0:00:02 > 0:00:08This programme contains some strong language and some scenes which some viewers may find upsetting
0:00:08 > 0:00:10We all know that drinking... drugs...
0:00:10 > 0:00:12and fast food are bad for you.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15The bit I like most...is the skin!
0:00:15 > 0:00:17But when it comes to young Brits,
0:00:17 > 0:00:19nothing gets in the way of a good time.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23Do you think you're invincible
0:00:23 > 0:00:25Oh, aye! My motto is you only live once
0:00:25 > 0:00:28There are health consequences, but... Worry about them later!
0:00:30 > 0:00:34Why dwell on something you may not get? Who cares?!
0:00:37 > 0:00:42But these days, a life of excess isn't just leaving young people hung-over,
0:00:42 > 0:00:45it's accelerating their age.
0:00:45 > 0:00:47I'd get out of breath walking t'shop!
0:00:47 > 0:00:49Like a 90-year-old woman or summat.
0:00:49 > 0:01:02Hit by chronic conditions usually the preserve of pensioners,
0:01:02 > 0:01:06I'll walk into a room to go and get something then wonder what I've done it.
0:01:06 > 0:01:09It makes you feel old. It makes you feel, "What's going on?"
0:01:09 > 0:01:12I'm on a ward with people who are 40 years older than me
0:01:12 > 0:01:14and probably half of them are fitter than me.
0:01:14 > 0:01:16I struggle to walk properly.
0:01:16 > 0:01:19That young person mentality of "I'm going to live for ever",
0:01:19 > 0:01:23you don't think about the ramifications on your body.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27Is there any hope for their prematurely old bodies?
0:01:29 > 0:01:32I didn't even think I could damage my heart through taking drugs.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36Deep breath, right in, right in
0:01:36 > 0:01:39Lungs feel like they're actually collapsing.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42They have got the lungs of an old man.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46Or are they past the point of no return?
0:01:46 > 0:01:48Having to cope with gout,
0:01:48 > 0:01:53and liver and heart problems in your 20s is kind of unbelievable.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57This is very young, and already into super-obesity.
0:01:57 > 0:02:01The likelihood is, it will shorten her life by 15 years.
0:02:01 > 0:02:04I want to find out what life is like for young people
0:02:04 > 0:02:06who've become old before their time.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08D'you think you can stop?
0:02:08 > 0:02:11Yeah. It's just going to take a hell of a lot of willpower.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24In this film, I'm going to meet the young people whose bodies
0:02:24 > 0:02:27have aged because of their drug use.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32I don't feel that I can act and run around like a normal 20-year-old.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35I would say that in my own body
0:02:35 > 0:02:37I could feel anywhere from 40 to 80 years old.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41I've been rushed into hospital cos I had a stroke.
0:02:41 > 0:02:42I was 18 at the time.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46And I'll be with them as they face facts about the elderly ailments
0:02:46 > 0:02:49that have hit them 30 years too soon.
0:02:49 > 0:03:01The chances of you having older arteries than you should have
0:03:07 > 0:03:12One person whose body has irreversible damage,
0:03:12 > 0:03:16is 23-year-old Chris from Hampshire.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23At 16, Chris was a hardcore raver, taking a cocktail of drugs,
0:03:23 > 0:03:25including ketamine.
0:03:30 > 0:03:35But a year on, he'd taken so much ketamine, that at just 7,
0:03:35 > 0:03:37he had to have his bladder removed.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40Basically, taking a lot of ketamine in a very short period of time
0:03:40 > 0:03:44He now has a new bladder made from his bowel.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47Where the bladder is now made of bowel material,
0:03:47 > 0:03:51and bowel material naturally creates mucus.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55Basically, what I'm going to do is insert the catheter
0:03:55 > 0:03:58using KY jelly into my belly button.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05It's just washing the bladder out basically.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14It's saline water.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19See you can see the mucus come out there.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21I'm basically just washing it out.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Getting all the mucus out.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33Ketamine use has doubled in the UK since 2006
0:04:33 > 0:04:37and it's now one of the most popular drugs on the party scene.
0:04:37 > 0:04:41Chris started taking drugs when he was 12 years old.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45I started off smoking cannabis then I gradually worked my way up
0:04:45 > 0:04:48to heavier things until it eventually got to ketamine.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52Started off with a gram, working the way up to 2g, 3g, 4g
0:04:52 > 0:04:55until it got to 10, 15 grams.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59Absolutely wicked time.
0:04:59 > 0:05:05In 2006, when Chris was just 16
0:05:05 > 0:05:06I was trying to go to the toilet
0:05:06 > 0:05:08and I couldn't - in an immense amount of pain.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11But when I did manage to go it was like a big lump of goo
0:05:11 > 0:05:14blood, mess everywhere, it was horrible.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19Chris went to see a specialist
0:05:19 > 0:05:24who told him his bladder had shrunk to a fraction of its normal size.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27If you think you've got a 5ml bladder -
0:05:27 > 0:05:29that's the same as an old person's bladder.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33Smaller than an old person's.
0:05:33 > 0:05:38A normal bladder can hold up to 500ml of urine.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42The bladder walls expand when the bladder fills with urine
0:05:42 > 0:05:44and contract when the bladder is emptied.
0:05:46 > 0:05:49Extreme ketamine use can cause stiffness and scarring
0:05:49 > 0:05:51in the bladder walls.
0:05:51 > 0:05:53This means that the bladder can only expand
0:05:53 > 0:05:56to about a tenth of its normal size.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00And having such a small bladder
0:06:00 > 0:06:03can lead to typically old people's problems,
0:06:03 > 0:06:05as Chris discovered to his cost
0:06:06 > 0:06:09Course I was embarrassed wetting myself in front of my mates.
0:06:09 > 0:06:11Yeah, it was quite embarrassing
0:06:11 > 0:06:16To avoid a lifetime of incontinence, Chris was given two options.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18Either he could have a catheter bag attached to his hip...
0:06:18 > 0:06:23Trying to pull a bird at 17 with a bag attached to your knob
0:06:23 > 0:06:24is a no-go.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26I have difficulty enough nowadays.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29..or he could have his bladder removed completely
0:06:29 > 0:06:32and a new bladder constructed from parts of his bowel.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34At the age of 17, Chris had surgery
0:06:34 > 0:06:36usually reserved for people in their 60s or 70s
0:06:36 > 0:06:41who've developed conditions such as bladder cancer.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44Obviously, it stops me doing a lot of things.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47I used to play a lot of rugby can't do that any more -
0:06:47 > 0:06:49cos it only takes one blow to my stomach
0:06:49 > 0:06:52and who knows what will happen?
0:06:52 > 0:06:56He now has to syringe mucus out of his new bladder
0:06:56 > 0:07:07every two weeks, and for the rest of his life.
0:07:07 > 0:07:08he's going into hospital today
0:07:08 > 0:07:11to find out how well they're working.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15Just got my blood results back from the doctor,
0:07:15 > 0:07:17the kidney function's at 33%,
0:07:17 > 0:07:19a person of my age should be about 60.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Chris also has to live with the knowledge that his new bladder
0:07:22 > 0:07:24won't last for ever.
0:07:24 > 0:07:28The bladder I think only lasts for 20 to 30 years,
0:07:28 > 0:07:31so hopefully they'll come up with something new by then.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34It's a sobering thought for a 23-year-old.
0:07:34 > 0:07:38But Chris is by no means the only person in his 20s
0:07:38 > 0:07:41to suffer the consequences of ketamine abuse.
0:07:41 > 0:07:42Do your mates all know about this?
0:07:42 > 0:07:44Yeah, everyone knows about it.
0:07:44 > 0:07:45What do they think?
0:07:45 > 0:07:47The people that are doing it?
0:07:47 > 0:07:50They're all pretty much having the operation now.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58So what exactly is ketamine?
0:07:58 > 0:08:01And what on earth is it doing to our bodies?
