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It's Britain's favourite
class A drug.

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There's loads of nicknames
for it, chang, bugle.

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Sniff, coke or snow. Chop, charge.

4
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Flake, blow.

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Cocaine, once a drug
exclusively for the rich and famous,

6
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has never been more popular.

7
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I'm feelin' buzzin', mate. Buzzin'!

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In 2009, it was taken by around
1.2 million people in the UK alone.

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This is nice, proper - boom!

10
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But for some people, a few lines of
coke became a life-changing event.

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No matter how long I chased that
first high I never got close to it,

12
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never again.

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This is the inside story
of how cocaine works.

14
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There's euphoria, confidence,
talkativeness.

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Oh, go on, rack us one up, then.

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Go on, then.

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We follow three users
on nights out on coke

18
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and journey inside
their bodies and brains

19
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to find out how
the drug creates its highs...

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..and lows.

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We'll access Britain's leading
experts to find out the truth

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behind cocaine's
controversial reputation.

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In the first hour
after taking cocaine,

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the risk of having a heart attack
increases by twenty-fold.

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I have seen patients where
the whole middle of the nose
has gone, effectively,

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and you just have one nasal cavity

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and everything
just collapses inwards.

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We'll find out how cocaine has
changed some people permanently...

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I didn't realise the effect
it would have on people

30
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until you are there in...
Well, you could say a death bed.

31
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..and investigate
just how widespread

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the drug has really become.

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It literally is everywhere.

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Cocaine - the perfect pick-me-up
or a class A killer?

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Possession of even
a small amount of cocaine
can get you seven years in prison.

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Despite this, more than 120 tonnes
were snorted in Britain in 2009

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enough to make 2.4 billion lines,

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stretching nearly three times
round the world.

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Cocaine is most popular amongst
16 to 29-years-olds,

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with one in 20 estimated
to have taken it last year.

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Josie and Damian have both been
occasional cocaine users

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since they were teenagers.

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They became friends after meeting
at a house party in Bristol,

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where they both live.

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Damian is a 29-year-old
entrepreneur.

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Im interested in horticulture,
tropical palm trees, hoping to import

47
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some from countries where they are
cheap and we can distribute them

48
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in England and make maximum profit.

49
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(INAUDIBLE) ..in a couple of weeks.

50
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I'm doing a fire show there,
but I've got to do it
before I get too drunk.

51
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Josie is 21 and works at
music festivals in the summer.

52
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I don't take coke that often
I don't really, like,

53
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spend lots of money on it,
but if it's there I'll do it, like.

54
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Josie is having
a house party tonight

55
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and Damian is planning to get
some cocaine in for the event.

56
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They both take it a couple
of times a month on average.

57
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Right. We need to sort
this party out.

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Top of the agenda
is to order the coke in.

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First time I took coke I literally
just took it, smoked a cigarette,

60
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puked everywhere, then straight after
I puked I just felt bloody amazing,

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just like absolutely amazing.

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It just felt like all my worries
had been lifted up from my shoulders,

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er, just felt really confident.

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Drink of cider, little line,
gets you ready for the night, innit?

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With the supplies arranged, Josie
sets about decorating the house.

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She's also organised
a sound system.

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Come on, boys,
let's get these speakers inside!

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CAR BEEPS HORN

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For Damian, cocaine is a drug best
taken amongst friends at home.

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I enjoy it more when
I come back from a club when

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I'm feeling a bit like

72
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worse for wear and then
get it up your nose

73
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and then you've got
a good house party.

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I think coke's quite
a private thing, anyway.

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I prefer it to be at home.

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House decorated and sound system
built, Josie and Damian

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start their Saturday night
as they mean to go on.

78
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You just chop it up,

79
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with a card, you get
your snorty-worty.

80
00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:40,520
As Damian snorts his line, it flies
up into his nose at up to 100 mph.

81
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The fine powder rips
through his nostrils,

82
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coating the mucous membranes
lining his sinuses.

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Up to 60% of the powder gets
absorbed through the nasal membranes

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straight into his bloodstream
via small capillaries,

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beginning a journey
through his body.

86
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These capillaries feed
into bigger veins

87
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leading eventually
to Damian's heart.

88
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The cocaine is then pumped on
to his lungs,

89
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where the blood absorbs oxygen...

90
00:05:11,320 --> 00:05:13,560
..before shooting back
up to his heart,

91
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which is starting to beat faster
as the cocaine takes effect.

92
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The cocaine payload is carried on
to the major organs in his body.

93
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Much of it to Damian's brain.

94
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Here the cocaine molecules can
leech up through the blood vessels.

95
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Soon they reach the
billions of nerve cells

96
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that Damian's brain is made of -

97
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the cells that control every aspect
of how he behaves.

98
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Beautiful. All right!

99
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It was pretty ... awesome.

100
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Yeah. Good, good.

101
00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:52,440
A United Nations report
estimated 16 million people

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round the world
took coke in 2008 alone.

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This global appetite
has created an industry

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with a turnover of
around £55 billion a year -

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more than Google, McDonalds
and Coca Cola put together.

106
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Cocaine is produced from the leaves
of the coca plant in South America.

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In makeshift laboratories,
deep in the heart of the rainforest,

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coca leaves are transformed from
a naturally occurring mild stimulant

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to a powerful drug capable of
changing the way we think and feel.

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The production uses
an array of potent
and often poisonous substances

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including sulphuric acid
and kerosene.

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The result, a pure white crystal,

113
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is worth just a £100 a kilo
where it is made,

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but £50,000 a kilo
by the time it reaches the UK.

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Between 2008 and 2009, the number of
people taking cocaine regularly

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in the UK rose by around 200,000.

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As supplies have grown
to satisfy the increasing demand,

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prices have plummeted.

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A line can now cost
as little as £2,

120
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and the low price has made cocaine
more accessible than ever.

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Liam has just left the army
and moved back to his home town

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to be close to his
family and friends.

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'When I'm with my mates,
we like to go the local pubs,

124
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'we go down town a lot,'

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we have a laugh, we socialise a lot.
Round here, everyone knows everyone.

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He's looking for a new career
in the construction industry.

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In an effort to limit the
documentary's impact on his future,

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he's decided not to use
his real name.

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It's good when you're having
a drink and socialising, I think.

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You have a few, like a little cheeky
one, a little perker and, you know,

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puts you in the mood, man.

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Last time we were
sniffing lines like that.

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Madness, swear to God.

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The first time you feel it,
nothing'll compare to that.

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Although money is tight,

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Liam enjoys a coke session
every couple of months.

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'When you're racking up and
you're like, you, you do your line,'

138
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you're buzzing a bit,
you get a little buzz.

139
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Yeah!

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You get a buzz racking it up and then
you're buzzing when you're at it.

141
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Liam's got some cocaine in today,

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but he doesn't want to wait
until the evening to get started.

143
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The effect of
the cocaine is dramatic.

144
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This is nice, proper - boom!

145
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It was tasty and all.

146
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THEY SHOUT AND LAUGH

147
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'If you have a fat line,
it's a rush, man. Say you have

148
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'an energy drink
and you feel a bit better,'

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that's like 50 times that.

150
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It's like - whoosh!
It's straight in your bloodstream.

151
00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:49,480
And you feel the...

152
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Ryan's sudden high
and burst of energy come from

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the huge changes that have
just happened in his brain.

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Our brains are composed of networks
of billions of tiny nerve cells.

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Signals race around these networks,

156
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crossing the gaps between the nerve
cells using chemical messengers.

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One network is dedicated
to making us feel good

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when we do something
that is essential to survival

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such as eat, drink or have sex.

160
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Normally, when this
network is activated,

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the nerve cells in it

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release the feel-good
chemical messenger dopamine.

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Dopamine travels across
the gap from one nerve cell

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to receptors on its neighbour,

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triggering a chain reaction
which makes you feel good.

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This dopamine then returns
to the nerve cell that released it

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for further use.

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Cocaine hijacks the feel-good
network in the brain.

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It causes huge increases
in the amount of dopamine

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throughout the network,

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flooding the brain with
feel-good chemicals.

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And it also stops the dopamine
returning to the nerve cells

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that have released it,

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meaning more and more builds up.

175
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Cocaine blocks something
called the dopamine transporter,

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and what that does is
it mops up dopamine

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that sits in the space
in between two cells.

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And if that re-uptake is blocked,

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what you get is an awful lot of
dopamine floating around this space.

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The flood of dopamine sends
the feel-good network

181
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in the brain into overdrive,

182
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producing a sense
of euphoria and self-assurance

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making the user
more animated and talkative.

184
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Hey hey! No way!

185
00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:42,800
Since filming, we've had to conceal
the identity of Liam's friend

186
00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:44,800
for legal reasons.

187
00:10:44,800 --> 00:10:48,320
Its not like energy. That's what
amphetamine is. That's energy.

