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Chemicals and equipment were found in a methamphetamine manufacturing lab following a police raid on Jan. 17, 2018 in Auckland, New Zealand. New Zealand Police discovered 75 similar labs across the country. Fiona Goodall/Getty Images
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The production of methamphetamine — and the desire to consume it — is seemingly unstoppable. When precursor chemicals are brought under tight control in one country, like the United States, production simply moves to another country, such as Mexico. When Mexican authorities clamp down, it moves farther south, or into Europe or Asia. Then, the finished product is shipped right back into the very countries that have waged such a battle to eradicate it in the first place.
Most meth smuggled into the United States is made in large labs — 'superlabs' — in Mexico. There are many small meth labs in operation in the United States, but these mostly serve to feed the habits of the amateur cooks themselves.
The production of methamphetamine has been made more difficult by federal regulations, like the Combat Methamphetamine Act of 2005, aimed at controlling the flow of precursor chemicals such as ephedrine and pseudoephedrine (found in some cold remedies), as well as other necessary components. Through theft, subterfuge, forgeries, personal connections and sheer willpower, determined cooks are able to collect enough materials to make some home-grown meth.
Being determined and being safe are two different things — almost 6 pounds (2.7 kilograms) of toxic material is produced for each pound of meth cooked. This fact, however, doesn't stop crystal meth addicts from brewing sloppy batches of fuming, stinking, toxic speed in poorly ventilated environments. Houses used as meth labs are often uninhabitable afterward, and cities and states involved in meth lab busts often don't bother with seizing the property, since nobody in their right mind would purchase it at an auction, even at a steep discount. Small meth labs can be found in suburban houses, motel rooms, car trunks, in campsites or in the woods. Outdoor operations often result in water contamination and a dying-off of nearby vegetation [source: Snell].
Large-scale labs are often located inside abandoned barns or warehouses set up specifically for the purpose of factory-line production of methamphetamine. They aren't necessarily dilapidated properties. They may actually be glistening corporate-style factories that crank out countless pounds of meth per year [source: Matthews].
Much as a destination can be reached by taking one of several different routes, so too can crystal methamphetamine be produced by a number of different methods, including scary 'shake-and-bake' and 'one-pot' processes. All of them, though, involve ephedrine or pseudoephedrine. The entire process can involve as many as 32 different chemicals, but the formula varies by the ingenuity and intelligence of the 'chemists' [source: Snell].
Without getting into an exact recipe, we'll look at how large-scale operations (which are more likely to use a methodical and exact approach to their production) make crystal meth.
- If the ephedrine or pseudoephedrine isn't already in pure powder form, then it must be separated from the tablets of cold medicine that contain it. To do this, the cold medicine tablets are mixed with a solvent and the solution is then filtered and exposed to low temperatures to separate and remove the inert material of the tablet.
- The pure pseudoephedrine is then mixed with red phosphorus and hydriodic acid.
- The red phosphorus is then filtered out (and later reused), and the remaining acid is neutralized by adding a lye solution.
- A substance is added that will bind to the meth, and the liquid meth is then drained out.
- Hydrogen chloride gas is bubbled through the liquid meth, making it a crystalline hydrochloride salt.
- This is poured through a filter cloth, and the meth that is left on the filter is then dried.
- Once dry, the meth is 'stepped on' (mixed down with inert filler in order to maximize profits), weighed and packaged for shipment or sale.
This process generally takes about two days' time and can result in hundreds of thousands of methamphetamine doses.
Pure Crystal Meth
Chemical structure of Meth
Methamphetamine (also called meth or speed) is a man-made stimulantdrug.[1][2] Many people use it illegally, but it is occasionally used legally by prescription to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or obesity as 'Desoxyn'.[1][3][4]
Methamphetamine has two isomers, 'left-handed' and 'right-handed'. Left-handed methamphetamine helps fight stuffy nose and is legal. Right-handed methamphetamine makes people feel high and is mostly illegal. This page is mostly about the right-handed form.
Methamphetamine is very addictive.[2] This means that when people start taking the drug, they will want to keep taking more, even if it is making them sick.
Methamphetamine can be in powder or crystal form, and can be snorted, smoked, injected, or eaten.[5][6] In its smoked form, methamphetamine is known as 'ice,' 'crystal,' 'crank,' 'batu,' 'barang,' 'cerita,' or 'glass'.
Ways of using methamphetamine[change | change source]
Snorting[change | change source]
When meth is snorted, the methamphetamine crystals are ground up and made into little lines (also called rails). Then they are inhaled through the nose with rolled-up paper, rolled-up dollar bills, empty plastic pen tubes, short plastic straws, or other things that can be made into a small 'tube' shape.
When meth is snorted, its effects last longer than when it is smoked or injected. The effects can last as long as twelve hours.[7] However, it takes longer to feel the effects,[6] and there is not as strong of a 'rush' (a very happy feeling called euphoria).[8]
Snorting methamphetamine can damage the nasal septum on the inside of the nose. Also, if people share the same snorting tube, they can get infections.
Smoking[change | change source]
When meth is smoked, the crystals are placed into a glass pipe (called a 'meth pipe') or a hollowed-out lightbulb. The crystals are warmed up from underneath by a flame (like from a lighter or matches). The methamphetamine is not actually 'smoked' this way; it is heated up until it melts. When it melts, it turns into a gas that the user then breathes in.
Smoking meth causes euphoria to happen very quickly, and causes strong euphoria. However, the vapor (gas) can damage the lungs.
