Friday, May 28, 2004

Senior citizens Thursday learned about methamphetamine, its effects and the telltale signs of a meth user in the first of a series of meetings to educate senior citizens about public safety issues. We want to educate our senior population on things that can be a hazard to them, said Sandi Knight, director of Senior Services for Community Action of Southern Kentucky. With this kind of thing, they can be the eyes and ears of the police department. They have a lot of offer even the people who cant get around very well anymore and people tend to forget that.Gerry Johnson of Logan County presented the seminar at Community Actions Education and Human Services Center on Fourth Street, which included photos of meth lab explosions and the havoc wreaked on the body by methamphetamine. Johnson, a retired mailman, drives a school bus for Logan County High School. As a volunteer with the Community Actions RSVP Retired and Senior Volunteer Program he presents the seminar throughout Logan County to assist the sheriffs department.He became interested after tagging along once with Sgt. Maj. Bob Gregory of the Logan County Sheriffs Department. Johnson told the audience that 59 percent of methamphetamine users are younger than 23 years old. He said his 14-year-old granddaughter was a catalyst for his interest in educating the public about methamphetamine.I want her to know everything there is to know about it, he said. I love kids and I dont want to see anything like this happen to them.Meth users generally die within about five years of starting the drug. The addiction rate after first use of meth is about 95 percent.If you take (meth), you are just signing a death warrant. Thats all youre doing, Johnson said. Methamphetamine, a narcotic that affects the central nervous system, comes in crystallized rock-like form, finely ground powder or a chunky form resembling peanut butter. A new trend, Johnson said, is to add blue food coloring to appeal to teenagers. Those who cook, but dont use, the drug generally die within 10 years, due to the toxic chemicals that are used in the manufacturing process. Those ingredients include lithium from batteries, gasoline additives, toluene and sulfuric acid, Johnson said. I had no idea what was in it and it came as a real shocker, said BJ McKenzie, an AARP member who attended the seminar after receiving information in the mail. Signs indicative of meth users are heavy traffic around homes especially at night large amounts of trash on the curb outside homes, blacked out windows, rapid hair loss and weight loss, and a strong odor of ammonia or chemicals, a smell that often resembles that of cat urine. Johnson said the meth addiction rate is quickly spreading and it is nearly impossible to rehabilitate users. Its depressing that he says theres not much you can do about it, said McKenzie, who taught nursing at Western Kentucky University for 30 years. Hopefully, the more people who know the dangers, maybe theyll talk to their children and we can spread the message a little bit better. To schedule a presentation for a church, school or civic group, call the Logan County Sheriffs Department at 726-2244.  Daily News ·813 College St. ·PO Box 90012 ·Bowling Green, KY ·42102 ·270-781-1700