Drug trends
Ecstasy use has become one of the most commonly used recreational drugs in New Zealand. Although it has been associated with nightclubs and electronic music, ecstasy is also used in homes and private parties.
A SHORE survey of frequent drug users in 2010 reported that:
- ecstasy was becoming more difficult to obtain
- an ecstasy pill cost about $60
- ecstasy is most often purchased from a friend, social acquaintance or drug dealer.
According to the latest Drug Use in New Zealand Survey 2007/2008, published in 2009:
- 6.2 percent of the population aged 16 to 64 had used ecstasy at some point in their lives
- 2.6 percent of the population aged 16 to 64 had used ecstasy in the past year
- men are more likely to have used ecstasy in the past year
- past year ecstasy use is most common in the 18 to 24 year age group
- most people who have used ecstasy first tried it when they were 21 years or older
- the majority (60.4 percent) of past year ecstasy users have only used ecstasy once or twice in the previous year
- ecstasy users often combined it with other substances, most often alcohol (78.9 percent) and cannabis (42.8 percent).
