PBS Frontline - The Meth Epidemic

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Speed. Meth. Glass. On the street, methamphetamine has many names. What started as a fad among West Coast motorcycle gangs in the 1970s has spread across the United States, and despite lawmakers' calls for action, the drug is now more potent, and more destructive, than at any time in the past decade.
In "The Meth Epidemic," FRONTLINE, in association with The Oregonian, investigates the meth rampage in America: the appalling impact on individuals, families and communities, and the difficulty of controlling an essential ingredient in meth—ephedrine and pseudoephedrine—sold legally in over-the-counter cold remedies.

In Congress, a bipartisan coalition has called for international controls on ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, either of which is essential for making meth. Many states [see map] have forced cold medicines containing these ingredients off retail shelves and behind the pharmacy counter -- a move that may become a national requirement.

Methamphetamine abuse started in California and Oregon but spread rapidly into the Midwest. Now the drug has reached the East Coast. "Meth has made a steady march across the United States," says Steve Suo, a reporter for Portland's The Oregonian who has followed meth from the beginning.

"Right now you have Mexican methamphetamine flooding in through Atlanta, and from there [it] fans out both south and north." The discovery of meth labs in states from Maine to Florida foreshadows a new crisis on the East Coast:

"They can expect to see increased car theft, increased identity theft, ... domestic violence, child neglect, drug overdoses and just a lot of mayhem," says Suo. Indeed, statistics show that meth can trigger a surge in other crimes: In Oregon, a staggering 85 percent of property crime, as well as a majority of muggings, car thefts and identity thefts, have been linked to the drug.

Meth's destructive power comes from its impact on the user's brain. "Dopamine is the brain's primary pleasure chemical," says UCLA professor and meth expert Dr. Richard Rawson. "If you take a hit on a pipe or an injection of methamphetamine, you get an increase from zero to about 1,250 units. ...

This produces an extreme peak of euphoria that people describe as something like they've never experienced." Researchers have found that meth creates this high by destroying the very part of the brain that generates dopamine, which makes them unable to feel pleasure from anything except more meth. "It actually changes how the brain operates," Rawson continues.

"It's a wonder anyone ever gets off meth." According to the World Health Organization, meth abuse worldwide is worse than that of cocaine and heroin combined.