0:08:01 > 0:08:04I'm going to St George's Hospital in London
0:08:04 > 0:08:08to get the low-down from leading toxicologist John Ramsey,
0:08:08 > 0:08:11a man in his 60s who knows more about party drugs
0:08:11 > 0:08:13than your average 18-year-old.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15So, what is ketamine?
0:08:15 > 0:08:21The media always talk about ketamine as being a horse tranquiliser.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23In fact, it's an anaesthetic.
0:08:23 > 0:08:25It's used in both human and veterinary medicine,
0:08:25 > 0:08:27and has been for years.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29A very useful thing.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32It's used to perform surgical procedures.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36So why is it used on the party scene?
0:08:36 > 0:08:38Well, it's used because in lower doses,
0:08:38 > 0:08:41it produces these sort of out-of body sensations.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43If you've ever had an anaesthetic
0:08:43 > 0:08:46you go through this sort of pre-med phase,
0:08:46 > 0:08:48where you drift off to unconsciousness,
0:08:48 > 0:08:52and if you take a small enough dose you stay in that sort of drifty state
0:08:52 > 0:08:54and this is what people want.
0:08:54 > 0:08:55Is it toxic?
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Well, it's not toxic, if it's used for its intended purpose.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02I mean it's been used as an anaesthetic for donkey's years
0:09:02 > 0:09:06without any problems.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09bladder disease may be just the tip of the iceberg
0:09:09 > 0:09:12in getting pensioner-type problems.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21I'm going to meet 29-year-old Dave from Bradford,
0:09:21 > 0:09:24who's been using ketamine for eight years
0:09:24 > 0:09:29and has noticed a disturbing deterioration in his memory.
0:09:29 > 0:09:31I'll always walk into a room to go and get something
0:09:31 > 0:09:33and then wonder why I've done it.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37Now, a lot of people go, "Oh, yeah, I do that all the time, brother "
0:09:37 > 0:09:38Trust me, it's not ALL the time -
0:09:38 > 0:09:41you usually remember what you've gone to get, right?
0:09:41 > 0:09:44When you're walking in and out there ten times...
0:09:44 > 0:09:45that's when you need to think,
0:09:45 > 0:09:48"OK, there's something not quite dancing right up there."
0:09:50 > 0:09:54Ketamine's main effect is to block a receptor in the brain
0:09:54 > 0:09:56known as the NMDA receptor,
0:09:56 > 0:10:01which is important for how we learn and respond to new experiences
0:10:01 > 0:10:04Although spread throughout the brain,
0:10:04 > 0:10:07these receptors are hugely concentrated in an area critical for memory,
0:10:07 > 0:10:11called the hippocampus.
0:10:11 > 0:10:14Taking lots of ketamine seriously interferes with this area,
0:10:14 > 0:10:17so causes memory loss.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20And it seems that in really heavy users,
0:10:20 > 0:10:24their memory can seem as bad as someone in early stages of dementia.
0:10:24 > 0:10:29This can continue even when they're not under the influence of ketamine.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32How much were you taking when it was at its peak?
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Well, I was going out each weekend pretty much.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37It'd be, "Oh, well, it's Sunday I'll chill out."
0:10:37 > 0:10:40You might have some left on a Monday so it's, like, "Oh, well .."
0:10:40 > 0:10:41And suddenly it's Wednesday
0:10:41 > 0:10:45and you're having a mid-week peak of the week, mid-week session,
0:10:45 > 0:10:46then it's Sunday again
0:10:46 > 0:10:48and you're, like, blooming heck what have I done?
0:10:48 > 0:10:51How d'you think it's affected your memory?
0:10:51 > 0:10:53This is it - you're asking me loads of questions about the past,
0:10:53 > 0:10:55and I'm trying to remember them
0:10:55 > 0:10:57It's mainly remembering to do certain tasks
0:10:57 > 0:10:59and my vocabulary.
0:10:59 > 0:11:05Speaking fluently about a few things.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08It must be unbelievably frustrating if it's happening quite a lot.
0:11:08 > 0:11:11You start thinking you've got bloody Alzheimer's or something.
0:11:11 > 0:11:13It's just not needed.
0:11:16 > 0:11:19Dave was first introduced to ketamine when he was 21
0:11:19 > 0:11:21and started going to raves.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25I remember coming to a party in these woods. A mental one!
0:11:25 > 0:11:28Huge speakers, everyone having a laugh.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32I was taking quite a bit - bit of buzz, bit of ket, bit of MD. .
0:11:32 > 0:11:33Stuff like that.
0:11:37 > 0:11:41But for Dave what started out as a bit of fun with friends
0:11:41 > 0:11:45soon turned into a serious addiction which took over his life.
0:11:45 > 0:11:51The effect that ketamine had on my life was quite traumatic.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55I couldn't get up, I couldn't go to work.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58I couldn't afford to run my car any more.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Fell out with my girlfriend.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04They were bad times, dark times
0:12:04 > 0:12:06Dave has now cut down on his ketamine use,
0:12:06 > 0:12:09but he hasn't given up completely.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12And he's going to have some memory tests to find out
0:12:12 > 0:12:15whether his continued use is ageing his brain.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18What are your biggest worries?
0:12:18 > 0:12:21If it's become a permanent thing.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24Then you've got to live with it for all your life,
0:12:24 > 0:12:25and I don't want that.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27I didn't sign up for it.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30Dave's far from the only young person who should be worrying.
0:12:30 > 0:12:34With ketamine having such a devastating effect on the body,
0:12:34 > 0:12:38I want to find out why it's still so popular.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45So I'm off to the place where it all started for Dave -
0:12:45 > 0:12:47a free party.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50How it works is that you go on a website
0:12:50 > 0:12:54and you find out where it is the night of the party.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57So I should be finding out in the next 15 minutes.
0:12:57 > 0:13:02All I know is that it's in a London secret forest within the M25.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12Oh, hooray. They've posted the number up.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16'Hello, this is the TriptoNarnia party line,
0:13:16 > 0:13:20'the postcode for tonight's party is N18...
0:13:20 > 0:13:23'This is an Alice In Wonderland fancy dress party,
0:13:23 > 0:13:25'so get your costumes out.'
0:13:25 > 0:13:28So I've now got to find an Alice In Wonderland costume
0:13:28 > 0:13:31to wear to a party in the middle of a forest
0:13:31 > 0:13:33where there will probably be lots of people taking drugs.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36This is all becoming rather surreal.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38Finished my make-up, got my outfit.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42I wonder if I'm the first pregnant Mad Hatter
0:13:42 > 0:13:46to go to a party in a wood, I hope so.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51It's 15 years since I last went to a rave,
0:13:51 > 0:13:54so I really don't know quite what to expect.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58I'm just really intrigued to find out what people are taking,
0:13:58 > 0:14:00why they're taking it,
0:14:00 > 0:14:03and whether they worry about what it's doing to their bodies.
0:14:11 > 0:14:13Why do you take drugs? We don't do this
0:14:13 > 0:14:14because we're bad kids, we do this
0:14:14 > 0:14:17because we want to express ourselves,
0:14:17 > 0:14:19and that right there is expression.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22Do you worry about the health consequences?
0:14:22 > 0:14:24Of course, there are health consequences,
0:14:24 > 0:14:26but...worry about them later.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31So the general consensus seems to be live for today
0:14:31 > 0:14:34and worry about the health consequences tomorrow.
0:14:35 > 0:14:38But what amazes me is that some people believe that if you
0:14:38 > 0:14:42choose the right drug, there won't even be any health consequences
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Do you think weed is actually quite safe? Yeah.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47I would protest for it to be legalised
0:14:47 > 0:14:50because I believe it is so much of a lesser threat than alcohol
0:14:50 > 0:14:53and cigarettes - even cigarettes, I would think, are much worse.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57# Everything that kills me makes me feel alive... #
0:14:57 > 0:15:01So what exactly does the happy stick do to our lungs?