188
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Cocaine's more of a, like...

189
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A clean, I swear.
It makes you feel fresher.

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00:10:53,880 --> 00:10:57,320
Its all about how you're
feeling on the day.

191
00:10:57,320 --> 00:10:58,400
And who you're with.

192
00:11:02,040 --> 00:11:04,200
Cocaine's main effects
are emotional.

193
00:11:04,200 --> 00:11:10,080
The user quite rapidly feels more
confident, talkative, assertive,

194
00:11:10,080 --> 00:11:13,880
sometimes quite garrulous,
even aggressive,

195
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and all of those effects relate to
the amount of cocaine that's taken.

196
00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:26,560
Back in Bristol, Damian and Josie
are getting in a second line

197
00:11:26,560 --> 00:11:29,040
before the guests start to arrive.

198
00:11:32,560 --> 00:11:35,840
The second one. You've got
to have one after another,

199
00:11:35,840 --> 00:11:39,320
especially the first one, just
to get you super-high, innit, Jos?

200
00:11:41,920 --> 00:11:45,880
Oh, go on, rack us up one, then.
Go on, then.

201
00:11:45,880 --> 00:11:49,400
What am I supposed to do? Stand
here and watch him snorting it?

202
00:11:50,560 --> 00:11:52,640
I think we can make
it bigger than that.

203
00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:55,240
Come on, Jos.

204
00:11:55,520 --> 00:11:57,760
Get that down you, Josie.

205
00:12:01,360 --> 00:12:03,160
All right!

206
00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:12,520
'You feel like you gotta do stuff,
you gotta do something,

207
00:12:12,520 --> 00:12:16,280
'you gotta run around,
climb the walls, like, dance,'

208
00:12:16,280 --> 00:12:20,320
you gotta, you know,
go on a rampage.

209
00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:26,120
Transform...!

210
00:12:26,120 --> 00:12:28,240
Pow, pow!

211
00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:30,560
Bagpuss in the house.

212
00:12:30,560 --> 00:12:33,040
I'm feeling buzzing', mate. Buzzin'!

213
00:12:34,640 --> 00:12:40,280
Innit, Alfina? She knows. I mean,
look at the size of her nose.

214
00:12:44,000 --> 00:12:48,400
'Definitely cocaine
makes you want to dance.'

215
00:12:48,400 --> 00:12:50,480
Makes you feel horny
as well so, erm,

216
00:12:50,480 --> 00:12:54,240
you, er, generally want to dance
next to really good-looking girls.

217
00:12:57,080 --> 00:13:00,720
Feelings of excitement and sexual
desire are caused by the release of

218
00:13:00,720 --> 00:13:04,800
dopamine and noradrenaline, another
chemical messenger in the brain.

219
00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:09,880
It floods into the feel-good network
and also the emotional centre.

220
00:13:09,880 --> 00:13:13,160
Noradrenaline is normally
released when you're in danger.

221
00:13:13,160 --> 00:13:15,760
It makes you more alert
and ready for action.

222
00:13:17,320 --> 00:13:19,920
Cocaine also suppresses
the area of the brain

223
00:13:19,920 --> 00:13:24,800
involved in decision-making.
This makes people more impulsive.

224
00:13:24,800 --> 00:13:27,200
LIAM: It does definitely
make you feel horny.

225
00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:28,640
It's a horny drug.

226
00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:31,720
Say you're having sex with a bird,
man, if she's on it as well,

227
00:13:31,720 --> 00:13:34,080
I'm going to have a good night then.

228
00:13:34,080 --> 00:13:37,680
It does help, man, I swear.
It's like a Viagra-type thing.

229
00:13:37,680 --> 00:13:40,040
Coke definitely changes
your sex drive,

230
00:13:40,040 --> 00:13:41,920
you just want
to have sex all night.

231
00:13:41,920 --> 00:13:43,840
Or all day,
whenever you take coke.

232
00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:47,320
'Er, I would say sex is better on
coke, yeah. Yeah, definitely.

233
00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:52,160
'As much as it numbs you, er,'

234
00:13:52,160 --> 00:13:58,600
it accentuates everything so you
can do a lot of things for longer,

235
00:13:58,600 --> 00:14:01,560
erm, which is a good thing.

236
00:14:01,560 --> 00:14:07,360
This is because cocaine makes the
body produce a chemical which
increases blood flow to the penis.

237
00:14:07,360 --> 00:14:13,000
stimulating an erection,
just like Viagra. The chemical
also delays ejaculation.

238
00:14:14,360 --> 00:14:19,480
But it can cause problems -
if users take cocaine regularly,
or take a lot

239
00:14:19,480 --> 00:14:26,560
in one session, it can produce too
much noradrenaline in an area of
the brain called the hippocampus.

240
00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:30,760
This can stop male users
getting an erection.

241
00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:35,920
Sometimes you can't get a hard-on
if you've had too much, like.
Nothing there.

242
00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:42,120
People have always been drawn
to the stimulating powers
of the coca plant.

243
00:14:42,120 --> 00:14:47,000
Indigenous tribes have been
chewing the unrefined leaves for
at least eight thousand years.

244
00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:52,840
But it wasn't until 1860
that a German chemist
finally cracked

245
00:14:52,840 --> 00:14:57,320
how to get the active ingredient
from the leaves,
and cocaine was born.

246
00:15:01,280 --> 00:15:05,760
Soon it was discovered
that cocaine was an anaesthetic,

247
00:15:05,760 --> 00:15:08,640
the first ever found,
and it revolutionised medicine.

248
00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:11,920
I have the grandest headache
medicine in the world - try it.

249
00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:20,960
There was an explosion in legal
highs. You could find cocaine

250
00:15:20,960 --> 00:15:24,040
in everything from tooth drops
to haemorrhoid plasters.

251
00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:29,440
It's reported even Coca Cola
used to pack 60mg of cocaine
into every serving.

252
00:15:29,440 --> 00:15:34,720
But by the turn of the 20th century,
cocaine was becoming too popular.

253
00:15:34,720 --> 00:15:39,280
The dangers of addiction
were realised and it was
outlawed round the world.

254
00:15:39,280 --> 00:15:40,800
It looked like cocaine was set
to become a part of history.

255
00:15:40,800 --> 00:15:45,280
But it didn't work out
how the lawmakers hoped.

256
00:15:51,800 --> 00:15:56,800
Today, cocaine is more widespread
than ever and presents a
massive problem for the police.

257
00:15:59,760 --> 00:16:04,920
Five thousand people are sentenced
for possessing or selling cocaine
every year in the UK.

258
00:16:04,920 --> 00:16:08,920
But it is estimated that the
police only seize about 1.3 per cent

259
00:16:08,920 --> 00:16:11,120
of the cocaine distributed
in Britain.

260
00:16:11,120 --> 00:16:14,000
Stay still.

261
00:16:20,120 --> 00:16:26,080
PC Adrian Parsons, the Drugs Liaison
Officer for Kent Police,
is fighting back.

262
00:16:29,480 --> 00:16:33,400
He uses cutting-edge technology
to prove that drug dealers'
money

263
00:16:33,400 --> 00:16:37,000
has come from selling cocaine
so that it can be confiscated
from them.

264
00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:41,200
This is an ion track itemiser.
It's a drug detection machine.

265
00:16:41,200 --> 00:16:44,280
It's looking for traces of drugs
rather than bulk amounts.

266
00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:46,960
It's looking for stuff
that you can't see.

267
00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:52,440
The whole banking system has
been contaminated with cocaine
from drug dealers' and users' money.

268
00:16:52,440 --> 00:16:56,880
Using the most sophisticated system
to do this, if you took ten notes off
the street,

269
00:16:56,880 --> 00:17:00,440
the likelihood is that
at least nine of them will be
contaminated with cocaine.

270
00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:03,240
It contaminates everything,
it literally is everywhere.

271
00:17:03,240 --> 00:17:07,440
But most notes in circulation
only have tiny amounts of cocaine
on them.

272
00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:11,920
So It is the abnormally high
readings that PC Parsons
looks for.

273
00:17:11,920 --> 00:17:15,560
And it isn't just bank notes
that he is interested in testing.

274
00:17:20,920 --> 00:17:24,400
The police squad visit randomly
selected pubs and clubs...

275
00:17:24,400 --> 00:17:26,720
with the full support
of the licensees...

276
00:17:26,720 --> 00:17:28,280
to do spot checks with
a mobile cocaine scanner

277
00:17:28,280 --> 00:17:32,600
that can detect tiny amounts
of the drug on someone's hand.

278
00:17:34,560 --> 00:17:38,320
Anyone that wants to stay in the pub
has to agree to be tested.

279
00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:41,720
And those that test positive
get questioned and searched.

