First synthesized in 1887 Germany, amphetamine was for a long time, a drug in search of a disease. Nothing was done with the drug from its discovery (synthesis) until the late 1920’s when it was seriously investigated as a cure or treatment for nearly everything from depression to decongestion.
In the 1930’s, amphetamine was marketed as Benzedine in an over-the-counter inhaler to treat nasal congestion for asthmatics, hay fever sufferers and people with colds. A probable direct reaction to the depression and prohibition , the drug was used and abused by non-asthmatic looking for a buzz. In 1937 amphetamine was available by prescription in tablet form.
Methamphetamine,(Meth) more potent and easy to make, was discovered in Japan in 1919. The crystalline powder was soluble in water making it a perfect candidate for injection. It is still legally produced in the US, sold under the trade name Desoxyn.
During WWII, amphetamines were widely used to keep the fighting men going; during the Vietnam War, American soldiers used more amphetamines than the rest of the world during WWII. In Japan, intravenous Methamphetamine abuse reached epidemic proportions immediately after WWII, when supplies stored for military use became available to the public.
In the United States in the 1950’s, legally manufactured tablets of both dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine) and methamphetamine (Methadrine) became readily available and were used non-medically by college students, truck drivers and athletes, to name a few. As use of amphetamines spread, so did their abuse, and they became a cure all for such things as weight loss and managing mild depression.
This pattern changed dramatically in the 1960’s with the increased availability of injectable methamphetamine. The 1970 Controlled Substances Act severely restricted the legal production of injectable methamphetamine, causing its use to decrease greatly.
Methamphetamine trafficking and abuse in the United States have been on the rise over the past few years, as indicated by the tracking of investigations, seizures, price, purity and prevalence in illegal markets. As a result, this drug is having a devastating impact in many communities across the nation.
Clandestine production accounts for almost all of the methamphetamine trafficked and abused in the United States. The illicit manufacture of methamphetamine can be accomplished in a variety of ways, but it is produced most commonly using the ephedrine/pseudoephedrine reduction method. Large-scale production of methamphetamine using this method is dependent on ready access to bulk quantities of these two major ingredients. During the past two years, several bulk ephedrine seizures destined for Mexico focused attention on the magnitude of ephedrine acquisition by organized crime drug groups operating from Mexico and in the United States, and set in motion an effort to focus international attention on the ephedrine diversion problem and to take action to prevent such diversion.
In 1997, in the West, Southwest, and the South there were reports of methamphetamine and ephedrine as emerging drugs. According to DEA sources, Mexican manufacturers and distributors have replaced the outlaw biker gangs, which had produced methamphetamine supplies for over 20 years. The new manufacturers are producing large quantities of high purity drug on both sides of the border, drawing on the legal supply of the requisite chemicals on the Mexican side. With increased production has come a drop in price until recent shortages in basic supplies created temporary shortages and bumped the price accordingly. However, the drug still remains within the reach of the “common man” and has become the drug of choice for communities across the nation.