0:15:01 > 0:15:06I've come to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle to find out
0:15:06 > 0:15:14from respiratory expert Dr Graham Burns.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18it's herbal, it's not going to damage your lungs
0:15:18 > 0:15:20in the same way as cigarettes.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22People are fooling themselves if they think that.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25Patients have come through this department,
0:15:25 > 0:15:27they've smoked very little in the way of cigarettes,
0:15:27 > 0:15:30but they've smoked cannabis, young people we're talking about,
0:15:30 > 0:15:34people in their 20s, and they have got the lungs of an old man.
0:15:34 > 0:15:39So actually, the cannabis is producing the same type
0:15:39 > 0:15:42of negative consequences, but accelerated?
0:15:42 > 0:15:43That's how it seems to be.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46I've seen a young person of 25
0:15:46 > 0:15:52they'd smoked cannabis for a matter of seven years or so, and they had
0:15:52 > 0:15:57almost totally destroyed lungs whole areas of the lung, literally
0:15:57 > 0:16:02half of the lung just gone, empty space within their body cavity
0:16:02 > 0:16:04So it had gone, it had dissolved?
0:16:04 > 0:16:08Yeah, it was eaten away by the effects of the drug.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11Oh, my God, that is horrendous
0:16:11 > 0:16:15And Dr Burns has even got some pictures to prove it.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17The CT scan gives you a picture
0:16:17 > 0:16:19as if you've been through a bacon slicer.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22First of all, this is a picture of perfectly healthy lungs.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25The little white lines you see are the blood vessels running through
0:16:25 > 0:16:31the lungs, but if I move on and show you emphysema,
0:16:31 > 0:16:36it can be as dramatic as that. Oh, my God, that's severe.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39That's a big area of nothingness, empty space.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42So, it's just gone, the lung has gone.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45And even if that individual stops smoking now,
0:16:45 > 0:16:47that will never return, that's permanent.
0:16:47 > 0:16:51'Emphysema is a form of chronic lung disease,
0:16:51 > 0:16:55'and one of the biggest causes is a lifetime of smoking cigarettes.
0:16:55 > 0:16:56'To see signs of it in
0:16:56 > 0:17:01'a cannabis smoker in their 20s is truly shocking.'
0:17:01 > 0:17:04I'm so misinformed about cannabis.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07I've always heard that it's not that bad,
0:17:07 > 0:17:15but actually, what I've heard from the doctor is that it is just
0:17:15 > 0:17:22In fact, according to the British Lung Foundation,
0:17:22 > 0:17:24for every joint smoked than every cigarette.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28The fact that 80% of the cannabis sold on our streets is now
0:17:28 > 0:17:31super strength skunk could have a lot to do with it.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39Two people who have every reason to worry about their heavy
0:17:39 > 0:17:42cannabis use are 20-year old Chris from Southampton
0:17:42 > 0:17:46and 23-year-old Jodie from Blackburn.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49They've come to have some respiratory tests to find out
0:17:49 > 0:17:52just how old their lungs really are.
0:17:54 > 0:17:55Nice to meet you, I'm Cherry.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58'Jodie's been smoking cannabis since she was 12.'
0:18:00 > 0:18:01How much are you smoking right now?
0:18:01 > 0:18:05At the moment, twice a week, maybe ?10 a night.
0:18:05 > 0:18:10?10 in cash? Yeah. And how much did you used to smoke?
0:18:10 > 0:18:14I could smoke anything up to ?20 a night,
0:18:14 > 0:18:17smoking maybe an ounce in a fortnight.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19So that's hundreds of pounds a week.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23I worked it out, it was just over ?300 a month.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29Jodie has been surrounded by drugs all her life.
0:18:32 > 0:18:36When she was growing up, her mum, Rachel, was addicted to heroin
0:18:36 > 0:18:41and Jodie found herself having to look after her two younger sisters.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44Being a mum at the age of six to two newborn babies,
0:18:44 > 0:18:47it never gave me the chance to be a child.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50She didn't tell me that's what I had to do,
0:18:50 > 0:18:53she didn't say, "Right you're going to look after the kids,"
0:18:53 > 0:18:54but because she was away with the drugs,
0:18:54 > 0:18:58she didn't automatically pick up the role of being a mother,
0:18:58 > 0:19:01so it was like, there's this gap that needs filling.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07I felt horrendously guilty, because I didn't treat her as a child,
0:19:07 > 0:19:09it wasn't a mother and daughter relationship.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12She was like my right-hand man
0:19:12 > 0:19:19Jodie's mum has now been clean for years.
0:19:19 > 0:19:27It was seeing her lights go out she wasn't Jodie,
0:19:27 > 0:19:30drugs just seemed to, they took the shine off her.
0:19:32 > 0:19:37Can you open it? Can you do it Big boy! Come on, then. Yay!
0:19:37 > 0:19:40Jodie now has a child of her own,
0:19:40 > 0:19:43and she doesn't want to treat him the way her mum treated her.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51I've never had that proper relationship with my mum.
0:19:51 > 0:19:56I think because ours was so broken, I'm trying to relive ours
0:19:56 > 0:20:00and make sure I don't make the same mistakes as her, through my son
0:20:00 > 0:20:03Sorry, I'm getting a bit upset
0:20:08 > 0:20:11My mum, she had a physical addiction to heroin.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14All this while, I've been saying to my mum, "How dare you,"
0:20:14 > 0:20:16you know, "You've ruined my life."
0:20:16 > 0:20:21And then I look at him and think, "I'm doing exactly the same."
0:20:28 > 0:20:30'Jodie's not only suffered severe depression
0:20:30 > 0:20:34'and paranoia from her cannabis use, but she's also worried about
0:20:34 > 0:20:36'what the drug is doing to her physically.'
0:20:36 > 0:20:38You can't go any higher than that!
0:20:38 > 0:20:41I do really get out of breath sometimes
0:20:41 > 0:20:43when I'm playing with my son, and it does make me worry about what damage
0:20:43 > 0:20:48I've actually done to my lungs smoking fags and using cannabis
0:20:48 > 0:20:52I find myself walking a long distance, even just round the town,
0:20:52 > 0:20:55shopping, I start getting out of breath and find I need to sit down.
0:20:55 > 0:21:00These are symptoms you'd expect to find in an elderly patient
0:21:00 > 0:21:05with emphysema or lung cancer, not in an otherwise healthy 23-year old.
0:21:09 > 0:21:14Someone even younger whose lungs are suffering is 20-year-old Chris.
0:21:16 > 0:21:23He's been smoking cannabis from an incredibly early age.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26act and run around like a normal 20-year-old, that's for sure.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28I would say that in my own body
0:21:28 > 0:21:30I could feel anywhere from 40 to 80 years old.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34When did you first have a spliff?
0:21:34 > 0:21:37I was 13 when I first started smoking.
0:21:37 > 0:21:43It was a friend's mum who turned round and... What, a mum?! Yeah
0:21:43 > 0:21:46She came back with a bong in hand and asked me if I wanted one.
0:21:46 > 0:21:53So, what? At 13, you went from your first spliff to doing a bong?
0:21:53 > 0:21:58Yeah, that was it, and that's how it all really started.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01Chris had to leave his life in Southampton behind
0:22:01 > 0:22:03when his cannabis use spiralled out of control.
0:22:05 > 0:22:09And this is the first time he's been back to his drug-taking hang-out
0:22:09 > 0:22:11since he gave up, 13 months ago
0:22:13 > 0:22:17This park was a massive part of my addiction and my using.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20We used to come down on the weekends, somebody would be like,
0:22:20 > 0:22:23"Oh I've got a tenner, we'll go down, we'll get a smoke,"
0:22:23 > 0:22:25the drugs would arrive, we'd start using, we'd start
0:22:25 > 0:22:27smoking, we'd start drinking
0:22:27 > 0:22:30and we'd be passing around joint after joint, time after time.