280
00:17:45,560 --> 00:17:49,280
There are two bags
on the floor and very high traces
of cocaine on your hands.

281
00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:52,840
I wouldn't drink too much more
of that, mate.

282
00:17:52,840 --> 00:17:57,000
'In relation to what has happened in
here now, we walked in the door

283
00:17:57,000 --> 00:18:01,080
'and naturally when I walk in if
there are people playing pool
look at the pool table,

284
00:18:01,080 --> 00:18:02,840
'look at them,
have a quick scan around'

285
00:18:02,840 --> 00:18:03,960
and there
was nothing on the floor.

286
00:18:03,960 --> 00:18:07,480
I have gone to the bar,
to turn round and watch these two

287
00:18:07,480 --> 00:18:09,680
and they have walked around the back
here and they have bent down

288
00:18:09,680 --> 00:18:11,200
as if to load the table

289
00:18:11,200 --> 00:18:15,480
and other officers looked
and there are two bags of cocaine.

290
00:18:15,480 --> 00:18:18,760
The chap, I have scanned his hand
with mobile trace.

291
00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:21,720
He has come up with significant
reading of cocaine on his hands.

292
00:18:21,720 --> 00:18:25,120
I have come round here
and on the floor is what I
believe to be a wrap of cocaine.

293
00:18:25,120 --> 00:18:29,280
I would say it's half
a gram of cocaine,
probably around £20, £25 worth.

294
00:18:32,840 --> 00:18:38,680
The incredible growth of cocaine
into all sections of society
began in the 1960s.

295
00:18:38,680 --> 00:18:45,120
It was catapulted into infamy when
the drug took a starring role in the
Hollywood blockbuster Easy Rider.

296
00:18:45,120 --> 00:18:49,880
It became the drug of the moment
and there was an explosion
in demand,

297
00:18:49,880 --> 00:18:54,440
which was met by an explosion
in supply from South America.

298
00:18:56,640 --> 00:18:59,800
An international supply chain
sprang up and drug smugglers

299
00:18:59,800 --> 00:19:01,520
became household names.

300
00:19:01,520 --> 00:19:03,880
The biggest drug lord
of them all,

301
00:19:03,880 --> 00:19:10,880
Pablo Escobar, was said to be one of
the richest men in the world, making
millions of dollars every day.

302
00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:25,160
But the cocaine business has
expanded its product range
since Escobar's day.

303
00:19:25,160 --> 00:19:27,160
Now there is cocaine
for every budget.

304
00:19:31,560 --> 00:19:35,280
This stuff here is like £40 a gram.

305
00:19:35,280 --> 00:19:36,400
You can tell the difference
because

306
00:19:36,400 --> 00:19:41,080
this is more powdery, whereas this
stuff here which is £80 a gram,

307
00:19:41,080 --> 00:19:47,440
the good stuff is really rocky,
and you can see
a little shine in it.

308
00:19:50,160 --> 00:19:52,360
Just chop it up.

309
00:19:56,160 --> 00:19:59,320
That's the good stuff,
you can taste the difference.

310
00:19:59,320 --> 00:20:03,320
That cheap stuff,
it kind of hurts your nose.

311
00:20:03,320 --> 00:20:07,760
This stuff doesn't at all,
it just goes up there
nice and smoothly.

312
00:20:07,760 --> 00:20:12,800
Snorting too much of any type
of coke can harm the nose.

313
00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:15,640
As it hits the delicate lining
inside the nostril,

314
00:20:15,640 --> 00:20:18,680
it causes the blood vessels
to constrict and shut down,

315
00:20:18,680 --> 00:20:21,120
depriving the tissue
of blood and oxygen.

316
00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:26,400
Eventually,
the tissue weakens and dies.

317
00:20:26,400 --> 00:20:30,200
This can cause a hole or
perforation to develop in the nose.

318
00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:36,800
An operation is often required
to repair this damage.

319
00:20:38,320 --> 00:20:39,960
Consultant surgeon Sandeep Paun

320
00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:42,440
is a leading specialist
in nose reconstruction.

321
00:20:44,920 --> 00:20:49,520
His patient today
made a hole in his nose
through regular cocaine use.

322
00:20:49,520 --> 00:20:52,240
He's asked to be kept anonymous.

323
00:20:52,240 --> 00:20:55,560
As you know, we are going to be
sorting out your nasal septum
perforation today.

324
00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:58,440
When was the last time
you used it regularly?

325
00:20:58,440 --> 00:21:03,560
Regularly, six months previous.

326
00:21:03,560 --> 00:21:08,440
OK. There are certainly
no guarantees we can close
the perforation completely.

327
00:21:08,440 --> 00:21:14,880
Certainly after cocaine use,
closure of septal perforations
is difficult.

328
00:21:14,880 --> 00:21:16,280
I only found out about the hole

329
00:21:16,280 --> 00:21:21,760
when I went to the doctor's
and he pulled a scab out
of the nose,

330
00:21:21,760 --> 00:21:25,520
which covered the hole,
which then became really scary.

331
00:21:25,520 --> 00:21:29,360
When you look at Danniella
Westbrook, once you see
what happened to her,

332
00:21:29,360 --> 00:21:30,640
her nose actually collapsed

333
00:21:30,640 --> 00:21:35,080
and the scariest thing is that you
think its going to happen to you.

334
00:21:35,080 --> 00:21:39,680
The operation requires the patient's
nose to be cut open
and split in two.

335
00:21:39,680 --> 00:21:42,200
The images can be very graphic.

336
00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:45,160
We're just going to look
in this gentleman's nose now.

337
00:21:46,200 --> 00:21:49,960
We're going through the nostrils,
having a look inside.

338
00:21:49,960 --> 00:21:53,640
What we can see at the front
of the septum is the hole.

339
00:21:53,640 --> 00:21:59,320
It's actually relatively small for
a patient who has had cocaine abuse.

340
00:21:59,320 --> 00:22:01,920
You would expect to see it
much larger than this.

341
00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:06,000
Often these perforations
can progress way beyond
the size we see here.

342
00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:08,360
Knife, please.

343
00:22:08,360 --> 00:22:13,120
Sometimes doing it you would
take a line and you would have

344
00:22:13,120 --> 00:22:19,200
a real bad burning sensation from
the start of your nose right the way
through to the back of your throat,

345
00:22:19,200 --> 00:22:20,640
really painful.

346
00:22:20,640 --> 00:22:24,800
The next day when you wake up
you have scabs

347
00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:30,760
and there's parts of your nose
you are actually blowing out.

348
00:22:30,760 --> 00:22:33,720
With chronic cocaine abuse,

349
00:22:33,720 --> 00:22:35,560
as the perforation gets bigger
and bigger,

350
00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:38,680
the cartilage gets weaker
and weaker because there

351
00:22:38,680 --> 00:22:40,000
is not enough support

352
00:22:40,000 --> 00:22:45,040
and as the top of the nose
begins to collapse, one can
end up with a boxer-type appearance.

353
00:22:45,040 --> 00:22:47,640
Scissors please.

354
00:22:47,640 --> 00:22:51,040
I have seen patients where the whole
middle of the nose has gone

355
00:22:51,040 --> 00:22:54,880
and you just have one nasal cavity
and everything
just collapses inwards.

356
00:22:54,880 --> 00:22:59,000
I was doing it every day
of the week. It doesn't worry you
at the time when

357
00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:04,760
you are doing it obviously,
but afterwards, your nose is sore as
hell,

358
00:23:04,760 --> 00:23:10,640
times when you nose is bleeding
it makes you have regrets
doing it in the first place.

359
00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:18,440
OK, so what we see here,
inside the nose, is the lining
on one side, you can see

360
00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:22,160
the hole through the lining, so
initially cocaine would have created

361
00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:25,520
a hole in the lining but
not through the cartilage,

362
00:23:25,520 --> 00:23:30,520
but eventually it will have worked
its way through the cartilage and
eventually through the other side.

363
00:23:30,520 --> 00:23:35,360
The fact that cocaine is mixed with
all sorts of contaminants including

364
00:23:35,360 --> 00:23:40,840
baking soda, glucose
and in the worst case scenario
even talcum powder,

365
00:23:40,840 --> 00:23:44,680
can cause an intense inflammatory
response.

366
00:23:44,680 --> 00:23:49,040
This inflammation can cause
the flesh in the nose
to die even more rapidly

367
00:23:51,120 --> 00:23:58,520
Ironically, Mr Paun actually
administers cocaine
to the patient to stop bleeding.

368
00:23:58,520 --> 00:24:03,720
Patients don't snort it up
beforehand or anything,
but we give them a small amount

369
00:24:03,720 --> 00:24:05,840
in liquid form.

370
00:24:08,160 --> 00:24:12,800
I'm just taking out a little bead
of cartilage, from the back end

371
00:24:12,800 --> 00:24:17,840
of the nasal septum which
we are then going to replace
the front end with.

