Methamphetamine Addiction: "Speed" Still KillsMethamphetamine Addiction: "Speed" Still Kills
Feature Articles - Research/Scientific
Friday, 31 January 2003

Charles Manson and his crew, high on methamphetamine, were responsible for the Sharon Tate murder. The HellÕs Angels were guarding the stage at Altamont Speedway at a Rolling Stones concert when the concertgoers rushed the stage. The guards, high on "speed," killed some and injured others. The children of the 60s remember that methamphetamine destroyed the Summer of Love in San Francisco in 1967.

There is an old adage in the addictions field that if you wait long enough the same drug will cycle every 20 to 30 years. Although methamphetamine never really went away, the last decade has witnessed a sharp rise in use as the drug has spread from being a west coast phenomenon to a national epidemic. According to the 1994 National Survey on Drug Abuse it was estimated that 3.8 million people had tried methamphetamine during their lifetime. According to the 2000 survey this figure has climbed dramatically to 8.8 million identified lifetime users. Data from the 2000 Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN), an organization that collects information on drug-related episodes from hospital emergency rooms in 21 metropolitan areas, reported that methamphetamine-related emergencies increased from 10,400 in 1999 to 13,500 in the year 2000 - a 30-percent increase. "Speed" still kills - those seduced by its powerful, mind-altering effects die from violent acts, suicide, and accidents.

The drug goes by many names but it is commonly known as "speed," "meth," "chalk," "ice," "crank," and "glass." It is a white, odorless, bitter-tasting crystalline powder. The substance was developed early in the 20th century from its parent drug - amphetamine. It was used originally as a nasal decongestant and bronchial dilatator (http://www.nida.nih.gov/ResearchReports/Methamph2.html). From these humble beginnings it has turned into a monster.

The nature of the beast
Methamphetamine, as compared to cocaine, is "home grown." For example, with the right ingredients such as a commonly utilized over-the-counter decongestant called pseudoephedrine (Sudafed), and with a few pieces of laboratory equipment, the drug can be produced in a bathroom, kitchen, or even in the back of a van moving from place to place as a roving laboratory. A close relative in the stimulant family is cocaine. Cocaine has to be smuggled into the country while methamphetamine requires no sophisticated entry strategy. It can be made practically anywhere.

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