0:22:32 > 0:22:37But for Chris and his friends, the highs came with serious lows.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40I was smoking crack. Were you? Fuck, man!
0:22:40 > 0:22:42And are you off that shit now? Yeah.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45I'm only 19 years old, I started when I was 17.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47I've collapsed a couple of times,
0:22:47 > 0:22:50I've been rushed into hospital cos I had a stroke.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52And that's what scared me the most,
0:22:52 > 0:22:54cos I thought about it, 19 years old,
0:22:54 > 0:22:59and when I was 18 at the time, I had a minor stroke and they said
0:22:59 > 0:23:00to me, "You need to get off the stuff,
0:23:00 > 0:23:04"or you're going to have a heart attack." And that scared me.
0:23:06 > 0:23:10Chris's drug use also got out of hand.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13He went from spliffs and bongs to legal highs and pills.
0:23:13 > 0:23:17He wasn't eating, he wasn't sleeping.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19And he went down to seven stone
0:23:24 > 0:23:26Chris eventually sought help for his addiction
0:23:26 > 0:23:30at Castle Craig rehab centre in Scotland.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33I was the youngest here in the intensive care unit
0:23:33 > 0:23:39and the oldest was well above me.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43One night during a thunderstorm I cried my eyes out in bed
0:23:43 > 0:23:46and I got out a piece of paper
0:23:46 > 0:23:49and I wrote as large as I could on that piece of paper,
0:23:49 > 0:23:51"I just want to live."
0:23:53 > 0:23:55Chris has now put his demons behind him
0:23:55 > 0:23:58and hasn't touched a drug for 13 months.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04But he's terrified that, at the age of 20,
0:24:04 > 0:24:07he might have the lungs of an OAP.
0:24:07 > 0:24:14There was a time when I was smoking solid pot and I did have problems
0:24:14 > 0:24:19breathing and normal running about and things like that.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22It'll be interesting to see what happens
0:24:22 > 0:24:25then when Chris gets his lungs checked out.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33In London, ketamine user Dave is off to University College London
0:24:33 > 0:24:37to find out whether his memory is as bad as he thinks it is.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41'I've come along too, to meet
0:24:41 > 0:24:44'Professor of Psychopharmacology, Val Curran,
0:24:44 > 0:24:47'who's spent 12 years studying the effects of ketamine on our brains.'
0:24:47 > 0:24:51When somebody takes ketamine, which part of the brain is it affecting?
0:24:51 > 0:24:53What is going on?
0:24:53 > 0:24:56Well, like any drug, it affects several parts of the brain,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59but one of the major effects is that it impairs your memory
0:24:59 > 0:25:02And for someone who has taken it many times
0:25:02 > 0:25:07over a number of years, how bad does memory loss affect them?
0:25:07 > 0:25:11For those people who are using heavily, and that's mainly
0:25:11 > 0:25:14people who use every day and are probably addicted, then
0:25:14 > 0:25:19the memory loss will be quite marked and they would really have problems
0:25:19 > 0:25:22at school or at college, they'd have difficulty with exams,
0:25:22 > 0:25:24difficulty holding their jobs down.
0:25:24 > 0:25:33Dave was using ketamine every day
0:25:33 > 0:25:36I'm now going to give you 60 seconds to say as many
0:25:36 > 0:25:40words as you can think of that begin with the letter F.
0:25:42 > 0:25:43Foxtrot.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46Um...
0:25:48 > 0:25:50Freddy.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55Fantastic.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Val and her team have discovered that young ketamine users
0:25:58 > 0:26:03often have trouble recalling names, words and conversations.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06These are all common signs of dementia in old people,
0:26:06 > 0:26:11and not symptoms you'd expect to see in someone in their 20s.
0:26:13 > 0:26:14I'm going to give you a category,
0:26:14 > 0:26:18so the category is fruit, try not to repeat the same word
0:26:18 > 0:26:20Orange, apple, banana...
0:26:20 > 0:26:25er, strawberries, blueberries,
0:26:25 > 0:26:27blackberry, blueberry...
0:26:27 > 0:26:29Can't think of anything else.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33OK, that's it, that's great, thanks.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37That was interesting, because when you were trying to retrieve
0:26:37 > 0:26:40all the names of fruit that you knew,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43the thing that really stood out was that you repeated yourself a lot.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47And then, when it was just trying to say words beginning with
0:26:47 > 0:26:51the letter F, so, that's more to do with the sound memory,
0:26:51 > 0:26:54what happened then when you just went blank?
0:26:54 > 0:26:56I couldn't think of anything. OK.
0:26:56 > 0:27:00We find that people who do a lot of ketamine often find that
0:27:00 > 0:27:02task really hard. Right.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05Do you think that Dave's ketamine use has affected his brain?
0:27:05 > 0:27:08He's got a slight problem with trying to bring memories back,
0:27:08 > 0:27:10to retrieve memories.
0:27:10 > 0:27:12I would expect someone as intelligent as Dave
0:27:12 > 0:27:15to maybe do a bit better on that task.
0:27:15 > 0:27:16We've done a lot of research
0:27:16 > 0:27:18over the last 14 years with ketamine users.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22And the guys who come and do research with us
0:27:22 > 0:27:25who have given up for at least a year,
0:27:25 > 0:27:28they seem to do as well as people who have not done
0:27:28 > 0:27:32bucketloads of ketamine. So, that's kind of hopeful.
0:27:32 > 0:27:35'So, if Dave gave up the ketamine completely,
0:27:35 > 0:27:37'his memory could go back to normal.
0:27:37 > 0:27:41'But is he ready to say goodbye to it for good?'
0:27:41 > 0:27:44How often do you do it now?
0:27:44 > 0:27:47Don't know. Honestly. Probably, right...
0:27:47 > 0:27:53It'd be once a month, maybe. Maybe a bit more sometimes.
0:27:53 > 0:27:57Now that you know that there is likely to have been some effect
0:27:57 > 0:28:02on your brain from the ketamine do you think you can stop, that's it?
0:28:02 > 0:28:05I have stopped. But you haven't.
0:28:05 > 0:28:07I have, right...
0:28:07 > 0:28:10I don't need to take that product,
0:28:10 > 0:28:12I take it when I want to take it.
0:28:12 > 0:28:14Need's a necessity and want's a desire.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21Something tells me Dave isn't ready to give it up completely.
0:28:21 > 0:28:25But if he doesn't, his memory loss may well get worse.
0:28:27 > 0:28:32Last year in the UK, 12,000 people were admitted to hospital
0:28:32 > 0:28:34with drug-related health problems.
0:28:34 > 0:28:38And a quarter of these were in their teens or twenties
0:28:38 > 0:28:42One person who knows only too well how frightening this can be,
0:28:42 > 0:28:45is 28-year-old ex-cocaine addict Vicky, from Halifax.
0:28:47 > 0:28:48I went on quite a bad binge,
0:28:48 > 0:28:52where I'd been up for five or six days...and I got that bad
0:28:52 > 0:28:56chest pains that I rang a taxi and they took me to hospital.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59I went really spaced out and then I started getting palpitations
0:28:59 > 0:29:03and chest pains, and my heart rate kept speeding up.
0:29:03 > 0:29:05I thought I was having a heart attack.
0:29:07 > 0:29:11Cocaine gives the heart a massive injection of adrenaline,
0:29:11 > 0:29:15which causes heart rate and blood pressure to shoot up.
0:29:15 > 0:29:19At the same time it causes the arteries supplying the heart
0:29:19 > 0:29:21with blood to narrow down.
0:29:21 > 0:29:23This disrupts the blood flow to the heart
0:29:23 > 0:29:25and can cause heart attacks,
0:29:25 > 0:29:28where part of the heart muscle dies,
0:29:28 > 0:29:32or fatal rhythm disorders where the heart stops beating.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35Vicky was told by doctors at the hospital that she wasn't having
0:29:35 > 0:29:40a heart attack, but her heart was beating at twice its normal rate.