372
00:24:17,840 --> 00:24:21,800
The bit of cartilage is going
to close off the hole.

373
00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:32,800
So you can see on one side here,
the lining has been
completely closed

374
00:24:32,800 --> 00:24:34,960
where there was a hole before.

375
00:24:34,960 --> 00:24:36,640
As we look on the other side,

376
00:24:36,640 --> 00:24:39,840
similarly there is no hole
there now.

377
00:24:40,680 --> 00:24:44,440
I run a fairly specialist
nasal practice in the city of London

378
00:24:44,440 --> 00:24:47,080
where there is a lot of money
floating around.

379
00:24:47,080 --> 00:24:52,000
I must see a patient every few weeks
with nasal problems
related to cocaine exposure.

380
00:24:57,120 --> 00:25:01,280
City high fliers and cocaine
have been synonymous for decades.

381
00:25:01,280 --> 00:25:05,040
The drug became the ultimate status
symbol in the booming '80s

382
00:25:05,040 --> 00:25:07,880
when greed was good
and bankers were heroes.

383
00:25:07,880 --> 00:25:12,240
It was the champagne drug,
a sophisticated show
of extravagance.

384
00:25:12,240 --> 00:25:17,480
But in the middle of this cocaine
honeymoon a new form of the
drug appeared - crack.

385
00:25:23,280 --> 00:25:26,840
See this cute little vial here -
it's crack. Rock cocaine.

386
00:25:26,840 --> 00:25:29,000
The most addictive form.

387
00:25:29,000 --> 00:25:31,120
You think it's the glamour drug
of the '80s?

388
00:25:31,120 --> 00:25:33,400
That's the point
of this little reminder.

389
00:25:33,400 --> 00:25:39,720
It can kill you. And if you've got
to die for something,
this sure as hell ain't it.

390
00:25:41,040 --> 00:25:45,040
Crack is simply another form
of cocaine that is smoked
rather than snorted.

391
00:25:45,040 --> 00:25:48,920
Because the surface area
of the lungs is much bigger

392
00:25:48,920 --> 00:25:51,640
than that of the membranes
in the nose, the drug is absorbed

393
00:25:51,640 --> 00:25:56,880
much more quickly, making
the hit faster and more intense.

394
00:25:56,880 --> 00:26:03,080
The speed and intensity of the hit
makes it much more addictive.

395
00:26:03,080 --> 00:26:05,800
The press and politicians
warned of an epidemic.

396
00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:08,400
Crack became the
number one public enemy.

397
00:26:08,400 --> 00:26:12,840
The Home Secretary, Douglas Hurd,
has described the cocaine-based
drug, crack,

398
00:26:12,840 --> 00:26:14,920
as "a spectre hanging over Europe."

399
00:26:14,920 --> 00:26:21,080
The high from crack
is so powerful, its users can
become totally consumed by the drug.

400
00:26:21,080 --> 00:26:24,080
It becomes more important
than eating or washing,

401
00:26:24,080 --> 00:26:28,320
and this leads to a rapid
deterioration in addicts' health
and appearance.

402
00:26:28,320 --> 00:26:34,040
Dramatic drug awareness campaigns
showed the damage it could do.

403
00:26:34,040 --> 00:26:38,400
Crack became associated
with drug addicts and poverty.

404
00:26:38,400 --> 00:26:42,800
But this didn't dent
the unassailable glamorous image
of powder cocaine,

405
00:26:42,800 --> 00:26:45,160
which remained in massive demand.

406
00:26:45,160 --> 00:26:52,320
This led to trafficking on a vast
scale and the price to fall
from £150 to £50 a gram.

407
00:26:53,920 --> 00:26:56,840
As the amount of cocaine imported
into Britain has soared,

408
00:26:56,840 --> 00:27:01,200
the purity on the street
has fallen dramatically.

409
00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:07,200
No-one knows this better than
the Forensic Science Service.

410
00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:10,280
They analyse the purity
of cocaine seized
by customs and the police

411
00:27:10,280 --> 00:27:13,040
to gather vital intelligence
about the supply chain.

412
00:27:15,520 --> 00:27:19,640
The purer the seizure, the closer
its source will be to the importer.

413
00:27:20,800 --> 00:27:23,720
We're in the main storage area
of the drugs laboratory.

414
00:27:23,720 --> 00:27:27,120
This is where the main seizures are
stored while they are being examined.

415
00:27:27,120 --> 00:27:30,760
Approximately 80% of the drugs
in this room are cocaine.

416
00:27:34,920 --> 00:27:37,040
On a typical day this lab,
one of seven across Britain,

417
00:27:37,040 --> 00:27:41,320
will examine 100 kg of cocaine
worth £50 million pounds.

418
00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:44,840
Just a small fraction of the
three tonnes,

419
00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:51,200
worth 1.5 billion pounds,
that was seized in the UK
between 2008 and 2009.

420
00:27:54,560 --> 00:27:59,040
Cocaine seized as it
is being smuggled into
Britain is relatively pure.

421
00:27:59,040 --> 00:28:03,400
This is a bag of
approximately 1kg of cocaine powder,

422
00:28:03,400 --> 00:28:08,000
It contains 79% cocaine
and is good importation quality.

423
00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:12,960
But when the FSS test cocaine
from the street,

424
00:28:12,960 --> 00:28:17,800
seized from dealers and users,
they find it is much less pure.

425
00:28:17,800 --> 00:28:22,880
The typical street range of
cocaine is perhaps 3 to 30%,
commonly 10 to 20%.

426
00:28:22,880 --> 00:28:27,360
We have seen cocaine powders
containing perhaps only 1% cocaine.

427
00:28:28,880 --> 00:28:33,200
Dealers cut cocaine
with bulking agents
to increase their profit margin.

428
00:28:33,200 --> 00:28:38,480
Most of the white powder sold as
cocaine is actually made up of
something else that looks like it -

429
00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:43,920
sugars such as lactose or glucose,
or anaesthetics
such as benzocaine or lignocaine.

430
00:28:43,920 --> 00:28:48,000
The benzocaine and lignocaine
will mimic the effects of cocaine

431
00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:50,280
in terms of, if you test it,

432
00:28:50,280 --> 00:28:54,360
cocaine will give you a
numbing effect, benzocaine
and lignocaine will do likewise.

433
00:28:54,360 --> 00:28:58,200
Just by sight, you are
not going to know what
the quality of the cocaine is,

434
00:28:58,200 --> 00:29:02,480
and you may not know what is present
in the powder before you buy it.

435
00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:11,200
As the night progresses,
the Bristol house party
is in full flow.

436
00:29:11,200 --> 00:29:16,600
The high from even relatively pure
cocaine only lasts
for 30 or 40 minutes,

437
00:29:16,600 --> 00:29:20,720
so Damian has been working
his way through his supplies.

438
00:29:20,720 --> 00:29:25,440
Must be about 11 o'clock now. Yeah,
I've done about four or five lines.

439
00:29:25,440 --> 00:29:32,080
It's very more-ish. You just want
to do more and more, cos the
effect wears away quite quickly,

440
00:29:32,080 --> 00:29:35,480
so you have another line
and another line.

441
00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:38,720
As the cocaine travels
around the body in the blood,

442
00:29:38,720 --> 00:29:43,120
it passes through the liver,
which begins to process
and break down the drug.

443
00:29:43,120 --> 00:29:48,680
After 30 minutes, half the cocaine
has been broken down,
and the high is over.

444
00:29:48,680 --> 00:29:54,560
This process happens much more
quickly with cocaine than with other
drugs, such as cannabis or ecstasy.

445
00:29:54,560 --> 00:29:59,640
To keep feeling good on coke, people
have to keep doing more lines.

446
00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:04,040
This can lead to people bingeing
on it, with serious consequences.

447
00:30:04,040 --> 00:30:07,880
'The most coke I've done
was in a club in Bristol.'

448
00:30:07,880 --> 00:30:11,600
We had literally done about an eighth
between the three of us before,

449
00:30:11,600 --> 00:30:16,880
and then I had a gram left,
and I just thought I might as well,
the coke wasn't that good.

450
00:30:16,880 --> 00:30:21,720
So I snuck into the bathroom,
took a line of coke that big,

451
00:30:21,720 --> 00:30:23,320
it was a gram.

452
00:30:23,320 --> 00:30:26,280
If it was good coke,
I would probably have died,

453
00:30:26,280 --> 00:30:30,960
but as soon as I took it,
my heart raced,
I started to sweat so much,

454
00:30:30,960 --> 00:30:34,240
and, literally, I couldn't stand up
any more.

455
00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:37,200
I had to lie down
for at least half an hour.

456
00:30:37,200 --> 00:30:40,680
Damian's heart was racing
after his huge line

457
00:30:40,680 --> 00:30:43,920
because it is not just the brain
where cocaine has an effect.

