Ecstasy

Pure Ecstasy is a white crystalline powder and is usually sold on the street in tablet form although it's getting more common to see it sold as powder. Known as ‘E’ for short, they come in all sorts of colours and some of them have pictures or logos stamped into them.

The effects take about half an hour to kick in and tend to last between 3 to 6 hours, followed by a gradual comedown. People have been known to take another E because they haven't come up, this may mean they have a double dose to deal with.

Many ecstasy related deaths are linked to the way ecstasy controls the body's temperature control mechanism and it is important to drink about a pint of water with each dose.

Using E has been linked to liver, kidney and heart problems as well as paranoia and depression.

Ecstasy is a Class A drug - illegal to have, give away or sell. Possession can get you up to seven years in jail. Supplying someone else with it can get you life and an unlimited fine. 

Cocaine

Coke is a white powder that's usually divided into lines on a smooth surface and snorted up the nose with a rolled up tenner or a straw. It can be smoked and is sometimes made into a solution and injected.

Perfectly fit, young people can have a fit or heart attack after taking too much coke and it is particularly dangerous for anybody with high blood pressure or a heart condition. Using it a lot makes people feel depressed and run down. People who use crack or coke regularly often develop serious problems with anxiety and paranoia. It is also very expensive to busy so on a student budget is worth avoiding.

Cocaine is a Class A drug - illegal to have, give away or sell. Possession can get you up to seven years in jail. Supplying someone else with it can get you life and an unlimited fine. 

Poppers

Poppers are small bottles of liquid chemicals called alkyl nitrites, which were originally used in medicine. Poppers are used by sniffing the vapours from the bottle, which dilate the blood vessels and allows more blood to get to the heart.

An initial head rush lasts a couple of minutes, although the effects don't last long and can leave people feeling sick, faint and weak, particularly if taken while dancing.

Poppers are toxic and can kill you if you swallow them

Amyl Nitrite is very rarely used in medicine these days but is controlled under the Medicines Act. Possession is not illegal but supply can be an offence.

LSD

LSD or Lysergic Acid Diethylamide is a hallucinogenic drug originally derived from ergot, a fungus found growing wild on rye and other grasses. It's commonly called acid. The experience is known as a trip and these trips can be good or bad. A bad trip is your worst nightmare come to life.

A trip can take from 20 minutes to an hour to start and usually lasts about 12 hours. Once it's started you can't stop it. And until you take a tab of acid you can't tell how strong it is or how it's going to affect you.

Acid has very random and sometimes very frightening effects. Trips feed off a person's imagination. One person can spend 12 hours in a very happy place while someone else who's bought the same stuff can spend 12 hours lost in their own fears and paranoia.

LSD is a Class A drug - illegal to have, give away or sell. Possession can get you up to seven years in jail. Supplying someone else with LSD can get you life and an unlimited fine. 

Speed

Speed is the street name for Amphetamine. Like coke it's a stimulant that people take to keep them awake and alert. It's Britain's least pure illegal drug. It's often taken along with E.

Speed makes people feel wide awake, excited and chatty. Clubbers take it because it gives them the energy to dance for hours without getting knackered.

The come down can make users feel irritable and depressed and can last for one or two days.

Taking a lot of speed can give your immune system a battering. You could get more colds, flu and sore throats if you use it a lot.

Speed is a Class B drug - illegal to have, give away or sell. Prepared for injection Speed becomes a Class A and can get you tougher sentencing if you're caught with it or selling it.
Possession can get you up to five years in jail and an unlimited fine. Supplying someone else with it can get you up to 14 years and an unlimited fine. 

Cannabis

Cannabis is the most widely used illegal drug in Britain. It's a naturally occurring drug made from parts of the cannabis plant. It's a mild hallucinogen and often gives sedative like effects that make some people feel chilled out and others feel sick. Cannabis often gives sedative like effects that make some people feel chilled out and happy and others have one puff and feel sick.

Cannabis, like tobacco, has chemical 'nasties' which can cause lung disease and cancer with long term or heavy use. Cannabis can make asthma worse.

Regular, heavy use makes it harder to learn and concentrate and some people begin to feel tired all the time and can't seem to get motivated, not so good when studying for a degree.

• Cannabis is illegal; it's a B drug. Penalties for supply, dealing, production and trafficking
  
• The maximum penalty is 14 years imprisonment.
  
• Penalties for possession
  
• The maximum penalty is five years imprisonment.
  

Ketamine

Ketamine is a short-acting but powerful general anaesthetic which has been used for operating on humans and animals. It has powerful hallucinogenic qualities.

Ketamine can cause perceptual changes like LSD, in addition to its effects on reducing bodily sensation. Users can trip for up to an hour and may feel after-effects for some hours.

Because you don't feel any pain when you're on ketamine, you're in danger of injuring yourself badly and having no idea you've done it.

Ketamine is very dangerous when it is mixed with other drugs or even alcohol, for example it can lead to unconsciousness with depressant drugs or alcohol.

Ketamine is a Class C drug - illegal to possess it and to supply it. Possession can get you up to two years in prison and an unlimited fine.