0:29:40 > 0:29:44And she was put on beta blockers, a heart medicine usually prescribed
0:29:44 > 0:29:48for people in their 70s or 80s with high blood pressure or angina.
0:29:49 > 0:29:52My mum - she's on beta blockers and I thought how come
0:29:52 > 0:29:56me mum's taking them and I'm taking them as well and I'm in my 20s
0:29:59 > 0:30:01Are you Vicky? I'm Cherry.
0:30:03 > 0:30:06'Vicky was introduced to drugs at 14, when she had her first joint.
0:30:06 > 0:30:10'And it didn't take long for things to progress.'
0:30:10 > 0:30:1316 is when I started taking pills and cocaine and things.
0:30:13 > 0:30:19It took two years, and I were smoking crack as well.
0:30:19 > 0:30:22Smoking crack? Mm. How did that happen?
0:30:22 > 0:30:25I just started getting in with the wrong crowd
0:30:25 > 0:30:27and I were kicked out of home at 16 and had my own flat,
0:30:27 > 0:30:31a bedsit, and it just became a party house.
0:30:31 > 0:30:34Run me through a typical night out.
0:30:34 > 0:30:36I'd start with like a gram of coke getting ready,
0:30:36 > 0:30:40then go into town and buy more coke, probably another two gram,
0:30:40 > 0:30:43then go to a club, whatever I could get me hands on there,
0:30:43 > 0:30:48pills. I'd take up to ten pills a night, ten Es on top of the coke.
0:30:49 > 0:30:52You took ten pills in one night
0:30:52 > 0:30:55Yeah - in the space of a night How are you not dead?!
0:30:58 > 0:31:00I feel a bit overwhelmed to be honest...
0:31:00 > 0:31:03The amount of drugs
0:31:03 > 0:31:05that Vicky took, what she put her body through,
0:31:05 > 0:31:08it's quite hard to comprehend.
0:31:08 > 0:31:11To go from smoking a joint to doing
0:31:11 > 0:31:15crack in two years and just think it was a laugh.
0:31:18 > 0:31:20I just worry so much about what she's done to her body
0:31:20 > 0:31:23and I hope that she's stopped in time.
0:31:26 > 0:31:28An hour after cocaine is used,
0:31:28 > 0:31:36the risk of a heart attack rises 24-fold and a quarter of
0:31:36 > 0:31:37are prompted by cocaine.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39To make matters worse,
0:31:39 > 0:31:43the cocaine you buy on the street is laced with all sorts of things
0:31:43 > 0:31:47you really wouldn't want to be putting up your nose.
0:31:47 > 0:31:51Having tested over 29,000 different drugs in his London lab,
0:31:51 > 0:31:54Dr John has some frightening facts.
0:31:57 > 0:32:00How pure is the coke that's sold on the street?
0:32:00 > 0:32:05It's round about 20% on average but it can be as low as 2 or 3%
0:32:05 > 0:32:09It's cut principally with Benzocaine, that's the commonest diluent.
0:32:09 > 0:32:10What is Benzocaine?
0:32:10 > 0:32:14Benzocaine's a local anaesthetic, so it's used in things like this
0:32:14 > 0:32:16genital itching cream.
0:32:16 > 0:32:17That's really not nice.
0:32:17 > 0:32:20It's also used in some forms of condom,
0:32:20 > 0:32:24because it's a local anaesthetic it can delay ejaculation.
0:32:24 > 0:32:26What else is it mixed with?
0:32:26 > 0:32:30It's also cut with caffeine, which of course we find in coffee
0:32:30 > 0:32:31and in some tablets.
0:32:31 > 0:32:32Like caffeine tablets.
0:32:32 > 0:32:34Yes, and a gram of caffeine
0:32:34 > 0:32:38if you snort that can actually put you in hospital.
0:32:38 > 0:32:39Why would it put you in hospital?
0:32:39 > 0:32:42If you drink too much coffee you know you get jittery
0:32:42 > 0:32:45and get headaches, well, just imagine that multiplied by ten or 100.
0:32:45 > 0:32:49Anything else it's mixed with? Boric acid for example.
0:32:49 > 0:32:50That doesn't sound very nice.
0:32:50 > 0:32:55Boric acid is used in cockroach killer, for example. Oh, my God
0:32:55 > 0:32:59"If mistakenly taken, seek medical advice immediately "
0:32:59 > 0:33:00that doesn't sound fun.
0:33:00 > 0:33:04So you don't really know what you're putting up your nose and into your bloodstream.
0:33:04 > 0:33:08Absolutely no idea at all. Could be cockroach killer.
0:33:08 > 0:33:09Could be.
0:33:11 > 0:33:14Vicky's prolonged cocaine use has caused symptoms you'd usually
0:33:14 > 0:33:18associate with someone three times her age.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21I'd get out of breath walking to the shop, you know, like a 90-year-old woman or something
0:33:21 > 0:33:24I was coughing up blood, I was getting water infections
0:33:24 > 0:33:29passing blood, and I just thought you are killing yourself here.
0:33:29 > 0:33:32Vicky's still experiencing palpitations,
0:33:32 > 0:33:42and she's terrified she may have caused lasting damage to her heart.
0:33:44 > 0:33:48Back in Newcastle it's the moment of truth for cannabis smokers
0:33:48 > 0:33:51Jodie and Chris - who are about to have their lungs tested.
0:33:56 > 0:33:59The tests will measure two areas of Chris and Jodie's lungs.
0:34:00 > 0:34:04I want you to pretend like you're blowing a massive balloon up.
0:34:04 > 0:34:06Take a really deep breath in, tube in, push!
0:34:06 > 0:34:09The spirometer measures how tight the air tubes are,
0:34:09 > 0:34:13whether the air tubes are wide open as they should be, or have become
0:34:13 > 0:34:15narrow because of disease.
0:34:15 > 0:34:18Push it right across the page! Fantastic.
0:34:18 > 0:34:21OK, get your breath back. JODIE LAUGHS
0:34:21 > 0:34:22And blow...
0:34:22 > 0:34:26This test here, measures the business end of the lung, deep into
0:34:26 > 0:34:29the lungs, where the oxygen gets taken up into the blood.
0:34:29 > 0:34:31Round, blast it! That's right.
0:34:31 > 0:34:33Right out, right out, right out
0:34:33 > 0:34:37Keep going, keep going, keep going. Fantastic, well done, Chris.
0:34:37 > 0:34:39What's happening, what do you feel? You're bending over.
0:34:39 > 0:34:43Yeah, my lungs feel like they're actually collapsing.
0:34:43 > 0:34:47It looks like Chris's lungs are not in very good shape.
0:34:47 > 0:34:50It seems to be an example of different bodies being able
0:34:50 > 0:34:52to cope with different levels.
0:34:52 > 0:34:54Big deep breath!
0:34:54 > 0:34:59He was able to blow half as hard as Jodie.
0:34:59 > 0:35:01Well done, brilliant.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03Get your breath back.
0:35:06 > 0:35:08SHE MOUTHS
0:35:08 > 0:35:11Are you all right, hon? Yeah. Sure? Yep.
0:35:11 > 0:35:15Give me a second, I'll get my balance back. Are you OK? Yeah.
0:35:15 > 0:35:20Why when you say "yeah", do I hear "no, that was really horrible"
0:35:20 > 0:35:24No. It wasn't horrible, it was just very uncomfortable and I
0:35:24 > 0:35:28didn't expect to feel like my lungs were collapsing on themselves.
0:35:28 > 0:35:32It doesn't inspire confidence in a positive test result - to be honest.
0:35:32 > 0:35:41Time for the results and I've got everything crossed for Chris. But if
0:35:41 > 0:35:43Nice to see you. Come through..
0:35:48 > 0:35:49You've been worried about these
0:35:49 > 0:35:52because you've been smoking cannabis, is that right?