458
00:30:47,640 --> 00:30:52,720
The drug also directly stimulates
nerve cells in the heart
to produce noradrenaline,

459
00:30:52,720 --> 00:30:56,200
from their tips
straight into the muscle fibres.

460
00:30:57,960 --> 00:31:02,400
This normally happens
when you're in danger,
to make your heart beat faster,

461
00:31:02,400 --> 00:31:05,200
so that you can fight
or get away from trouble.

462
00:31:05,200 --> 00:31:09,600
It also causes blood vessels
to squeeze and constrict.

463
00:31:09,600 --> 00:31:12,280
Blood pressure starts to rise.

464
00:31:12,280 --> 00:31:15,680
Cocaine increases your pulse rate
and your blood pressure

465
00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:18,000
and it makes your heart
beat more quickly.

466
00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:21,920
All of those things mean
that your heart needs
an increased blood supply.

467
00:31:21,920 --> 00:31:25,360
It needs more oxygen to beat more
quickly and beat more strongly.

468
00:31:25,360 --> 00:31:28,920
Unfortunately, what cocaine does is,
it also causes constriction

469
00:31:28,920 --> 00:31:31,840
of those blood vessels
that supply blood to the heart.

470
00:31:31,840 --> 00:31:36,280
It's like putting your foot
on the accelerator
and pinching the fuel line.

471
00:31:36,280 --> 00:31:40,680
The heart is starved of the oxygen
it desperately needs to beat faster,

472
00:31:40,680 --> 00:31:42,800
putting it under enormous strain.

473
00:31:42,800 --> 00:31:44,920
This can cause a heart attack.

474
00:31:44,920 --> 00:31:48,120
In the first hour
after taking cocaine,

475
00:31:48,120 --> 00:31:52,120
the risk of having a heart
increases by 20 fold.

476
00:31:52,120 --> 00:31:59,000
Cocaine also causes the build up
of plaque in blood vessels over
long periods, just like fatty foods.

477
00:31:59,000 --> 00:32:03,120
This plaque can tear,
causing a blood clot to form,

478
00:32:03,120 --> 00:32:07,000
blocking the artery,
causing a heart attack at any time.

479
00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:13,200
About a quarter of heart attacks
among people under 45 years of age
are cocaine related.

480
00:32:17,320 --> 00:32:20,720
It doesn't take much cocaine
to affect the heart's function -

481
00:32:20,720 --> 00:32:23,120
a couple of lines
can have a massive impact.

482
00:32:23,120 --> 00:32:28,560
Even occasional users
can have problems,
taking them by surprise.

483
00:32:30,960 --> 00:32:34,440
Tom is a 19-year-old musician
who lives in Portsmouth.

484
00:32:34,440 --> 00:32:38,800
He started taking cocaine
a couple of years ago.

485
00:32:38,800 --> 00:32:43,640
I was just at a party
and, literally, someone was doing it
and they just said,

486
00:32:43,640 --> 00:32:47,880
"Do you want that one?"
And I just went, "Yeah, OK."

487
00:32:47,880 --> 00:32:51,960
I was just really chatting
and just full of energy.

488
00:32:51,960 --> 00:32:55,520
And just like, "Whoa!"
Do you know what I mean?

489
00:33:00,760 --> 00:33:02,320
From that party,

490
00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:07,760
it became a thing where
I would do it a few times a week,
mostly at the weekends.

491
00:33:07,760 --> 00:33:11,400
I was probably taking about a gram
over the course of a weekend.

492
00:33:19,880 --> 00:33:22,320
Tom started to get
occasional chest pains,

493
00:33:22,320 --> 00:33:26,040
so he went to a doctor,
who told him it was indigestion.

494
00:33:26,040 --> 00:33:32,800
A few weeks later, I was having a
gathering with my friends, got some
coke, took it, thought nothing of it.

495
00:33:32,800 --> 00:33:37,160
The next day, Tom visited London
with his family

496
00:33:37,160 --> 00:33:41,640
I'd had this pain in my arm all day,
but I didn't take notice of it.
Then, all of a sudden,

497
00:33:41,640 --> 00:33:44,560
pain shot up my arm
and my chest started going tight

498
00:33:44,560 --> 00:33:49,600
and then I lost my breath.
I tapped my mum on the shoulder
to try to get her attention.

499
00:33:49,600 --> 00:33:53,000
I couldn't hear or feel nothing.
It was like everything was on mute

500
00:33:53,000 --> 00:33:56,120
and I was just looking at life,
but without being in it.

501
00:33:56,120 --> 00:34:00,160
And then I just had this breath
come up and I went,
"I need to go to hospital."

502
00:34:00,160 --> 00:34:04,160
Then it was straight through to
the emergency rooms,

503
00:34:04,160 --> 00:34:08,080
in a bed with your oxygen mask,
with your heart wired up,

504
00:34:08,080 --> 00:34:11,040
with needle in your arm,
fluids going in.

505
00:34:11,040 --> 00:34:14,880
Everything they had to keep me going
was on.

506
00:34:14,880 --> 00:34:19,160
Absolutely terrified. It was
the scariest thing
that's ever happened to me

507
00:34:22,160 --> 00:34:26,800
The cocaine that Tom had taken
caused a clot to form,
blocking blood getting to his heart.

508
00:34:26,800 --> 00:34:31,920
It slowed to just 28 beats per
minute and he had a heart attack.

509
00:34:31,920 --> 00:34:35,960
What have I done?
That was my exact question to myself.

510
00:34:35,960 --> 00:34:37,320
What have I done?

511
00:34:37,320 --> 00:34:42,240
I didn't realise the effect
that anything would have on people

512
00:34:42,240 --> 00:34:46,040
until you're there in...
what you could say
a death-bed, basically...

513
00:34:46,040 --> 00:34:48,600
It could have been your death bed.

514
00:34:48,600 --> 00:34:50,680
..with family next to you,
in tears.

515
00:34:50,680 --> 00:34:53,240
The scariest thing ever.

516
00:34:53,240 --> 00:34:56,560
There's nothing worse than thinking
that you could be dead,

517
00:34:56,560 --> 00:35:00,080
cos that's the end.
Once you're gone, you're gone.

518
00:35:00,080 --> 00:35:03,360
The damage to Tom's heart meant
that, at just 17 years old,

519
00:35:03,360 --> 00:35:06,560
he would need a pacemaker
to regulate his heartbeat.

520
00:35:06,560 --> 00:35:08,480
That's the battery.

521
00:35:08,480 --> 00:35:12,280
Then the wire, um,
actually comes up here

522
00:35:12,280 --> 00:35:16,800
and then it goes round
and then it goes into your heart

523
00:35:16,800 --> 00:35:19,440
and into the chambers that
aren't working,

524
00:35:19,440 --> 00:35:22,040
and it gives that, um,
electrical shock

525
00:35:22,040 --> 00:35:26,600
that it needs to work properly.

526
00:35:26,600 --> 00:35:28,280
It's in there for ever.

527
00:35:28,280 --> 00:35:30,240
Without that, I'm not...

528
00:35:30,240 --> 00:35:32,880
I'm not here.

529
00:35:34,400 --> 00:35:38,120
Although still rare,
the number of cocaine-related 
deaths in Britain

530
00:35:38,120 --> 00:35:43,680
has increased five times
in the last decade, as cocaine use
has become more common.

531
00:35:43,680 --> 00:35:46,080
But cocaine maintains its appeal

532
00:35:46,080 --> 00:35:51,040
and users take even greater risks 
by mixing it with other substances,
like alcohol.

533
00:35:54,760 --> 00:35:57,320
INDISTINCT CHATTER

534
00:36:00,200 --> 00:36:04,360
For Liam, drinking and cocaine
go hand in hand.

535
00:36:04,360 --> 00:36:07,800
He and his friends are
at their local for a session.

536
00:36:13,720 --> 00:36:16,720
'I don't have it
unless I've been drinking as well.'

537
00:36:16,720 --> 00:36:20,520
I couldn't just sniff coke ever,
no chance. I wouldn't do it.

538
00:36:20,520 --> 00:36:24,720
'You always want a beer after,
or you want to be drunk
before you have some.'

539
00:36:24,720 --> 00:36:28,640
Drinking, it's a must for me.
And for most people.

540
00:36:28,640 --> 00:36:33,840
Many share Liam's view.
61% of people that take cocaine
drink at the same time.

541
00:36:33,840 --> 00:36:39,000
One of the side effects of cocaine is
that people can feel a bit anxious,

542
00:36:39,000 --> 00:36:45,160
a little bit too jittery,
and consuming alcohol kind of
turns the volume down on that.

543
00:36:45,160 --> 00:36:47,880
So it can reduce that anxiety
and that twitchiness.

