Formula for trouble

If ever there were a turn-off for young people experimenting with a new drug (in addition, of course, to the reports of two young men who drowned after taking it), it would have to be Sally Bercow, wife of the Speaker of the House of Commons, jumping on the bandwagon.

After mephedrone — the so-called “legal high” that was sold online before becoming a class B illegal substance in March 2010 — comes methoxetamine. MXE or M-Ket — or “mexxy” as the press has dubbed it — is a new drug that after being sold online disingenuously as a “safe” alternative to ketamine has also been banned.

But just before the ban came into effect, Sally Bercow tweeted to say that she was tempted to try it. She wrote: “Am I the only one now slightly tempted to try mexxy before it becomes illegal? I won’t, obvs,” before following it up with: “Oh, the mexxy ban is only ‘temporary’. What’s that all about? (am now obsessed with the stuff, despite never having heard of it ½ hr ago).”

What is mexxy?

Methoxetamine is a “designer drug”, synthesised as a derivative of the controlled drug ketamine but with enough differences in its chemical structure not to fall under existing drug laws at the time. It is a white powder and users snort or swallow it.

Where are people getting it?

Before it became controlled, it was sold online on “legal high” websites for around £18 a gram. Some UK sites still claim to sell it, although supply within the UK or to the UK from abroad is now illegal.

What are its effects?

The anonymous chemist who claims to have created methoxetamine says that “it doubtless has great potential as an antidepressant”, but little independent research has yet been carried out. Users writing online “trip reports” say they experience blurred vision, unsteadiness, loss of bodily sensation, hallucinations, euphoria, panic, insomnia, confusion and agitation.

How harmful is it?

According to the Government’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) there have been no confirmed deaths related to methoxetamine in the UK, but it says that four individuals (including the two young men who drowned) may have used the drug in the time leading up to their deaths.

The Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs (ISCD) says: “Although it is chemically similar to ketamine, users have reported effects such as agitation and heart palpitations that differ considerably from the effects of recreational ketamine use. Methoxetamine is also considerably more potent than ketamine, with the risk that users will take far more than they intend to. It is difficult to give users accurate harm-reduction advice given that there is so little evidence.”

Users report a compulsion to use repeated doses (known as “fiending”) and the creator of methoxetamine says that its effects “lend themselves to abuse”.

According to the ISCD, there is no evidence to support the claims of online retailers who marketed methoxetamine as a “safe” alternative to ketamine, which is now known to cause ulcerative cystitis, leading to bladder removal.

Methoxetamine’s alleged creator claims “it has a dose low enough that it should not harm the urinary bladder like ketamine”. However, the ISCD says: “The higher potency of methoxetamine may in fact mean that it is more damaging to the bladder rather than less so, we simply do not know at this stage.”