Substance already a problem for Tayside

Crack cocaine is already problem in Tayside and Fife.

The drug is made by mixing baking powder or ammonia into the powder form of cocaine. The mixture is then heated until it forms rocks, which are vapourised to be smoked.

As it is smoked, rather than snorted like regular cocaine, the drug reaches the brain more quickly – producing an intense and immediate high.

The high is short-lived, therefore more is needed to maintain it. Eventually an addiction is born and the drug is needed just to feel normal.

Due to its potency, there is a high risk of overdose.

Symptoms include anxiety, aggression, seizures, rapid heart rate, chest pain, nausea, seizure, hallucinations and stroke.

The high happens because crack sets off excess amounts of the happiness-inducing chemical dopamine in the brain.

Due to regular use, the natural production of dopamine is diminished as the body becomes dependent.

Strong cravings for the drug, along with the desire to avoid unpleasant withdrawal symptoms, makes it very hard to quit.

Crack is rarely used by firsttime drug-takers. Many times, crack is used by people who are already addicted to cocaine. In contrast to cocaine, crack is fairly cheap. This makes it accessible to all types of people, especially the vulnerable, but as addicts need more of the drug, a crack addiction can spiral into a habit that costs hundreds of pounds every week.

Last year, The Courier reported an increase in use of the highly addictive drug, particularly in Kirkcaldy.

A Glenrothes-based detective said the drug was becoming more readily available, prompting fears of an epidemic.

Earlier this year, a man was jailed for supply of the Class A drug from houses in Buckhaven and West Wemyss. At the time, detectives called him one of Fife’s main crack distributors. He was caught as part of a major investigation into drug supply across the kingdom.

In August, a solicitor told a court Dundee was already in the grip of a lethal epidemic of crack cocaine.

Defending an addicted client, Ross Bennett said: “It is very significant, with a number of deaths recently surrounding it.”

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