Parties will inevitably bring you into contact with drugs. This section is a guide to the drugs you might come into contact with - it's important that you know what you're getting into, and that every decision you make is informed. If you do decide to take drugs, it's usually safest to take them in an environment you feel relaxed in, with people you know and totally trust. It's also safest never to mix your drugs, including alcohol. Get to grips with the risks of using drugs. If you're not sure you know everything you need to know, just don't bother. It's not worth the hassle.

ECSTASY

comes as a pill and can both stimulate and relax you. It produces feelings of happiness and warmth towards other people, and can give you extra energy for clubbing into the small hours. To avoid dehydration, you should drink around a pint of water an hour while you're dancing and remember to eat something salty. Ecstasy comedown can bring on depression and lethargy and can last 2 or 3 days. There is also a small risk of death due to dehydration or overheating.

YOU SHOULD KNOW

• Research has shown that ecstasy damages the brain

• Ecstasy can be all sorts of substances and known by all sorts of names. Whatever it's called, the same applies; you don't know what you're taking.

• If you suffer from cystitis or thrush it could be heightened by dehydration caused by using ecstasy.

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SPEED (amphetamines)

Is a white or off-white powder (or occasionally tablet) which can be snorted, swallowed, injected or smoked. It's a stimulant which can give you a massive energy rush and extra confidence, keeping you awake and alert for several hours, and killing your appetite at the same time. Your body may suffer from the comedown - extra exertion without nourishment can make you feel tired as well as moody and nervous.

YOU SHOULD KNOW

• The chances are that your street speed has been mixed with any number of white powders. Speed is the most impure illegal drug in Britain.

• The comedown can last for one or two days or sometimes longer

• Long term use puts a strain on the heart and overdose can be fatal

• Regular use can lead to mental health problems.

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COCAINE

Is a white powder that can be snorted or injected and works as a powerful stimulant. For 20 to 30 minutes, a cocaine buzz will give you confidence, energy and a sense of well being, though there's a chance you'll end up irritable and aggressive. The comedown usually consists of exhaustion and hunger, then depression and sometimes paranoia. In the long term there's evidence that cocaine can affect your mental health - from mild depression to "cocaine psychosis", with symptoms similar to schizophrenia. Cocaine can be addictive and withdrawal symptoms include severe anxiety, agitation and restlessness. If cocaine is smoked as crack, addiction is more likely to occur and is generally more severe.

YOU SHOULD KNOW

• Snorting coke can permanently damage the tissue inside your nose.

• Coke can cause heart problems and chest pains

• It is possible to die of a cocaine overdose.

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HEROIN

is a white or brown powder you can snort, smoke, swallow or inject. It works as a powerful painkiller which depresses your nervous system to give you a warm, safe feeling. Its highly addictive and long-term effects include a loss of sex drive, huge loss of energy and a lack of lust for life. Injection carries many life-threatening risks, including the risk of overdosing and passing on HIV and other infections. Addiction can lead to depression and suicide.

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Are powerful hallucinogens which come in the form of "tabs" (small paper squares), microdot tablets or small naturally growing mushrooms. Acid trips will vary in quality and content according to the individual - perceptions and senses are challenged and changed to different degrees. If you're unlucky enough to have a bad trip you might struggle through hours of paranoia and anxiety and maybe even an unnerving loss of self-awareness. And beware, if your mushrooms aren't the magic kind, they can fatally poison you - 50% of people eating poisonous mushrooms will die.

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KETAMINE

is an anaesthetic which comes as a powder or a tablet. It's often sold as ecstasy or mixed with other drugs. It has strong hallucinogenic and painkilling properties - people have reported various responses, from "out of body" experiences, complete numbness and memory loss. The long-term effects are as yet unknown. It's extremely dangerous to mix ketamine with alcohol.

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SOLVENTS

come as gases, glues and aerosols - the buzz comes from sniffing things like lighter gas, deodorants, glue and some paints. You'll feel dizzy and probably a bit sick, and there's a chance you'll hallucinate. It's important to remember that this form of drug-taking can cause instant death, while long term effects include damage to the heart, brain, liver and kidneys.

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THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT DRUGS AND THE LAW

(For a full breakdown of your legal rights as a citizen, take a look at the Legal Advice section

• It's not an offence to possess cannabis seeds but it's illegal to grow them

• It's not an offence to pick magic mushrooms but it's illegal to brew or cook them

• Coke, ecstasy, LSD, magic mushrooms, heroin and speed (if prepared for injection) are all CLASS A drugs. Possession could get you 7 years in prison - if you're done for supplying, you could get a life sentence.

• Even if you're just getting a couple of extra pills for your mates - in the eyes of the law you're supplying.

• If you're going on holiday this year it's worth thinking about the penalties abroad which can be very severe - smuggling drugs can lead to life imprisonment in Cyprus and Greece and up to 20 years in Italy, Portugal, Tunisia and Turkey. This really isn't a risk worth taking.

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ALCOHOL

Alcohol is a depressant, which works by slowing down parts of the brain. Although it enters the bloodstream within a few minutes, its effects last for several hours. As the alcohol begins to depress different parts of the brain, you might experience blurred vision, slurred speech, and a loss of balance and co-ordination. Alcohol can act as a relaxant, making you feel drowsy - or feel like a stimulant, reducing anxiety and self-consciousness while making you talkative and liable to do things you wouldn't consider while sober.

Many people are able to drink casually without serious damage to their health - but many others may find themselves facing physical, emotional and financial problems as a result of a drinking habit which they cannot control. Even casual users are subject to the pain of hangovers - a result of the irritation to your central nervous system from the night before.

YOU SHOULD KNOW 

• Mixing alcohol with other drugs is very dangerous and seriously increases the risk of a drug overdose.

• Younger people are more likely to be affected by alcohol - the smaller a person is, the more concentrated the drink will be, and the less used to drinking they are, the stronger their reaction.

• Regular consumption of large amounts of alcohol can lead to liver diseases, ulcers and brain damage.

• The amount of people who die as a result of alcohol is 50 times greater than the amount of deaths from all illegal drugs put together.

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SMOKING

The main active ingredient in cigarettes is nicotine. When smoked in short puffs, nicotine acts as a stimulant, and can make you feel excited and energetic. When inhaled deeply, the effect is more likely to be relaxing, which explains why smokers use cigarettes at times of stress. Nicotine is an extremely addictive drug, and even those who have successfully quit are still in danger of going back to the habit. In larger doses nicotine is a highly toxic poison that can cause vomiting, headaches and nausea.

Despite awareness of the many risks involved in smoking, tobacco remains the single most preventable cause of death in the world. Many believe that cigarette manufacturers have focussed on attracting young customers to replace those that they have lost to tobacco-related illnesses and death.

YOU SHOULD KNOW: 

• Smoking causes more deaths than fires, car crashes, AIDS, cocaine, heroin, alcohol, murders, and suicides combined.

• Tobacco is the only legally available consumer product that can cause death when used for its intended purpose.

• After quitting smoking, it takes 10 years before the risk of a heart attack falls to the level of someone who has never smoked.

• The vast majority of people who smoke begin before the age of 18.

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