KINGSTON, Jamaica – Research analyst at the National Council on Drug Abuse (NCDA), Uki Atkinson, says while Jamaica did not traditionally “have a pill-popping culture” things are changing as more and more adolescents get exposed to drugs such as Molly.

The disclosure was made at a digital press conference by the Ministry of Health and Wellness on Substance Use and Emergent Issues in Secondary Schools on Thursday.

Atkinson, while outlining the harmful effects of substances such as Molly, linked the drug’s prevalence to popular culture, singling out the impact of dancehall music and ‘certain artistes’.

“When we asked about the popular substances that are currently being used, Molly, Vaping and Edibles are what came out as the top three. Prior to this, what the council had found in our studies is that alcohol, tobacco and cannabis were the most popular substances. Our context is changing. New psychoactive substances are becoming much more accessible, much more popular,” Atkinson said. “With Molly , it is one of the party drugs that have become more popular in recent times. We (Jamaica) did not typically have a pill-popping culture nor do we typically have an injection drug use culture, but things are changing.”

Admitting that Molly is a drug that has been around for a number of years, Atkinson said the music has contributed to the drug’s widespread use in recent times. “The children were not only able to tell us what it is and what it does but they were able to say it’s not something new but is something that has become more popular mainly because of how much more they are exposed to it through the music,” she said.

“We really want to take a little bit of time to say that while popular music may sound good and it has its place, we would like to highlight that it is significantly impacting our young people,” Atkinson said. “They referenced a number of deejays which we wouldn’t speak about right here and now but those thing came out in the focus groups – the influence of Molly use, the access to cannabis, drinking, smoking, badness…all of that came out.”

The research analyst, who was presenting findings from discussions with 160 grades 8-10 students said “it (Molly popping) is part of our context and reality now.”

Having acknowledged that drug abuse among adolescents has become a real problem in Jamaica, Atkinson said the NCDA has put in place a number of intervention plans to help combat the issue. Among them are intentions to target entire groups with general drug information and messaging, policy and legislation aimed at protecting youth against drug use, targeting at-risk groups and the family through bonding exercises etc.

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton, who said, a lot has changed “over the last two years” noted that the MOHW in partnership with the Ministry of Education, is committed to helping the nation’s youth stave off its substance abuse issue.

“A lot of discussions have been taking place and with increasingly new and creative ways to abuse various substances across age cohort, it is a very important area to track and to develop new and improve ways to monitor and respond,” he said. “We don’t exist in a vacuum. We are very well connected as COVID as shown, it started one place, affects everyone. The trends around substance abuse almost automatically show that once it starts somewhere, gathers momentum and becomes a part of a form of subculture, (it) is carried through many ways and forms and ultimately reaches our shores.”