Last updated 14:34, May 3 2018
FILE PHOTO
A glass meth pipe.
Methamphetamine usage and seizures sharply increasing, while price drops, study shows. Massey University drug researcher Dr Chris Wilkins says the supply of meth coming out of Asia now is huge.
Efforts to try to scare school students out of drug use have been "researched to death" and been found not to work very well, a leading researcher says.
Contrasting views on how to teach secondary school students about methamphetamine use have been highlighted after a student's mother raised concerns about a Year 13 health class at Massey High School.
A booklet provided to the class included advice on how to take care of a meth-smoking pipe and to never be caught with more than 5 grams of meth – the threshold to be classified a dealer.
A glass meth pipe.
"Meth is illegal. It's also illegal to own a pipe. Be discrete [sic] and only keep less than 5 grams for personal use," the pamphlet said.
The pamphlet also advised on ways to hide meth use and advised that swallowing meth was safer than injecting. "It saves your lungs from damage, produces a smoother and longer lasting high, and you're less likely to use more."
Around 500kg of meth was found after a botched attempt to smuggle the drug in through Ninety Mile Beach in 2016.
Morgan Julian, whose daughter was given the booklet, said she was concerned the pamphlet was telling students how to use meth.
Drug educator and former drug squad detective Dale Kirk has said the harm minimisation approach being taken at Massey didn't work with meth because the drug was so addictive.
His group, Methcon, had a "Not Even Once" message. "You can't use a drug like that safely."
A new study by Massey University shows a sharp rise in the use of imported crystal methamphetamine.
Associate professor Peter Adams, associate director of Auckland University's Centre for Addiction Research said he supported a harm reduction approach, linked to youth development, which was about empowering students to make decisions.
"The way things have been taught in schools often is a way of scaring people out of use. That has been researched to death and really shown as a non-effective way of educating people about drug use," Adams said.
"Education that is informative, that is ideally peer driven ... there's more evidence of that being effective."
Hundreds marched in Huntly to banish Meth from community.
The information being provided to the Massey students was OK, provided it was a small part of a much bigger picture, aiming to inform people who were likely to be exposed to use. "I assume they are talking about that as a small part of a much bigger picture."
With cannabis and now meth becoming more commonplace, the more people could be equipped with information about how to avoid the risks of drug use, the better. "Because in the absence of that, a lot more harm can occur," Adams said.
"When looking at how a school handles a child's education about drug use, I think it's a whole bunch of stuff that needs to be discussed."
Research supports the harm reduction approach to drug education, Auckland University's Peter Adams says.
"How does a school handle a young person's discovery and exploration, and how do they develop a relationship with drugs that is going to not intrude into their well being, is what we focus on," he said.
"You are wanting people to recognise risks, and if they are involved they know how to avoid the risks involved."
Harm reduction provided a framework for how a country managed the harms from dangerous consumptions. It had been used in New Zealand and many countries for a long time.
A Customs officer smashes open a fake concrete footstool to find packets of meth hidden inside.
"Harm reduction's about what's going to work and what isn't. Some people confuse harm reduction with moderation, but moderation is only pursued if there's good evidence for doing so," Adams said.
The harm reduction approach had three main areas. One was supply control of illicit drugs, which involved police and Customs. Another was demand withdrawal: equipping users to help them manage. The third was problem limitation, including treatment services and healthy environments for youth.