What are club drugs and why do we need to know about them in Lake Forest, Lake Bluff and Knollwood?
Club drugs, or "designer drugs," have arrived on the party scene not only for college students but high school students as well. The term "club drugs" means a group of drugs often taken at night clubs, raves (dance parties sometimes promoted as alcohol-free) and other party settings. The availability of club drugs has increased dramatically and many teens and college students mistakenly believe they are safe.

The club drugs that are now being seen and seized in Lake County, IL, are Ecstasy, Liquid X, Ketamine and LSD.
Each drug is dangerous because of the inconsistencies of the pharmacological agents, chemicals used to manufacture them and possible contaminants mixed in. These drugs are made by amateur chemists in moveable laboratories with no quality control. What may have been a tolerable dose this week may be an overdose next week. When any of these drugs are mixed with alcohol, they form a lethal combination that can lead to decreased kidney and respiratory functions, coma, and death.

How are people introduced to club drugs?
Teenagers may explore the dance-club scene and find that dancing all night long is fun. Add in a drug that enhances the senses by creating feelings of self-confidence, energy, relaxation and well-being, and who wouldn't want that experience? But these drugs are not benign. They're dangerous. Continued use of Ecstasy, for example, will produce long-term damage to serotonin containing neurons in the brain. That translates to real "brain-damage." Serotonin plays a key role in regulating emotion, memory, sleep, pain and higher cognitive functions.

Please inform yourself, your spouse and your family about these drugs.
Click on the individual drugs for their descriptions. Print out a page and talk with your teenager or college student about them. Click on the related links and other suggested links to investigate the use of these drugs more deeply. And please click on the parent toolbox and local statistics. In many families, the children know a lot more about club drugs than the parents do.