Injecting[change | change source]
Methamphetamine can be mixed with water, then put into a needle and injected. Meth can be injected under the skin (this is called 'skin-popping); into a muscle; or into a vein. Injecting meth into a vein causes the quickest, strongest euphoria.
Injecting meth can damage the body in many ways. It is very addictive. People can get infections (including HIV, hepatitis C, and many others) from dirty needles.
Eating[change | change source]
If methamphetamine is eaten, it gets absorbed into the body from the digestive system. The effects take longer to start, but they last longer.
Effects[change | change source]
Desired effects[change | change source]
Desired effects are the things people want to feel when they take methamphetamine. These include:
- Euphoria
- Having a lot of energy
- Being able to stay awake for a long time
- Losing weight
Adverse effects[change | change source]
Adverse effects are the bad things that using methamphetamine can cause. Meth has many adverse effects. For example:
Addiction[change | change source]
Methamphetamine is very addictive.[2] This means that when people start taking the drug, they will want to keep taking more, even if it is making them sick.
One of the reasons meth is so addictive is that people feel very bad when the effect begins to wear off. Many users claim to have an uncontrollable urge to get more of the drug after using it.
When people are addicted to meth, they will have withdrawalsymptoms when they do not take meth. This means they will feel tired and/or hungry when they do not have the drug. For example, without meth, people will feel anhedonia. This means they cannot feel good without taking meth.
Overdose[change | change source]
Overdosing on meth (taking too much) can make a person very sick. Some of the symptoms of methamphetamine overdose are very dangerous, and can even kill a person. For example, overdosing on meth can cause:[9]
- Very high heart rate
- Heart attack (or, in the worst cases, the heart can stop beating)
- Very high blood pressure, which can cause a stroke
- Kidney damage or kidney failure
- Coma (in the worst cases)
'Meth Mouth'[change | change source]
A suspected case of meth mouth
'Meth Mouth' is a term used to describe destroyed teeth in people that use methamphetamine. Meth mouth can happen very quickly. Download cake games cooking games. A new addict can go from having healthy teeth to losing all of their teeth in as little as one year. The decay (rotting teeth) is not caused by methamphetamine itself, but by meth users not brushing their teeth, having a lot of sugary drinks, and having dry mouth.
Life expectancy
The life expectancy of a meth addict is 5-10 years.[10]
Other effects on the body[change | change source]
Methamphetamine's effects on the body can include:[11]
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- Rhabdomyolysis (the muscles in the body break down)
- Insomnia (trouble sleeping)
- Sweating a lot
- Loss of appetite (not wanting to eat) and losing a lot of weight
- Bruxism (clenching the jaw very tightly; the person cannot control this)
- Increased libido (wanting to have sex)
Effects on feelings and behavior[change | change source]
Methamphetamine's effects on feelings and behavior can include:[11]
- Taking risks (doing dangerous things) without thinking things through (like having unprotected sex, which can spread sexually transmitted diseases)
- Doing things over and over again (like tapping a pencil for hours at a time); this is called 'punding'
- Feeling paranoid
- Psychosis, including hallucinations and delusions (for example, a person may feel like there are insects crawling under their skin)
- Feeling irritable (easily annoyed)
Long-term effects[change | change source]
Taking meth over a long time can cause Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. In fact, a teenager taking methamphetamine can show symptoms similar to Alzheimer's.[12]
People who take meth over a long time often have serious psychological problems, like:[9]
- Mood swings (very quick changes in mood)
- Delusions (believing things that are not true)
- Very bad paranoia
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References[change | change source]
- ↑ 1.01.1'METHAMPHETAMINE (Trade Name: Desoxyn®; Street Names: Meth, Speed, Crystal, Glass, Ice, Crank, Yaba)'(PDF). Office of Diversion Control. United States Drug Enforcement Administration. July 2013. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
- ↑ 2.02.12.2'NIDA – Research Report Series – Methamphetamine Abuse and Addiction'. drugabuse.gov. Retrieved January 22, 2011.
- ↑'DESOXYN'(PDF). accessdata.fda.gov. Food and Drug Administration. pp. 1, 7. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
- ↑'CRS Report for Congress'(PDF). house.gov. May 22, 2006. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
- ↑'NIDA – Research Report Series – Methamphetamine Abuse and Addiction'. drugabuse.gov. Retrieved January 22, 2011.
- ↑ 6.06.1'Methamphetamine Fast Facts'. justice.gov. Retrieved January 23, 2011.
- ↑'Illinois Attorney General – Basic Understanding Of Meth'. illinoisattorneygeneral.gov. Retrieved January 23, 2011.
- ↑'CEWG Publications – 6/99 Seattle Advance Report – Epidemiologic Trends in Drug Abuse – NIDA'. archives.drugabuse.gov. Retrieved January 23, 2011.
- ↑ 9.09.1Heller, MD, MHA, Jacob L. (April 5, 2013). 'Methamphetamine Overdose'. United States National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved December 31, 2015.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- ↑'WHAT IS THE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF A METHAMPHETAMINE ADDICT?'. DRS. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
- ↑ 11.011.1'DrugFacts: Methamphetamine'. www.drugabuse.gov. U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse. January 2014. Retrieved December 31, 2015.
- ↑'Signs of Methamphetamine use in youths – Alcohol and Drug Abuse Information – Vermont Department of Health'. healthvermont.gov. Retrieved January 23, 2011.
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