drugs. What's the status today? Do people actually die from mdma itself, or just in circumstances where mdma is involved?

I don't know. It's not my scene. It's probably contamination.

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