Comment · Fri, November 9, 2012
Research Suggests no Neurotoxicity in MDMA
Original post in this thread
PuffyCheek · 194 points
In partial response to what I've been reading in the bestof'd thread here at /drugs, I think it would be good to start a discussion about the neurotoxicity in MDMA.
I feel as if the harmful effects discussed in the thread were overblown. According to a research done by the Harvard Medical School last year in 2011, users who were asked to use MDMA under a controlled setting over a certain period of time showed no signs of cognitive impairment nor decreased mental ability.
So the question remains, why do we have so much evidence from past research studies that show otherwise? The researchers at Harvard Medical School responded by saying that past research studies lacked a proper control environment. What that means is that past research studies did not control their test group to make sure they didn't engage in unhealthy activities after ingesting MDMA (i.e. going to a rave and dancing for 8 hours straight).
No research since 2011 has proved Harvard Medical School's conclusion wrong, that MDMA is actually harmful to your brain. No other research studies that I could personally find had settings as controlled as the one conducted by HMS.
That being said, research was done…
What they were answering
Toodlum · 12 points
Original OP of the /r/bestof thread here.
First, let me note something that is VERY important.
The title of this thread is misleading. The study in question was an evaluation of the cognitive impairments in former ecstasy users. This is not proof that MDMA is not neurotoxic, it is simply proof that they didn't note much cognitive decline.
Neurotoxicity does not always equal a drop in cognitive abilities.
By the way, let me point out that this study is NOT the trend. Many past studies have found noticeable cognitive impairments in moderate to heavy users.
There are also other flaws to the study in question, including a small control group and their inability to determine the users cognitive ability BEFORE MDMA use.
As MisterYouAreSoDumb eloquently pointed out, this study proves almost nothing.
Past studies of former human users have used actual brain scans and have found evidence of serotonin damage.
Let me direct you to some of these studies:
Here's one that found a reduction in SERT in former ecstasy users
Here's another one that had similar results
Here's one that noted "long-lasting changes in brain function consistent with 5-HT toxicity"
[Here's one that found decreased serotonin binding i…
u/MisterYouAreSoDumb
What pisses me off is that fact that so many publications are running this headline as is! The Guardian, Huffington Post, Bluelight, and now Reddit have a title saying that study finds MDMA to not be neurotoxic. What happens to the ill-informed people who wont search further or click on the comments section? How many people are going to reiterate the title in passing to their friends?