544
00:36:47,880 --> 00:36:49,760
Ryan does a line.

545
00:36:54,120 --> 00:36:55,400
< How does it feel?

546
00:36:55,400 --> 00:36:57,120
That feels good, man.

547
00:36:57,120 --> 00:36:58,800
< On top of the world!

548
00:36:58,800 --> 00:37:04,120
Say if you've been drinking
all day and you have a line,
it helps you out, you know?

549
00:37:04,120 --> 00:37:06,480
I think it feels better.

550
00:37:08,360 --> 00:37:14,120
When users drink and take coke
at the same time, their liver forms
a chemical called cocaethylene.

551
00:37:14,120 --> 00:37:20,120
This cocaethylene is pumped
through the blood up to the brain,
where, like cocaine,

552
00:37:20,120 --> 00:37:24,200
it also causes the release
of dopamine, making users high.

553
00:37:24,200 --> 00:37:28,520
The effects are quite similar
to cocaine - there's euphoria,

554
00:37:28,520 --> 00:37:33,480
confidence, talkativeness,
but the effects last a lot longer.

555
00:37:35,320 --> 00:37:40,800
The high from cocaethylene
can make people feel less anxious
than just cocaine...

556
00:37:42,840 --> 00:37:45,880
..but it also stimulates nerve cells
in the heart

557
00:37:45,880 --> 00:37:50,840
to produce lots of noradrenaline,
making it beat three times faster
than cocaine alone.

558
00:37:52,360 --> 00:37:57,160
The blood vessels get even tighter,
and blood pressure shoots up,

559
00:37:57,160 --> 00:38:02,000
making users much more likely
to die from a heart attack than
taking cocaine on its own.

560
00:38:04,960 --> 00:38:07,760
The risks from mixing coke
and booze are all the worse

561
00:38:07,760 --> 00:38:12,360
because cocaine allows users
to drink far more
than they normally would.

562
00:38:14,040 --> 00:38:18,720
Half of regular users drank
for more than 12 hours
on their last night out on cocaine,

563
00:38:18,720 --> 00:38:22,040
and a third
for more than 24 hours.

564
00:38:22,040 --> 00:38:25,960
If you've been sniffing,
you can drink loads.
You're not pissed. You're up,

565
00:38:25,960 --> 00:38:29,080
You're on a stimulant.
Beer is a bit more of a downer.

566
00:38:29,080 --> 00:38:32,400
These prolonged sessions not only
put the heart under strain,

567
00:38:32,400 --> 00:38:38,080
the quantity of alcohol consumed
can also harm the rest of the body.

568
00:38:38,080 --> 00:38:42,800
You can drink all night. I suppose
it's bad. If you don't
realise what you're drinking, then...

569
00:38:43,280 --> 00:38:44,960
THEY CHATTER

570
00:38:44,960 --> 00:38:49,200
For many, coke has become
nothing more than
a pick-me-up with their pint,

571
00:38:49,200 --> 00:38:51,040
but it could get them arrested.

572
00:38:52,720 --> 00:38:56,440
Back in Kent, the police drug squad
are moving onto a nightclub

573
00:38:56,440 --> 00:39:01,200
and are set to be busy, because
it's night-time when the
cocaine detector gets the most hits.

574
00:39:09,000 --> 00:39:16,640
'Cocaine is everywhere. It's seen
as a recreational drug, so to speak,
and people use it quite openly.'

575
00:39:16,640 --> 00:39:20,440
I think cocaine is so popular
because it is so easy to get hold of.

576
00:39:20,440 --> 00:39:23,320
It's probably even easier
than cannabis to get hold of.

577
00:39:23,320 --> 00:39:25,560
Can I check your hands, please?

578
00:39:25,560 --> 00:39:27,360
Just give me your hand.

579
00:39:28,760 --> 00:39:30,600
Ever used drugs?

580
00:39:30,600 --> 00:39:35,040
People that want to come into
the club this evening
have to agree to a hand scan.

581
00:39:35,040 --> 00:39:39,680
When we do these operations,
we would normally test between
200 and 300 people a night.

582
00:39:39,680 --> 00:39:47,440
Out of those 200 or 300, probably
30-ish would come up with significant
traces of cocaine on their hands,

583
00:39:47,440 --> 00:39:49,440
and following on from that,

584
00:39:49,440 --> 00:39:55,080
probably anywhere between
two and seven or eight of those 30
would have cocaine on them.

585
00:39:55,080 --> 00:40:01,960
83% of clubbers surveyed across
the country said they had
used cocaine in the last year.

586
00:40:01,960 --> 00:40:04,400
When did you last use cocaine?
Yesterday.

587
00:40:04,400 --> 00:40:06,760
Thanks for being honest.
Makes it easier.

588
00:40:06,760 --> 00:40:10,800
Have you used cocaine?
Yesterday night was the last time.
Yesterday night?

589
00:40:10,800 --> 00:40:15,760
You sure? Yes.
I'm going to give you a search, OK?

590
00:40:15,760 --> 00:40:17,960
What's your name? Joe.

591
00:40:17,960 --> 00:40:23,440
Many more people test positive
for cocaine than are
found in possession of the drug.

592
00:40:27,360 --> 00:40:30,120
You've got exceptionally high
traces of cocaine...

593
00:40:30,120 --> 00:40:32,960
The people that trigger
high readings on the scanner

594
00:40:32,960 --> 00:40:36,160
but don't have any cocaine on them
haven't broken the law,

595
00:40:36,160 --> 00:40:40,840
but they are refused entry
to the club and ordered
to go home for the night.

596
00:40:42,680 --> 00:40:48,360
As the evening wears on, the scanner
keeps getting hit after hit,
and the searches continue.

597
00:40:48,360 --> 00:40:52,240
Do you understand the reason
why I'm searching you? For drugs.

598
00:40:52,240 --> 00:40:54,640
Have you got any drugs on you?
No, Officer.

599
00:40:54,640 --> 00:40:56,480
The stakes are high.

600
00:40:56,480 --> 00:41:00,440
People that are found with
cocaine on them could face jail.

601
00:41:00,440 --> 00:41:05,520
What is this, then?
That's a bit of powder, mate.
Tell me what it is. Cocaine.

602
00:41:05,520 --> 00:41:08,920
Have you got any more on you? No...
Eh?

603
00:41:08,920 --> 00:41:10,600
What's that, then?

604
00:41:10,600 --> 00:41:13,040
Put your hand out.
Keep your hand out.

605
00:41:16,960 --> 00:41:18,880
Are you arresting me?

606
00:41:18,880 --> 00:41:22,520
POLICEMAN READS RIGHTS
That's fine.

607
00:41:22,520 --> 00:41:25,440
Do you understand the reason why
you've been arrested?

608
00:41:25,440 --> 00:41:30,320
Yes, I do, Officer. Is there
anything you want to say? So much
for a decent birthday, eh?

609
00:41:30,320 --> 00:41:33,960
This man later pleaded guilty
to possession of cocaine.

610
00:41:33,960 --> 00:41:39,920
Because he had a relatively small
amount and it was his first offence,
he avoided a custodial sentence.

611
00:41:39,920 --> 00:41:45,200
Cocaine use has gone up,
without a shadow of a doubt, over
the last ten years, quite a lot.

612
00:41:45,200 --> 00:41:48,240
'Out of rehab and straight into
serious trouble,

613
00:41:48,240 --> 00:41:51,160
'Lindsay Lohan seems to be
out of control.'

614
00:41:51,160 --> 00:41:55,440
We also found a small amount of
cocaine in her pocket.

615
00:41:55,440 --> 00:42:00,040
Despite becoming widespread, cocaine
remains a newsworthy story.

616
00:42:00,040 --> 00:42:04,160
'Singer Pete Doherty has pleaded
guilty to possessing cocaine.

617
00:42:04,160 --> 00:42:06,880
'Magistrates were told
the drugs were found in his car.'

618
00:42:06,880 --> 00:42:10,760
Every time a famous person
gets caught snorting a line
or in possession,

619
00:42:10,760 --> 00:42:13,480
it's guaranteed to make headlines.

620
00:42:13,480 --> 00:42:19,320
A UN report blamed celebrity
cocaine culture for making the drug
socially acceptable in Britain.

621
00:42:19,320 --> 00:42:22,800
In the UK, we take more than
people in America,

622
00:42:22,800 --> 00:42:24,880
or anywhere else in Europe.

623
00:42:36,200 --> 00:42:40,760
As the number of people that
take coke have gone up,
rates of addiction have soared.

624
00:42:40,760 --> 00:42:44,600
Sometimes when it starts
to wear off, you feel like
you want another line,

625
00:42:44,600 --> 00:42:46,320
but that depends on the person.

626
00:42:46,320 --> 00:42:49,400
Some people have
addictive personalities. I don't.

