Drug education is solution to legal highs - Sedqa director

Education is the key to solving the problem of untested legal highs flooding Europe through the internet, according to Sedqa's clinical director.

George Grech argued that synthetic drugs developed in Asia and sold online were making banning "difficult" because, as soon as a substance was made illegal, a legal "derivative" was created.

"The people developing these drugs know the loopholes in the law and it is very difficult to keep up with them. Another problem is that these are recreational drugs, so we only get to know about them if something goes wrong and someone overdoses."

One such drug is Mephedrone, known as Bubbles or Meow Meow, which has been linked to some deaths in the UK and Sweden. It is said to be very dangerous because it is untested, has various side-effects and its toxic dosage has not yet been established.

Dr Grech said such substances had to be banned but stemming the demand was the only real solution to battling the problem. This could be done through education about the "subtle changes in the brain" such drugs caused, including psychosis and depression.

"If our young people need to fill themselves with drugs and alcohol to have fun, we are facing a big problem," he said, adding that alcohol was the worst problem because, when mixed with drugs, the risk of overdose increased dramatically.

He warned that using drug cocktails was just as dangerous.

In Malta, a substance can be criminalised through a legal notice by the Ministry of Justice and emerging drugs are monitored by the Commission against Drug Abuse, headed by University professor Richard Muscat.

Dr Grech has called for a "revamp" of the system to make its response time quicker and more in tune with what was going on.

In Europe, emerging drug trends are monitored through the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, which makes recommendations for banning. So far, with substances like Mephedrone, the centre is still observing their trends before deciding whether to call for a complete ban.