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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Guide Weather Subscribe Contact Us January 22, 2005 The problem is, it's easy to and - or make By Chris Honore Tidings Correspondent Methamphetamine took a class of drug that had been around for decades and made it more potent - and far more addictive. Amphetamines were first synthesized in 1887 and sold commercially in the 1930s as a nasal spray for asthma. Dexadrine and methadrine were used to enhance performance by soldiers during World War II. In the 1950s, truckers, athletes and students used amphetamines to stay alert and increase performance. Methamphetamine, in contrast, is qualitatively different from amphetamine and this difference is no small thing. When an individual takes meth by intravenous injection or by smoking, the user experiences an intense sensation called a "rush" or "flash." When the drug is snorted or orally ingested, it produces a rising sense of euphoria - a high, but not the intense "rush." What meth does with great efficacy is effect the brain, creating a powerful sense of well being, increased alertness, intense pleasure and energy, and a feeling of empowerment where all problems seem insignificant. However, so powerful is this drug, due to the release of the neurotransmitters dopamine and seratonin to the pleasure centers of the brain, that 42 percent of all first-time users go on to a second use. Eighty-four percent of second time users continue onto regular use. In other words, try meth once and the experience is indelible. Try it twice and you put yourself in profound jeopardy. To characterize what is meant by jeopardy, it must be understood that the "rush" or "flash" derived from meth use does not last long. And though the drug is metabolized slowly, remaining in the system for 12 hours (50 percent of cocaine is removed from the body in one hour), the effects quickly begin to dissipate. Hence, in an attempt to sustain the euphoria or "flash" the user will go on a binge or "run," injecting as much as a gram every two or three hours over several days. A "run" can last for days or up to weeks, smoking or injecting meth continually. As the meth use continues, so does the toxicity in the body, damaging the brain and neurotransmitters. Too much dopamine in the brain causes irritability, paranoia, aggressiveness and hallucinations. Too little dopamine causes tremors and paralysis, not unlike Parkinson's Disease. High doses of dopamine, released by intense, serial use of meth, can elevate the body's temperature to dangerous levels, and can cause convulsions. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) states that meth use can result in respiratory problems, irregular heart beat and extreme anorexia, as well as cardiovascular collapse and death. In all humans, there is a natural release of dopamine. Examples would be when eating, during sexual activity, drinking or certain high-risk athletic events. Repeated activity causes repeated release of dopamine and reinforces the activity. Dopamine plays an important role in all reinforcement activities. However, in meth users, because the need to create and then recreate the "rush" or "flash" is so intense, finding and then using meth becomes the center of gravity and all other aspects of life - employment, children, family - become secondary. And the stronger and purer the meth the better. Whatever the cost. Getting even better In the 1980s, "ice," a smokable form of meth, came into use. Ice is a clear crystal of high purity that is smoked in a glass pipe like crack cocaine. The smoke is odorless and leaves a residue that can be resmoked and produces effects that can last for 12 hours or more. The defining characteristic of "ice" is that it is pure meth. Unlike street-quality meth, it has not been cut, which dilutes its purity. "Ice" delivers a much more intense high than commercial meth and thus is far more expensive. It is also far more lethal in its addictive properties and its degrading impact on the user. The intensity of the high derived from initial meth use almost invariably leads to addiction, which, according to NIDA, is a chronic, relapsing disease characterized by compulsive drug-seeking and drug use which is accompanied by functional and molecular changes in the brain. "Chronic meth abusers exhibit symptoms that can include violent behavior, anxiety, confusion and insomnia. They also display a number of psychotic features, including paranoia, auditory hallucinations, mood disturbances, and delusions (an example would be the sensation of insects creeping on the skin). The paranoia can result in suicidal and homicidal thoughts." Where it comes from According to Lieutenant Dewey Patten of the Jackson County Sheriff's Narcotic Enforcement Team, the majority of the meth coming into Southern Oregon originates in California or Mexico. However, because meth is relatively easy to manufacture, there are labs in Oregon, though they are relatively small in size. "The labs we are seeing in Jackson County are very small in size and limited in their ability to make very much meth," Patten said. "If the 'cook' has the needed precursor ingredients, he can do another cook reaction every couple of days. The labs that we usually deal with have the capability of making about one ounce at a time. Compare that with 'super labs' operating in California or Mexico that can make 20 plus pounds of meth per reaction." In 2003, 16 labs were seized in Jackson County. What is unique about meth is that it doesn't have to be grown - not in the fields or canyons of the western states, or in the poppy fields of the Middle East and Asia. As described in information distributed by the Addiction Recovery Center of Medford, "Meth can be made in a makeshift lab that can fit into a suitcase. There are literally thousands of recipes for "cooking" meth on the Internet. Nearly every ingredient can be purchased over the counter. The production is homegrown, unlike other drugs such as cocaine. The relatively simple process involves a jar, a two-liter soda bottle, a tube and a coffee filter." The cook extracts ephedrine from cold medication, adds sulfuric acid from drain cleaners, lithium from batteries, and anhydrous ammonia. Meth, according to ARC, can be made anywhere - residences, barns, garages, hotel/motel rooms, bathrooms. What has become clear to law enforcement over the years is that not only is meth a danger to the user but the labs that make the drug can be extremely hazardous. Patten pointed out that, "A cook who is not careful and overheats/overcooks the chemicals can create phosphine gas, which is deadly. And the primary hazard to someone entering a lab is causing an explosion or fire." Phosphine gas was used during WWI as a nerve agent. "Several types of solvents are used in the cooking process," Patten said. "The most popular is Coleman stove fuel, toluene and lacquer thinner ... an atmosphere wherein a high concentration of solvent vapors is created that may be flammable and/or explosive." Another hazard at lab sites, according to Patten, is the use of acid. Strong acids are used in the cooking process. The acid mixtures can cause burns and other injuries. "People often ask, 'How can you snort or smoke something that is a strong acid mixture?' That answer is that they don't. Meth cooks use sodium hydroxide (drain cleaner), a strong base, to balance the pH of the acid solution to near neutral." Patten commented that it is not uncommon to see small children in and around labs. They face the same hazards as the adults and risk being burned or receiving damage to their lungs by breathing harmful vapors - damage which, Patten suspects, may not be known for years. 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