627
00:42:49,400 --> 00:42:55,720
When you first start doing coke it's
very addictive. You annihilate it
and take it to the extremes.

628
00:42:55,720 --> 00:42:59,960
These days,
I don't take coke that often.

629
00:42:59,960 --> 00:43:05,680
But last year I was taking it
pretty much every day.

630
00:43:05,680 --> 00:43:09,160
Now it would be
special occasions going out.

631
00:43:14,200 --> 00:43:17,400
When I did take it, often you're just
chasing that high all the time.

632
00:43:17,400 --> 00:43:23,520
It was difficult to stop doing
it because you're doing it all
the time but now I enjoy it more

633
00:43:23,520 --> 00:43:25,240
because it's much more sporadic.

634
00:43:27,120 --> 00:43:32,040
One of the unusual things about
cocaine is, I think it does
tend to creep up on people.

635
00:43:32,040 --> 00:43:38,480
People can use cocaine
intranasally, snorting it,
for many months and years

636
00:43:38,480 --> 00:43:42,320
within what they would consider
quite a functional social setting.

637
00:43:42,320 --> 00:43:47,320
Gradually, the amount and frequency
and the consequences
of use build up.

638
00:43:47,320 --> 00:43:53,320
Cocaine is powerfully addictive,
but the need to use is
psychological, not physical.

639
00:43:53,320 --> 00:43:55,960
Addicts become obsessed
with the cocaine high.

640
00:43:55,960 --> 00:44:01,160
There's a sense that being addicted
to cocaine is a disorder of memory.

641
00:44:01,160 --> 00:44:09,040
The world becomes a place in which
people, places, objects, even smells

642
00:44:09,040 --> 00:44:13,400
have become quite strongly
associated with using cocaine.

643
00:44:13,400 --> 00:44:18,920
And they become very powerful
triggers to make the person use.

644
00:44:18,920 --> 00:44:26,000
About 1 person in 20 who
takes the drug for the first time
becomes addicted in the first year.

645
00:44:26,000 --> 00:44:30,360
And about a fifth of users become
addicted in their lifetime.

646
00:44:35,800 --> 00:44:38,840
Soon after getting a job
in the city as a money broker,

647
00:44:38,840 --> 00:44:42,160
Jonathan developed a serious
addiction to cocaine.

648
00:44:45,040 --> 00:44:50,160
My first line ever,
it just blew me away.

649
00:44:50,160 --> 00:44:54,480
I was strutting round thinking
I'm Billy Big-bollocks,
thinking I own the place.

650
00:44:54,480 --> 00:44:59,120
It made me feel like I was the most
important person in the room.

651
00:44:59,120 --> 00:45:03,680
And it very quickly progressed from
half a gram every couple of weeks,

652
00:45:03,680 --> 00:45:08,880
to a gram every week,
to two grams three times a week,

653
00:45:08,880 --> 00:45:13,080
then suddenly I might be going out
every night of the week

654
00:45:13,080 --> 00:45:17,680
and I would come into work on a
Monday saying, "Oh, heavy weekend -
might have a light one tonight"

655
00:45:17,680 --> 00:45:22,200
and it gets to five o'clock
and someone says, "Jon, you
coming for a quick one?"

656
00:45:22,200 --> 00:45:24,280
I say, "Yeah, just a quick
one, that's not a problem."

657
00:45:24,280 --> 00:45:29,000
Go to bar, have a quick one.
Quick one turns into four.
There's a guy on his way

658
00:45:29,000 --> 00:45:33,240
because the phones have come out and
there's a bit of powder going round.

659
00:45:33,240 --> 00:45:38,240
We go from pub to bar,
then from bar to club there's a guy
on his way with some more stuff.

660
00:45:38,240 --> 00:45:42,480
Then back to the office,
we would be in the smoking
room, on the dealing-room floor,

661
00:45:42,480 --> 00:45:45,320
doing line after line off the table.

662
00:45:45,320 --> 00:45:49,360
Well, I'D be doing line after line,
that's the thing.

663
00:45:49,360 --> 00:45:52,760
When I'm using, I think everyone else
is behaving like me.

664
00:45:52,760 --> 00:45:55,920
Truth is, when I look back,
I am, far and away, the worst.

665
00:45:58,360 --> 00:46:02,440
Get to 5:00 or 6:00am,
people start coming
into work and it's like...

666
00:46:03,440 --> 00:46:05,400
I've got to go
and sit at my desk.

667
00:46:05,400 --> 00:46:08,880
And I've got to try and stay awake
and do my job.

668
00:46:08,880 --> 00:46:14,120
I struggle through it,
thinking all day,
"I've got to go home tonight.

669
00:46:14,120 --> 00:46:16,480
"I got to get some sleep."

670
00:46:16,480 --> 00:46:20,280
Some weeks maybe I wouldn't go
home between Monday and Friday.

671
00:46:20,280 --> 00:46:23,120
It would be three, four grams
every night I could get it -

672
00:46:23,120 --> 00:46:25,280
six or seven nights a week.

673
00:46:26,800 --> 00:46:30,960
I would take as much as I could
afford to buy on any one night.

674
00:46:33,600 --> 00:46:40,520
The repeated exposure to cocaine
that an addict's brain is subjected
to causes it to physically change.

675
00:46:42,920 --> 00:46:46,400
To regulate the constant
triggering of the feel-good network,

676
00:46:46,400 --> 00:46:50,440
the brain kills off some of
the receptors on the nerve cells.

677
00:46:50,440 --> 00:46:56,040
With fewer receptors on each nerve
cell, it takes much more dopamine
to trigger happy feelings...

678
00:46:56,040 --> 00:47:01,240
more than is released by normal
sources, such as food or sex.

679
00:47:01,240 --> 00:47:05,320
Only cocaine can
release enough dopamine
to trigger their feel-good network.

680
00:47:07,320 --> 00:47:12,400
After a while, addicts crave
a line not to feel high,
but to feel less bad...

681
00:47:12,400 --> 00:47:14,040
more normal.

682
00:47:14,040 --> 00:47:21,200
I did get pleasure from it still,
occasionally, but less
as time went on,

683
00:47:21,200 --> 00:47:23,200
less each time I did it.

684
00:47:24,720 --> 00:47:27,280
It very quickly fell away.

685
00:47:30,640 --> 00:47:36,560
Until, eventually, I was just
doing it because I needed it.

686
00:47:36,560 --> 00:47:39,240
It wasn't making me
feel good any more.

687
00:47:44,200 --> 00:47:49,520
Eventually, because I am so petrified
every time I am at work
that I am going to cock up,

688
00:47:49,520 --> 00:47:54,440
do something wrong,
that people don't like me,
people think I am an idiot...

689
00:47:54,440 --> 00:48:02,000
I am so petrified that, eventually,
I am shaking, having panic attacks,

690
00:48:02,000 --> 00:48:07,240
I've got mad paranoia and I phone in
one day and say, "I can't go to work,

691
00:48:07,240 --> 00:48:10,200
"I think I'm having
a nervous breakdown."

692
00:48:12,840 --> 00:48:18,960
Signed off work by his doctor
on full pay, Jonathan's addiction
spiralled out of control.

693
00:48:18,960 --> 00:48:23,280
I isolated more and more and more.

694
00:48:23,280 --> 00:48:25,960
But I keep doing it because
it's all I know how to do...

695
00:48:28,000 --> 00:48:31,080
..so it carries on.

696
00:48:31,080 --> 00:48:33,600
And, er,

697
00:48:33,600 --> 00:48:36,480
some stuff went on, my granddad died

698
00:48:38,000 --> 00:48:44,320
and I couldn't go to be by his
bedside because I had to go and use.

699
00:48:44,320 --> 00:48:50,320
A week after that, I manufacture an
argument with my family and I end up

700
00:48:50,320 --> 00:48:56,000
fighting my little old mum
for money for coke.

701
00:48:57,280 --> 00:49:02,760
I don't want to be doing this but
I have to because I have to have it.

702
00:49:03,760 --> 00:49:06,880
They end up pinning me down
and phoning the police.

703
00:49:06,880 --> 00:49:10,920
The police are marching me
out of my Mum and Dad's house

704
00:49:10,920 --> 00:49:14,800
and we're going down the stairs
and I just can't do this any more.

705
00:49:16,320 --> 00:49:18,880
I see a knife in the kitchen,
so I slip the guy's grip,

706
00:49:18,880 --> 00:49:22,760
run into the kitchen, grab the knife
and slash my wrists up

707
00:49:22,760 --> 00:49:27,280
and the ambulance turns up
and they take me to the hospital.

708
00:49:27,280 --> 00:49:32,760
Having reached rock bottom,
Jonathan sought help from a
support group for cocaine addicts.

709
00:49:32,760 --> 00:49:35,240
I had nowhere else to go.