0:35:54 > 0:35:57I've had periods of smoking at least 20 a day, if not more.
0:35:59 > 0:36:01Well, for you the breathing tests are what
0:36:01 > 0:36:05we would say in the normal range.
0:36:08 > 0:36:12So it's a positive, take that as a positive.
0:36:12 > 0:36:17I really just can't explain how much of a shock this is.
0:36:17 > 0:36:18You weren't expecting that?
0:36:18 > 0:36:21I'm so relieved, I don't know about you but I'm so relieved.
0:36:21 > 0:36:24So this is kind of saying at the tender age of 20 we've got away
0:36:24 > 0:36:28with it in terms of the lungs, but this gives us no guarantees that the
0:36:28 > 0:36:32cannabis and the cigarettes aren't wreaking damage everywhere else
0:36:32 > 0:36:35Whilst your lungs are saying OK so far,
0:36:35 > 0:36:39now's the time to say that's it finished. Exactly.
0:36:39 > 0:36:44I'm so happy for you, that is just the best news.
0:36:46 > 0:36:49I'm just in a bit of shock. I know, I know.
0:36:50 > 0:36:57I'm absolutely over the moon for him that it's OK, and I think
0:36:57 > 0:37:01so encouraging for him to keep going in the direction he's going in
0:37:03 > 0:37:07Now I'm just really hoping that Jodie gets some good news too.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11The air tubes themselves are relatively normal,
0:37:11 > 0:37:15close to normal and that's good
0:37:17 > 0:37:19When we look at how the lungs are working
0:37:19 > 0:37:24deep on the inside or how the lungs are handling the oxygen that's being
0:37:24 > 0:37:27delivered we have seen some damage there...
0:37:31 > 0:37:33..which is almost certainly
0:37:33 > 0:37:37related to either cigarette smoking or cannabis smoking.
0:37:40 > 0:37:47Yeah, that's quite shocking.
0:37:47 > 0:37:49Quite shocking.
0:37:51 > 0:37:53I really didn't think I'd done any damage.
0:37:56 > 0:37:59Let me tell you what will happen if you continue to smoke.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02You'll get to the point where simply walking down the street, just
0:38:02 > 0:38:05occasionally you'll have to stop to catch your breath
0:38:05 > 0:38:08a little bit, if you continue to smoke after that you won't
0:38:08 > 0:38:11get as far as the corner shop.
0:38:11 > 0:38:13And if you continue to smoke
0:38:13 > 0:38:17after that - the front door of your house is the limit of your world.
0:38:17 > 0:38:20Now, that's not living, that's not a life.
0:38:25 > 0:38:28I'm afraid the lung won't repair, the lung is permanently damaged
0:38:28 > 0:38:30But this is damage that you can carry
0:38:30 > 0:38:34and you will hopefully have a long and prosperous life,
0:38:34 > 0:38:40but you need to stop now because time will run out. Yeah
0:38:40 > 0:38:41Time will run out.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44Definitely. That's it.
0:38:47 > 0:38:51I thought it was just going to be a bit of damage and just
0:38:51 > 0:38:55brush it off, but I've gone a bit trembly and a bit blown away by it.
0:38:55 > 0:38:59It's not repairable, but from here onwards it's...
0:38:59 > 0:39:03You can stop damaging it any further.
0:39:03 > 0:39:06D'you think you can stop the cannabis?
0:39:06 > 0:39:09Yeah, it's just going to take a hell of a lot of willpower.
0:39:09 > 0:39:13But you've caught it really early, most people wait
0:39:13 > 0:39:16until they are really unwell before they see somebody. Yeah
0:39:21 > 0:39:23That was quite hard to hear, wasn't it? Yeah.
0:39:23 > 0:39:27I'm really sad that Jodie's had the news that she's got damage
0:39:27 > 0:39:32to the lungs, but at the same time I'm really happy that she's caught
0:39:32 > 0:39:37it this early, that - if she stops smoking now -
0:39:37 > 0:39:39it's not going to be fatal.
0:39:40 > 0:39:44But Jodie will have to live with damaged lungs for the rest of her life.
0:39:44 > 0:39:51It just really hurt knowing that inside I have damaged a vital organ.
0:39:51 > 0:39:55Your lungs are what make you breathe, they keep you living,
0:39:55 > 0:40:00so to know that I've damaged that is worrying, really worrying.
0:40:02 > 0:40:05Play with the balls!
0:40:05 > 0:40:07I've already done a bit of damage to my lungs now,
0:40:07 > 0:40:10if I chose to carry on, by the time I'm 30 and Kivor's ten,
0:40:10 > 0:40:13he'll be at that age where he wants to play football,
0:40:13 > 0:40:16he'll be doing school activities and sports days and stuff,
0:40:16 > 0:40:19I don't want to be that parent that's, "Oh, God, I can't..."
0:40:19 > 0:40:24Passing out, can't take him to the park to play football, all because I smoke.
0:40:25 > 0:40:29The lung tests have clearly been a wake-up call for Jodie.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32Her challenge now is to try and stay off cannabis to avoid
0:40:32 > 0:40:35ageing her lungs even further.
0:40:35 > 0:40:39While cannabis can cause irreparable damage to young people's lungs
0:40:39 > 0:40:43cocaine is the drug that can play havoc with your heart.
0:40:43 > 0:40:48In fact it is the most common cause of chest pains in people under 0.
0:40:49 > 0:40:5328-year-old ex-cocaine addict Vicky has come to London to get her
0:40:53 > 0:40:55heart tested.
0:40:55 > 0:40:58Nervous and scared, really. Really frightened.
0:40:58 > 0:41:00All right. Well, I'll be there for you.
0:41:00 > 0:41:06She's seeing by cardiologist Dr Dymond, who I'm hoping will tell me why cocaine is
0:41:06 > 0:41:08so bad for our hearts.
0:41:09 > 0:41:10Of all the drugs
0:41:10 > 0:41:13does cocaine affect the heart the most dramatically?
0:41:13 > 0:41:17Yes, of all the recreational drugs cocaine is the one that
0:41:17 > 0:41:20causes the most admissions
0:41:20 > 0:41:23to accident and emergency departments around the world,
0:41:23 > 0:41:28it's the one that has the most implications in people dying suddenly from heart disease.
0:41:28 > 0:41:30Does cocaine age a person's heart?
0:41:30 > 0:41:34It makes it behave like a much older heart, yes.
0:41:34 > 0:41:38It promotes narrowing of the arteries, in someone
0:41:38 > 0:41:42who's 25 or 30, which they wouldn't have got until much much later
0:41:42 > 0:41:44if ever, if they hadn't used cocaine.
0:41:44 > 0:41:53Cocaine can also cause blood clots, furred up arteries, an enlarged
0:41:53 > 0:41:56Heart attacks due to cocaine are one of the most common
0:41:56 > 0:41:59causes of sudden death in young people.
0:41:59 > 0:42:01MONITOR FLATLINES
0:42:02 > 0:42:06If somebody has symptoms of having taken cocaine, chest pains,
0:42:06 > 0:42:11heart problems and then they stop, can they fully recover?
0:42:11 > 0:42:16Yes, they can, and young people who haven't got widespread
0:42:16 > 0:42:20vascular disease that somebody in their 50s, 60s or 70s may have,
0:42:20 > 0:42:23they may well recover completely with no ill effects.
0:42:23 > 0:42:26Let's hope that Vicky is one of the lucky ones.
0:42:28 > 0:42:32Her body has taken a serious beating after all those years of drug abuse.
0:42:32 > 0:42:35Is she past the point of no return?
0:42:35 > 0:42:38What I need you to do is to turn onto your left-hand side
0:42:38 > 0:42:40so you're facing that direction Mm-hm.
0:42:40 > 0:42:45And as you turn over, just slip your left arm out of the sleeve for me.
