Methamphetamine: The Facts

It’s cheap.  It’s easy to get.  And it comes in many different flavors and forms.

            It kills.

            It’s methamphetamine, and it may be in your neighborhood.  Since the 60’s, methamphetamine has devastated thousands of towns across America, the number of users increasing each year.  And in recent years, it’s hit its climax.  Is there any way to stop the devastation, families ask.  The answer is yes.

            Methamphetamine, also known as speed, crystal, meth, crank, go, ice, L.A. ice, L.A. glass, metho, poor man’s coke, yellow powder, and many more, is an amphetamine, a group of synthetic drugs commonly called “speed” or “uppers”.  Amphetamines are stimulants- they kick the body into emergency mode and release adrenaline in high amount.  Amphetamines are similar in structure to ephedrine, found in the plant species Ephedraceae, found in Asia, Europe, both Americas, and the Mediterranean.  Ephedrine has been used in China for thousands of years for Asthma and Ephedra is used for weight loss, energy boosts, or enhancing athletic performance.  The NFL, NBA, and the International Olympic Committee have all banned amphetamines but the MLB has not.  Amphetamines increase confidence and aggression, but don’t improve athletic performance.  They actually impair judgement, which can lead to injuries.  The Chinese first developed amphetamines thousands of years ago. 

             Diet pills such as Dexatrim and Acutrim contain amphetamines.  Some dieters experienced light-headedness, hallucinations, paranoia, and addiction.  Blurred vision was common.  More than 80% of prescription amphetamine use is for ADHD treatment.  Adderall is the most commonly prescribed and the most commonly abused prescription amphetamine.

            Methamphetamine is the most commonly abused form of amphetamine and is highly addictive.  Legally available by prescription and sometimes prescribed for ADHD and obesity, methamphetamine is the most widespread illegally made and abused amphetamine today.  There have been large increases in methamphetamine-related deaths since 1992.

            There are 132 street terms related to meth known to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, from bathtub crank to geep to L.A. ice to poor man’s coke to Super Ice to yellow powder to Ya Ba, a pure and powerful form from Thailand.  Pure powder is white, odorless, and bitter-tasting.  Even the smoke is odorless.  It’s similar to the crack form of cocaine, but has much longer-lasting effects.  Users generally smoke chunks of the very pure form of crystal meth, but it can also be inhaled through the nose, injected, or even eaten.  Street ice is usually off-white or yellowish powder, crystals, or chunks, but sometimes come in tablets or capsules.  It can be colored as well.

            Meth has been around for decades- “Speed Freaks” used it in the late ‘60’s.  Most widespread amphetamine is illegally made and abused today in small clandestine labs that can be as compact to fit in a duffle bag.  Common ingredients of meth include cold and asthma medications, red phosphorous, hydrochloric acid, drain cleaner, battery acid, lye, lantern fuel, and antifreeze.  The production involves volatile chemicals and toxic by-products, and endangers the meth cooks, people in the lab, neighbors, the law officials who discover it, and the environment.  Decreases in domestic production have been offset by increased production in Mexico.  Mexican criminal groups have presently gained control over distribution of the drug through the Midwest, Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, Florida/Caribbean, Southeast, and West Central regions.  These groups pose an increased challenge to local police– they are often Mexico-based, well organized, and experienced drug distributors successful in blending into Hispanic communities and among workers.  Meth production can be easily hidden, as law enforcement reporting shows that meth labs were discovered on federal lands throughout America, in or near caves, cabins, recreation areas, abandoned mines, and private vehicles on federal land. 

            The effects of methamphetamine are widespread and deadly.  Most of these effects happen very soon after taking the drug, quickest if smoked.  Increased use has been linked to weight loss, but you wouldn’t want to use ice if you want to look good, and that’s for sure.  It causes loss of muscle, acne, other skin lesions, and makes you smell bad.  But that’s just the outside.  Effects of methamphetamine use include an increase in blood pressure and a pounding heart sensation, which can lead to heart block or circulatory collapse.  Other effects include dilated pupils, blurred vision, dry mouth, increase in breathing rates, severe headaches, trembling hands, nausea, excessive sweating, dizziness, weight loss and malnutrition, restlessness, anxiety, talkativeness, impaired judgment, being impulsive, insomnia, confusion, convulsions and tremors, and death.  Long term effects include paranoia, aggressiveness, extreme anorexia, memory loss, visual and auditory hallucinations, sounds paranoia, delusions, and severe dental problems.  Sharing needles can also spread HIV and hepatitis B and C.

            As a tolerance for the drug is developed, the initial euphoria or high is replaced by depression.  Along with hallucinations, paranoia, and delusions, users may be hard to understand, nervous and agitated, angry, emotional, and moody.  They are prone to violence, and begin to lose control of their emotions.

            Methamphetamine is a Schedule II stimulant, which means it has a high potential for abuse, and indeed, in 2004, nearly 12 million Americans had tried methamphetamine, according to a National Survey on Drug Use and Health.  It is highly addictive and used mainly through the ages of 18 and 34, though teen use has climbed in recent years.

            But law enforcement agencies are cracking down on methamphetamine abuse.  On March 9, 2006, President Bush signed the USA PATRIOT Act of 2005, which includes provisions strengthening Federal, state, and local efforts of combating meth.  In 2006 alone, 5,395 Federal defendants were sentenced on meth-related charges and the Drug Enforcement Administration reported 6,090 meth-related arrests in 2005.  However, methamphetamine production is still high in America, especially in the mid-section of the country, where Missouri had almost twice as many meth lab busts in 2004 than the second-highest state.  2,237 is a lot of meth lab busts.  However, law enforcement is cracking down, and there is a hotline in that region of the country for reporting a meth lab in your neighborhood.  You can call the Crank Hotline at 1-888-664-4673 if you suspect a meth lab in your neighborhood.

However, for methamphetamine addicts, there is help.  Crystal Meth Anonymous is an organization to help crystal meth addicts.  The people attend meetings and seek help to stay sober.  There are also clinics and offices across the country to help.  You can contact the ARS Pantop Clinic in Charlottesville for meth addiction treatment.

            Methamphetamine is widespread and likely in your hometown.  The devastation has hit millions across America and across the globe.  Its effects are far-reaching, shattering the lives of users, family, and all who know them.  One young teen who once used ice described it as setting out all your dreams before you and then ripping them all to shreds.  It’s cheap, easy to get, and guaranteed to destroy your life.  Sound good?