710
00:49:35,240 --> 00:49:38,360
For me, that's the reality of my
addiction. I have to be broken.

711
00:49:38,360 --> 00:49:40,960
I have to know that
I can't do it myself.

712
00:49:40,960 --> 00:49:44,440
I have to have that illusion
of control shattered.

713
00:49:44,440 --> 00:49:47,840
He has managed to stay clean
for three years

714
00:49:47,840 --> 00:49:51,280
and now helps other people
working to beat their addictions.

715
00:49:51,280 --> 00:49:54,800
Truth is, I never, ever want
to go back to it. Never.

716
00:49:54,800 --> 00:50:02,000
Because no matter how long I chased
that first high I never got close
to it, never got close to it again.

717
00:50:11,280 --> 00:50:13,280
Quick, cover. Oh, I'm dead. I'm dead.

718
00:50:14,680 --> 00:50:19,800
It's 1:00 am and Liam is
at a friend's house for
a session on the Xbox.

719
00:50:19,800 --> 00:50:24,440
He's been doing coke
for several hours now.

720
00:50:28,680 --> 00:50:32,440
Best one, that was, for me.
Been trying to chill out
all afternoon.

721
00:50:32,440 --> 00:50:35,080
Had that now, so feel sound, like.

722
00:50:36,800 --> 00:50:38,600
Look at him! Watch this - bang!

723
00:50:38,600 --> 00:50:41,760
And look - get him
out the fence, man!

724
00:50:41,760 --> 00:50:48,160
But pretty soon,
a day of drinking and doing lines
begins to take its toll on Liam.

725
00:50:48,160 --> 00:50:54,800
Can't chill out, man. Really
agitated, had a few lines.
Just creeps up on you, as well.

726
00:50:54,800 --> 00:50:58,040
I've been drinking most of the day

727
00:51:01,240 --> 00:51:04,280
Cocaine causes the adrenal glands
to produce cortisol -

728
00:51:04,280 --> 00:51:06,080
the stress hormone.

729
00:51:07,600 --> 00:51:12,760
This normally happens when
we're in threatening situations,
to prepare us for physical action.

730
00:51:14,280 --> 00:51:19,560
Elevated levels of the hormone
also make people feel
anxious and restless.

731
00:51:19,560 --> 00:51:23,800
The longer a cocaine session lasts
the more these unpleasant feelings
can be felt

732
00:51:23,800 --> 00:51:26,360
as the level of cortisol rises.

733
00:51:26,360 --> 00:51:28,720
Mate, this is dead hard.

734
00:51:28,720 --> 00:51:32,520
Feel really spaced out now,
just want to go home
and lie on my bed.

735
00:51:32,520 --> 00:51:35,600
Going to be tossing and turning,
doing my head in, like.

736
00:51:35,600 --> 00:51:41,800
Meanwhile, over in Bristol, Damian's
supplies of cocaine have run out

737
00:51:41,800 --> 00:51:44,600
and the party is
starting to wind down.

738
00:51:44,600 --> 00:51:48,240
Evening's been cool, enjoyed myself,

739
00:51:48,240 --> 00:51:51,240
but the coke's worn down now.

740
00:51:51,240 --> 00:51:54,240
Just need some more, ha!

741
00:51:54,240 --> 00:51:56,280
Kind of winding down, yeah, yeah.

742
00:52:09,880 --> 00:52:15,040
By 11:00am the next morning,
everyone is suffering
the full effects of a big night.

743
00:52:16,560 --> 00:52:20,160
Damian has disappeared altogether
and Josie has only just gone to bed,

744
00:52:20,160 --> 00:52:23,320
surrounded by
the aftermath of the party.

745
00:52:23,320 --> 00:52:27,760
Have you seen it,
the state of the place?

746
00:52:30,520 --> 00:52:32,520
What time is it?

747
00:52:32,520 --> 00:52:35,080
Have you been to bed?

748
00:52:36,600 --> 00:52:41,680
What do you think? It's bed time now.

749
00:52:41,680 --> 00:52:45,440
That's all I've got
to say on the matter.

750
00:52:49,320 --> 00:52:54,000
Cocaine can cause people
to feel down the next day,
just like alcohol.

751
00:52:54,000 --> 00:52:58,440
Liam is hoping that a fry-up might
make the world seem a better place.

752
00:52:58,440 --> 00:53:01,160
His friend's identity
is concealed for legal reasons.

753
00:53:01,160 --> 00:53:04,360
I'll have a large breakfast.
Two breakfasts.

754
00:53:07,160 --> 00:53:11,280
I feel quite intoxicated, I do.
You know when you're just like...

755
00:53:11,280 --> 00:53:13,000
Feel like shite. Feel poisoned.

756
00:53:14,840 --> 00:53:17,960
I feel a bit drained, to be fair.

757
00:53:17,960 --> 00:53:21,360
Takes it out of you. Never again.

758
00:53:21,360 --> 00:53:25,680
It makes you feel bad
after a blow out, the day after.

759
00:53:25,680 --> 00:53:30,160
When I have been on a session
I get a bit cranky, mardy,

760
00:53:30,160 --> 00:53:34,440
I supposed I've had no sleep
or been trying to get to sleep.

761
00:53:38,800 --> 00:53:44,800
The cocaine hangover
is down to the way in which
the drug makes users feel high.

762
00:53:44,800 --> 00:53:47,640
The euphoria of cocaine
comes from the release of

763
00:53:47,640 --> 00:53:51,480
large amounts of the feel-good
chemical messenger dopamine.

764
00:53:51,480 --> 00:53:57,640
Because the drug blocks the dopamine
from being re-cycled, it stays
in the gap between nerve cells.

765
00:53:57,640 --> 00:54:00,800
Eventually, it breaks down
and disappears.

766
00:54:02,320 --> 00:54:06,680
It takes several days
for nerve cells to replenish
the stocks of dopamine.

767
00:54:07,680 --> 00:54:12,800
After a cocaine binge, the shortage
of dopamine stops the feel-good
network functioning properly,

768
00:54:12,800 --> 00:54:15,160
making users feel down.

769
00:54:15,160 --> 00:54:19,880
The cocaine comedown is really
about feeling depressed and fed up.

770
00:54:19,880 --> 00:54:23,960
And that is because
the brain's dopamine system -

771
00:54:23,960 --> 00:54:28,320
this pleasure chemical -
is struggling to get back to normal.

772
00:54:28,320 --> 00:54:33,960
But Liam's hangover is all the worse
because the cocaine he took
allowed him to drink so much.

773
00:54:33,960 --> 00:54:41,560
It creeps up on you.
Don't realise how much you're
drinking then it hits you.

774
00:54:41,560 --> 00:54:45,560
But, despite the hangover,
it looks like Liam will be
heading out again very soon.

775
00:54:46,480 --> 00:54:48,320
Are you getting any more?

776
00:54:48,320 --> 00:54:51,360
I've still got some left.

777
00:54:57,440 --> 00:55:01,480
For Liam, the cocaine hangover
is just the price you pay
for a big night out

778
00:55:01,480 --> 00:55:04,120
and the drug
is part of normal life.

779
00:55:04,120 --> 00:55:10,400
It's everywhere now.
I don't know many people that
don't have something to do with it.

780
00:55:10,400 --> 00:55:12,120
A lot of people have it.

781
00:55:12,120 --> 00:55:14,560
It's hard to get away from.

782
00:55:14,560 --> 00:55:18,920
But for Tom, using cocaine
changed him irreversibly.

783
00:55:18,920 --> 00:55:24,800
Imagine being told that part of your
body's not working, and it's your
fault because you took cocaine.

784
00:55:28,480 --> 00:55:31,960
Josie and Damian are split
on whether they'll give up coke.

785
00:55:31,960 --> 00:55:35,680
I ain't going to give up coke
I ain't got no reason to.

786
00:55:35,680 --> 00:55:42,440
I'm going to knock coke on the head
quite soon. I'm 29 now,
coming into my 30's.

787
00:55:42,440 --> 00:55:48,040
I want to get really on top
of my entrepreneurial activities

788
00:55:48,040 --> 00:55:53,120
and I don't think coke has got
a part in that at all.

789
00:55:53,120 --> 00:55:57,080
Despite the risks, cocaine
maintains its appeal to many.

790
00:55:57,080 --> 00:56:01,440
With its price at an all-time low,
it has never been more accessible

791
00:56:01,440 --> 00:56:04,840
and the drug looks set to become
a part of more people's lives.

792
00:56:05,680 --> 00:56:12,880
Cocaine has been a remarkably
popular drug, globally,
for the last 100, 150 years.

793
00:56:12,880 --> 00:56:17,400
I don't think its appeal is going
to diminish any time soon.

794
00:56:40,320 --> 00:56:43,360
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

795
00:56:43,360 --> 00:56:46,400
E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk