How Methamphetamine Affects The Brain

“I want to be addicted to meth!” Have you ever heard anyone say this? While millions of people use methamphetamines, it would be difficult to find a person that had the desire to become addicted to it. Despite a radical increase in the number of people using this drug and the terrible consequences of doing so, it has recently propelled in popularity. Meth addiction is so common because the use of the drug is prevalent in many areas and because there is little knowledge about the risks involved. Few people comprehend the long-term effects of meth on the brain and the body. Methamphetamine is an extremely powerful drug and is so dangerous because it only takes one time to become seriously

By 1919, Japan started producing methamphetamine which was cheaper and more potent than amphetamine. It was produced in a crystalline powder form and was able it to be dissolved in water, making it easier for it to be injected. This form of amphetamine is still legally produced in the US and is being sold under the name of Desoxyn. (Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, 2010, para. 1-3)

Many neuroscience research methods could be useful in studying meth addiction. To research the brain activity of meth addicts when exposed to pictures/other stimulus, an EEG could be conducted on addicts. Showing pictures of natural things that release dopamine, such as food, sex, etc., versus showing pictures of drugs and meth, then comparing the brain activity, would be an effective study. This would show the physical effects of using meth and how addicts are not stimulated

Sometimes people forget that methamphetamine hurts not only individuals, but families, neighborhoods and entire communities as well. You might not be using methamphetamine or know anyone who is - but that doesn't mean it's not having an effect on you. A methamphetamine lab can operate unnoticed in a neighborhood for years, causing serious health hazards to everyone around. The problems with meth are widespread. Children and the general public may be affected by the fumes from meth labs operating in or near their homes. The prison system is overwhelmed by the needs of incarcerated meth users. Hospital emergency departments (ED) report that meth is a significant drug problem. The cost of meth labs to society is large. A study done by the University of Arkansas found the cost to prevent abuse in one county to be around $20 million. Although many measures have been placed, abuse has been steadily increasing. In 2003, there was a 68% increase in workers who tested positive. Surprisingly, over 70% of users are actively employed. In particular, the lab problem is growing significantly in the Midwest and Mid Atlantic areas since they migrated from California in the early 80s.

Methamphetamine takes the form of a white, odorless, bitter tasting 1, crystalline powder. Methamphetamine increases the amount of dopamine (involved in reward, pleasure, motor function,compulsion, and perseveration). The drug produces this effect because it has a similar molecular compound as dopamine. Methamphetamine is a powerful central nervous system stimulant. The drug works directly on the brain and spinal cord by interfering with normal neurotransmission. When taken repeatedly over time, methamphetamine can produce lasting damage in the

Methamphetamine takes the form of a white, odorless, bitter tasting1, crystalline powder. Methamphetamine increases the amount of dopamine (involved in reward, pleasure, motor function,compulsion, and perseveration). The drug produces this effect because it has a similar molecular compound as dopamine. Methamphetamine is a powerful central nervous system stimulant. The drug works directly on the brain and spinal cord by interfering with normal neurotransmission. When taken repeatedly over time, methamphetamine can produce lasting damage in the nerve cells located in the brain’s pleasure center, as well as nerve cells in other locations.

However, when this happens, dopamine is forced out of the vesicle, causing everything to work in reverse, which in turn puts the dopamine right back into the synapse. What does the brain think needs to happen? It thinks the access dopamine should bind to the dopamine receptors, which overstimulates the cell. In a sense, methamphetamine tricks the brain into thinking that something went wrong and the dopamine has to repeat its job. Sneaky meth. This drug is particularly addicting because it works directly on the mesolimbic pathway, making the person feel extremely happy. Meth also acts like amphetamine, and scans of the brain shows a decreased level of neurons in the brain after using methamphetamine. It amazes me how we think that putting the components of this drug in “legal” drugs and giving them to

Roll, J. M., Rawson, R. A., Ling, W., & Shop taw, S. (2009). Methamphetamine addiction: From

Drug is "a chemical substance such as a narcotic or a hallucinogen that affects the central

My neighbor was a smart and athletic kid when we first met, but following his parents’ divorce he suffered from substance abuse. At times we could see cuts in his nose, smell smoke from his room, and notice that his teeth were not as white and straight as they used to be. As a kid, I was not aware of the implications of his physical changes, but as time passed I learned he had become addicted to drugs such as cannabis and methamphetamine. Although we have covered cannabis and amphetamines in class, I am interested in the recovery stages of methamphetamine abuse and its impact on the brain and social relationships. Overall, meth use has declined over the past decade but the meth abuse problem still stands and there is no FDA-approved drug treatment

Methamphetamine is a highly addictive, powerful stimulant that affects the brain, and most importantly the central nervous system (NIH, 2013). It is most commonly known as meth, crystal, chalk ice and many others as it is a white, odorless and bitter crystalline powder that can be easily dissolved in water or alcohol (NIH, 2013). It is a drug that is harmful not only to an individual, but also to society and the environment.

Methamphetamine users have also exposed separate structural and practical changes in areas of the brain associated with emotion and memory. That may account for many of the emotional and cognitive problems observed in chronic methamphetamine addicts. (Drugs and controlled substances: Information for students, 2010). Crystal meth abuse has been shown to have undesirable effects on non-neural brain cells called microglia. Furthermore, the neural and behavior consequences of methamphetamine abuse, to the long run users also suffer physical effects, including weightiness, severe tooth deterioration and tooth loss, and even skin blisters. Skin sores are the consequences of picking and itching the skin to get rid of insects imagined to be crawling under it. Psychosis, included paranoia, hallucinations, and repetitive motor

Drugs have been around for a very long time. They are used for a variety of reasons. Some of these reasons include relaxation, socialization, curiosity, stress relief, or a form of escapism. However, most people don’t know the threats and danger that it can cause to the body. In this paper, we are going to examine the changes that happen inside the brain due to the effects of different drugs. We will look closely at how drugs such as hallucinogens, ecstasy, cocaine, heroin, and cannabis affect an individual psychologically. I will explain the origin of the drugs, how a person feels while on the drug, how the drugs

An individual’s behavior and emotion becomes chemically altered often resulting in dependency, aggression, onset of diseases and poor judgement. This poses a dangerous threat to the neurotransmitters since they have multiple jobs in different parts of the brain. Drugs of abuse are able to exert influence over the brain reward pathway either by directly influencing the action of dopamine within the system, or by altering the activity of other neurotransmitters that exert a modulatory influence over this pathway. These drugs are often powerful and have been known to trigger schizophrenic behavior and can also cause a person to cease breathing, for example hallucinogens such as LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin are able to artificially stimulate the serotonin receptor (Sapolsky, 2005).

The complexity of the human brain creates mystery when determining the influence of neurophysiological factors and their role in the process of addiction. There is a proposed relationship between drug addiction and the mesolimbic dopamine system, with the mesolimbic pathway from the ventral tegmental area to the nucleus accumbens considered the ‘reward centre’ of the human brain (Alcohol Rehab, 2011). A release of dopamine is necessary for ‘reward’ which is hypothesised to initiate the addiction cycle by providing positive reinforcement for drug self-administration (Feltenstein & See, 2009). Methamphetamine triggers the release of dopamine from synaptic vesicles which flood the synaptic cleft activating feelings of euphoria, well-being