0:42:45 > 0:42:46Ready? Here we go.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48Vicky is going to have an echocardiogram,
0:42:48 > 0:42:51which will show the structure of her heart and heart valves,
0:42:51 > 0:42:55providing an insight into how well it's functioning.
0:42:55 > 0:42:58What we're particularly interested in in Vicky's case
0:42:58 > 0:43:00is how well this chamber, the left ventricle,
0:43:00 > 0:43:02is contracting and relaxing.
0:43:02 > 0:43:04You can see it moving in with each heartbeat
0:43:04 > 0:43:06and out between heartbeats.
0:43:06 > 0:43:10Those palpitations that you have may be related to cocaine,
0:43:10 > 0:43:12cos it can cause rhythm disorders where the heart
0:43:12 > 0:43:16beats much too fast, and that can cause people to black out
0:43:16 > 0:43:18and lose consciousness, or even, God forbid, die.
0:43:18 > 0:43:20You know when you're taking drugs you don't really
0:43:20 > 0:43:23think about the consequences, you don't think about
0:43:23 > 0:43:26the consequences at all, especially of your body.
0:43:26 > 0:43:31But you see, you're in the age group where heart problems that arise
0:43:31 > 0:43:34may well be due to using cocaine,
0:43:34 > 0:43:38because under normal circumstances a young woman of 28,
0:43:38 > 0:43:40we wouldn't see anyone getting heart problems,
0:43:40 > 0:43:43or at least artery problems at the age of 28.
0:43:44 > 0:43:47It's the moment of truth for Vicky.
0:43:47 > 0:43:58After 12 years of heavy cocaine abuse,
0:43:58 > 0:44:01The heart muscle is contracting very strongly.
0:44:01 > 0:44:04I can't see any areas of the heart that are weak.
0:44:04 > 0:44:06It all looks all right, I'm glad to say.
0:44:07 > 0:44:11Well done. Thank you. Thank you very much.
0:44:11 > 0:44:14I'm very happy for you. That is really good news.
0:44:14 > 0:44:17I feel relieved.
0:44:17 > 0:44:20Whatever your chest pains were
0:44:20 > 0:44:23they haven't done any obvious, large amounts of damage
0:44:23 > 0:44:25to your heart muscle.
0:44:25 > 0:44:27'That is such a relief.
0:44:27 > 0:44:31'And I've got to say, this girl must be made of strong stuff!
0:44:31 > 0:44:33'But Vicky's not quite out of the woods yet.'
0:44:35 > 0:44:40We still don't know what's caused your chest pains and you've been
0:44:40 > 0:44:44a cigarette smoker and a cocaine user, so the chances of you having
0:44:44 > 0:44:49older arteries than you should have would be higher than we would like.
0:44:49 > 0:44:50Right. I'm going to wag my finger at you.
0:44:50 > 0:44:52You're not going to start again, are you?
0:44:52 > 0:44:57No, I'm not. Keep well. Thank you, I will do.
0:44:57 > 0:44:59Do you think that the results of that
0:44:59 > 0:45:01will encourage you to look after yourself?
0:45:01 > 0:45:03Yeah, of course it will.
0:45:03 > 0:45:05I've never really thought about damaging my insides before
0:45:05 > 0:45:09but now I know it's only probably one more drug away.
0:45:10 > 0:45:14I mean, who's to say just cos it's come out that it was OK today,
0:45:14 > 0:45:17who's to say next time I use a drug it's not going to be?
0:45:17 > 0:45:18And that's really opened my eyes,
0:45:18 > 0:45:20that the next drug could really kill you.
0:45:22 > 0:45:25The medical profession are now well aware of the harm
0:45:25 > 0:45:27cocaine can do to the body.
0:45:27 > 0:45:30But there are hundreds of new drugs out there
0:45:30 > 0:45:32whose effects are still unknown
0:45:32 > 0:45:36And frighteningly, these drugs are legal.
0:45:36 > 0:45:39It's actually crazy how easy it is to buy legal highs.
0:45:39 > 0:45:45I've just typed into a search engine and loads of sites came up.
0:45:45 > 0:46:01This one, I mean, there's a massive list of products.
0:46:01 > 0:46:03if you're a young person.
0:46:03 > 0:46:05You don't need an ID, you just need a credit card,
0:46:05 > 0:46:07internet connection and an address.
0:46:09 > 0:46:13There are now 251 legal highs on the market,
0:46:13 > 0:46:15with a new one appearing every week.
0:46:15 > 0:46:17And young Brits have become
0:46:17 > 0:46:19the biggest consumers of them in Europe.
0:46:21 > 0:46:24But does anybody really know what's in these drugs,
0:46:24 > 0:46:28which are believed to be cooked up in illegal labs in China?
0:46:28 > 0:46:32If anybody knows, it'll be toxicologist Dr John.
0:46:32 > 0:46:34Have you tested lots of legal highs?
0:46:36 > 0:46:39We've analysed hundreds, probably even thousands,
0:46:39 > 0:46:42and they contain lots of different chemical compounds. I mean, we know
0:46:42 > 0:46:46precisely what the chemicals are but we don't know what the risks are.
0:46:46 > 0:46:50These are compounds that have never been used as drugs or never tested
0:46:50 > 0:46:54for safety, so the people who take them are effectively guinea pigs.
0:46:56 > 0:47:01Last year, 52 people died in the UK after taking legal highs
0:47:01 > 0:47:06and a staggering 6,500 were treated in hospital.
0:47:06 > 0:47:10The trouble is, even when drugs are banned, the chemists who make them
0:47:10 > 0:47:14just come up with a tweaked formula that hasn't been made illegal yet.
0:47:17 > 0:47:21How can we keep up with the products that are being made?
0:47:21 > 0:47:23I think the honest answer is we can't.
0:47:23 > 0:47:24They'll always be one step ahead of us.
0:47:24 > 0:47:27I mean, we can buy stuff from head shops, as you've done,
0:47:27 > 0:47:31we can buy stuff on the internet, we can look at club amnesty bins,
0:47:31 > 0:47:33we can go to music festivals.
0:47:33 > 0:47:35We can analyse and find the new compounds
0:47:35 > 0:47:38and as soon as we find them we can ban them,
0:47:38 > 0:47:41but if we do that it just spawns yet another batch.
0:47:41 > 0:47:43So what can we do to make sure people know
0:47:43 > 0:47:46that these are dangerous, or be protected from them?
0:47:46 > 0:47:50I think, in my view, we have to do something about the demand side.
0:47:50 > 0:47:52We just have to try and explain to kids
0:47:52 > 0:47:54that they're running too great a risk.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57If the demand isn't there, there's no market.
0:47:57 > 0:48:01One casualty of the legal high craze was Hester Stewart.
0:48:01 > 0:48:06At the age of 21, she had everything to live for.
0:48:06 > 0:48:09She was studying molecular medicine at Sussex University
0:48:09 > 0:48:11and had plans to become a surgeon.
0:48:11 > 0:48:15She was also a student mentor and a cheerleader.
0:48:15 > 0:48:16How did you guys meet Hester?
0:48:16 > 0:48:18We were all cheerleaders together.
0:48:18 > 0:48:22We were all in the same cheerleading squad at Sussex University.
0:48:22 > 0:48:24What was she like? She was amazing.
0:48:24 > 0:48:30She was... Bubbly, bright, so funny, always having a laugh together
0:48:30 > 0:48:34Hess and I were team blonde cos I had blonde hair at the time too,
0:48:34 > 0:48:36and we were side bases together
0:48:36 > 0:48:38which is a cheerleading stunt position
0:48:38 > 0:48:41where you have to be really in sync with the other person.
0:48:41 > 0:48:42Were you all quite close?
0:48:42 > 0:48:46Yeah. Hess was my best friend, Hess was like my other half.
0:48:48 > 0:48:49Tell me about the night she died.
