By SUZANNE ELSWORTH

A DEVASTATED dad has spoken of his heartache after two of his sons became addicted to heroin.

And the man identified only as Frank, of Bewsey says more education is needed to warn youngsters of the dangers of the killer drug.

He has five children, but more than 10 years ago, two of the boys, now aged 26 and 27, started the vicious downward spiral which has taken over their lives.

"I started to notice a difference in them," said Frank.

"Their eyes were glazed, they were more hyperactive, they lost their tempers very quickly and they were spaced out.

"It never occurred to me that they were taking heroin, because I thought you only injected it and there were no signs of that, then I was told that they could smoke it."

And he says their habits have wrecked not only their own lives, but also affected those around them.

"Drug addicts are selfish," he said. "They lose their conscience and destroy their families. I love my sons, but they have no life now."

Neither of the men has ever injected the drug, they have only ever smoked it, which Frank says he thinks is easier to hide. They are now receiving methadone treatment for their addictions, but their dad thinks more drastic action is needed.

"The Government goes on about ecstasy and whizz, but that's not what kills people, that's not what they crave, that's not what makes them go out on the rob. There may not be much profit in burglary, but a TV or video will get them £30 to £40. As a parent you start thinking 'where's the clock' or 'where's the cash I had in my purse.'

"Hundreds of children are dying because of heroin every year. Let's put together a death list of those who have died and use it to highlight the dangers, then they haven't died for nothing.

"We have got to stop children taking heroin, and we have got to make parents aware that some do inject it, but the majority smoke it.

"We need to start in the schools when the children are 14 or 15 and make up a leaflet with the facts for them to take home to their parents. Schools don't like admitting they have a drug problem and parents need to be able to look for the signs."

And he would like to see more intensive treatment for those sucked into the drugs trap. "We've got to get rid of the stigma attached to heroin abuse and start treating it as an illness," said Frank. "Children won't even go to their parents when they become addicted because they are too embarrassed.

"I would like them to be put in to a clinic, where they will receive no letters or visitors, so drugs cannot be smuggled in."

And he says that though he hopes his own sons will beat their addiction, he doesn't have high hopes.

"I'm not confident they will ever get off it.

"I can't believe a word they say and I will never trust them again. They've cost me thousands of pounds in fines, but that's the price you pay.

"At the end of the day, they are my children and I love them."