0:48:49 > 0:48:52It was our end of season awards dinner for the cheer squad
0:48:52 > 0:48:55and the American football team that we cheered for, so it was, like
0:48:55 > 0:48:59a really big, grand night out and Hess had a really beautiful dress
0:48:59 > 0:49:01that she was so excited about wearing.
0:49:01 > 0:49:03We all sat down to dinner, and we'd all have drinks afterwards
0:49:03 > 0:49:06and sort of hang out, have some music.
0:49:07 > 0:49:10So what happened after the party?
0:49:10 > 0:49:13Hess went back to spend some time with a friend,
0:49:13 > 0:49:16and they hadn't had very much to drink that night, nobody had
0:49:16 > 0:49:19But he chose to take what was then a legal drug called GBL,
0:49:19 > 0:49:21and Hester only had half a dose
0:49:22 > 0:49:27She went to sleep and fell into a coma and never woke up.
0:49:31 > 0:49:34The following morning, two policemen arrived
0:49:34 > 0:49:36on the doorstep of Hester's mum Maryon.
0:49:39 > 0:49:43They asked to come in, and I said, "What have you got to tell me?
0:49:43 > 0:49:48And they just said it was Hester, and I said, "Is she alive?" And they said, "I'm sorry, no.
0:49:50 > 0:49:55I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. I don't know what to say. That's just..
0:49:55 > 0:50:03That's unbearably awful. It's the worst nightmare.
0:50:03 > 0:50:07'A combination of GBL and alcohol, both respiratory depressants,
0:50:07 > 0:50:11'had caused Hester to stop breathing and fall into a coma.'
0:50:14 > 0:50:18When I think about the hours that you put in to a child,
0:50:18 > 0:50:20your hopes for them, and...
0:50:21 > 0:50:24..to have that taken away from you.
0:50:24 > 0:50:27It is beyond devastating and I don't think...it's the wrong
0:50:27 > 0:50:33way round to lose a child, it's just not meant to happen that way.
0:50:34 > 0:50:37'Maryon's now set up a foundation to raise
0:50:37 > 0:50:39'awareness of the dangers of legal highs.'
0:50:41 > 0:50:44I couldn't let Hester die in vain
0:50:44 > 0:50:47and so I felt that I needed to campaign
0:50:47 > 0:50:53to get GBL banned at the time, and I just feel like every day
0:50:53 > 0:50:55the Angelus Foundation, which it's now called,
0:50:55 > 0:50:56is making a big difference
0:50:56 > 0:50:59and every day Hester is achieving her goal and saving lives.
0:51:01 > 0:51:03'GBL has now been made illegal
0:51:03 > 0:51:06'and possession can get you up to two years in prison.'
0:51:09 > 0:51:13But this is small comfort to those who've lost a much-loved
0:51:13 > 0:51:15family member and friend.
0:51:15 > 0:51:18In just one night...
0:51:19 > 0:51:23..one lapse of being careful,
0:51:23 > 0:51:29this incredible girl died, just gone.
0:51:29 > 0:51:35And now all that's left of her is some amazing memories, some. .
0:51:37 > 0:51:42..really devastated family and friends and a bench.
0:51:42 > 0:51:45When I see memorial benches I think of really old people.
0:51:48 > 0:51:51Acute respiratory failure usually happens in elderly patients
0:51:51 > 0:51:54hit by heart failure or lung disease.
0:51:54 > 0:52:00But Hester suffered it at just 1, from taking a drug with alcohol
0:52:07 > 0:52:10I'm going back to my trusted source Dr John
0:52:10 > 0:52:12to see what he can tell me.
0:52:13 > 0:52:15How strong is GBL?
0:52:15 > 0:52:19Most people call it G. It's an industrial solvent,
0:52:19 > 0:52:21so it can be used in lots of products.
0:52:21 > 0:52:23It's used in things like floor cleaners
0:52:23 > 0:52:29and nail varnish remover pads and it's sold as an alloy wheel cleaner.
0:52:29 > 0:52:33Why is it that if you take a lot of G you go into a coma,
0:52:33 > 0:52:35you become unconscious?
0:52:35 > 0:52:37It's just a central nervous system depressant,
0:52:37 > 0:52:39and if you take too much,
0:52:39 > 0:52:41it just depresses your nervous system
0:52:41 > 0:52:44to such an extent you become unconscious.
0:52:48 > 0:52:53Although now illegal, GBL is still very popular on London's gay scene.
0:52:59 > 0:53:03It's such a normal sight now to see people on dance floors
0:53:03 > 0:53:08in gay clubs just passed out, and, like, the medic room is always full
0:53:08 > 0:53:11and it's going as far as people are dying from this drug
0:53:11 > 0:53:14I've experienced friends that have passed out
0:53:14 > 0:53:17because they've done too much of it.
0:53:17 > 0:53:21Antidote, the UK's gay and lesbian drug and alcohol service,
0:53:21 > 0:53:25has reports of around 60 deaths since 2007
0:53:25 > 0:53:27that are probably down to G.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35It's predominantly used in the saunas
0:53:35 > 0:53:38and on the gay scene for sexual activity.
0:53:38 > 0:53:41It's a nice feeling, it's enjoyable,
0:53:41 > 0:53:43it's just fucking dangerous.
0:53:49 > 0:53:51There are so many different ways
0:53:51 > 0:53:54for young people to get completely smashed.
0:53:54 > 0:53:58There's a strange irony that,
0:53:58 > 0:54:00in trying to go out and have a wild and fun time,
0:54:00 > 0:54:06some of these young people are suffering
0:54:06 > 0:54:09lung and heart problems
0:54:09 > 0:54:12that pensioners normally have to deal with.
0:54:12 > 0:54:17It seems like a very high price to pay for a good time.
0:54:17 > 0:54:19Is it really worth it?
0:54:21 > 0:54:24But there does appear to be hope for those who can
0:54:24 > 0:54:27kick their drug-taking habit.
0:54:27 > 0:54:3128-year-old Vicky has now been clean for three months.
0:54:31 > 0:54:35Since going there and talking to Dr Dymond, it's really made me evaluate
0:54:35 > 0:54:39my life and it made me think that my heart is so important to me,
0:54:39 > 0:54:45and keeping it healthy is the way to live longer and to keep young.
0:54:51 > 0:54:53Why go out and purposely age yourself?
0:54:53 > 0:54:55There's people that are older
0:54:55 > 0:54:57that are trying to make themselves look younger,
0:54:57 > 0:54:59and the younger people are trying to age themselves,
0:54:59 > 0:55:02it just doesn't make sense, it's ridiculous.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05Vicky is now in treatment for her addiction at the Basement Project
0:55:05 > 0:55:08drug and alcohol service in Halifax.
0:55:09 > 0:55:12The Basement Project's been a really big part of me being clean.
0:55:12 > 0:55:17I think if it weren't for this place, I probably wouldn't be here today.
0:55:17 > 0:55:21Well, these are all to help you, if you stop drinking as well, you know.
0:55:23 > 0:55:24I know it's not easy, I've done it meself.
0:55:27 > 0:55:30But I was once like you, I didn't think I could stop.
0:55:30 > 0:55:32Oh, yeah, I were t'same, didn't wash me hair,
0:55:32 > 0:55:35never had any make-up on, I were terrible.
0:55:35 > 0:55:36I did it, you can do it.
0:55:43 > 0:55:46Since filming, Jodie has stopped smoking cannabis
0:55:46 > 0:55:48and has joined a gym.
0:55:50 > 0:55:53And she's spending more quality time with her son
0:55:53 > 0:55:54and her boyfriend Sean.
0:55:57 > 0:56:00Chris has moved to Romania to live with his dad.
0:56:00 > 0:56:04He's been clean for 18 months, and he attends online meetings
0:56:04 > 0:56:04every night to help him stay off the drugs.
0:56:08 > 0:56:14And Dave is still taking ketamine occasionally,
0:56:14 > 0:56:17on perhaps eventually giving up completely.
0:56:27 > 0:56:30Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd