The objective of this report is to acquaint and show people the ropes of the peril of taking a drug like methamphetamine and therefore the effects of their lifespan and aging. Lifespan and aging is vital to the life of humanity as the average lifespan is always preferably high and if people were let in on the risky business of methamphetamines then the amount of people wanting to use it would decrease causing our societies lifespan/aging to  increase. The average life expectancy for Australians is 81 years of age. On the other hand, when someone is a daily meth user, the average life expectancy is 7.2 years of use. This report will explore the effects of the drug and how it harms the human body, brain, and human health. Methamphetamines impact on someone's life and and the diseases that could develop when taking methamphetamine.



Background

Methamphetamine can be chemically made from reducing ephedrine with Hydrochloric acid and red phosphorus. A concoction of ephedrine, Hydrochloric acid, and red phosphorus light are scorched, then leaving the concoction to cool down where it begins to crystallize in its final state of methamphetamine (ice). This is the most commonly used method for being the cleanest, simplest, fastest, and most efficient way towards manufacturing methamphetamine.

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Methamphetamine is an illicit synthetic man-made chemical that is often produced and manufactured in abandoned or illegal hidden laboratories. Methamphetamine is usually inhaled, snorted, taken as a pill, or injected. Methamphetamine is chemically akin with amphetamine, which is a drug that helps to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and narcolepsy (a persistent sleeping disorder that causes staggering daytime sluggishness.) 

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Methamphetamine can be a crystalline powder or a clear, colourless aqueous solution. The powdered state is odorless but the liquid state has an odor resembling geranium leaves. Both states share the property of having a bitter taste. Methamphetamine has a boiling point of 212 degrees celsius and a melting point of 170 degrees celsius. Methamphetamine’s chemical formula is C10H15N and has a molecular weight of 149.24 g/mol.

When methamphetamine infiltrates the human body it causes what is known as a “meth rush.” The meth user experiences increased heart rates, vasodilation (blood vessel dilation) and a respiration increase. If methamphetamine is either snorted or inhaled then methamphetamine goes into the lungs and continues in the circulatory system up to the brain. If it is injected it goes through the circulatory system straight to the brain, and if methamphetamine is taken as a pill it travels down to the stomach and makes its way to the circulatory system. All these methods release epinephrine neurotransmitters when they reach the circulatory system and once the epinephrine neurotransmitters reach the brain they send messages around the body and the “meth rush” occurs. The user begins to experience hallucinations which will experience the sensation of bugs under the skin where the user will pick at the skin. The addict will also get a sensibility of being all-knowing and reminisce over futile disputes. The user may also participate in the effects of acquiring an extreme desire for perfection. Such as continuously cleaning the user's house or getting aggravated at minuscule, impotent dilemmas. These effects, which can be known as a high, can last anywhere from 8 to 24 hours but can last in the body for an even prolonged period. Methamphetamine can be detected in urine after an hour of use and can still be detected after 72 hours. The user can experience what is known as a “crash.” The user would experience denial feeling unable to eat and even feel uncomfortable interacting with people or the user would experience what is known as the “sleeping beauty phase.” The user would fall into a deep sleep which could last as long as 2-7 days and would wake up with symptoms such as depression, anxiety, increased appetite and fatigue.

Methamphetamine interferes and deteriorates many organs in the body. Starting from the top with the detrimental effects on the brain, the user can experience effects such as insomnia, aggressive behaviour, paranoia, decreased appetite, increased alertness, irritability, slurred speech, dizziness, confusion, hallucinations, obsessive behaviour, depression, and panic attacks. The user could experience adverse effects of teeth corrosion and excessive sweating. Moving down to the lungs and heart, becoming short of breath, chest pain, rapid heart rate and heart attacks are more negative effects of methamphetamine. Blood clotting, high blood pressure, kidney damage and liver damage are additional horrific effects methamphetamine can inflict on the human body. The user also experiences moments where they reject eating for long periods of time and eventually develop Anorexia Nervosa, Scurvy, and Bulimia Nervosa.

On the other hand, in the brain methamphetamine is well known for its highly addictive properties. The reward pathway with methamphetamine is one of the strongest illicit drug addictions. The reward pathway is a way the brain plays a role in the brain giving someone the perception of pleasure. When a moment occurs that someone likes, messages from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) are sent to the prefrontal cortex and are played rapidly and continuous starting what is known as an addiction. Whenever this moment is either about to occur or is thought about, the messages are played relentlessly and the brain becomes addicted to whatever sets off the reward pathway.

Methamphetamine blocks the dopamine removal and goes inside the neuron into the dopamine vesicles then triggers dopamine release even in the absence of action potential. Dopamine (The chemical in command to give someone the feeling of pleasure and happiness) builds up in the synapse to a greater amount than normal, which causes a continuous stimulation and gives off a good feeling whenever under the influence of Methamphetamine. This process heightens the rewards given whenever on methamphetamine. Eventually the drug slowly loses its ability to reward and higher doses are required to a possible event of an overdose.

Discussion

Methamphetamine has a huge impact on lifespan and aging as it deteriorates the important organs such as the brain, the lungs, the heart, the liver, and the kidneys. Akin with other drugs, Methamphetamine is highly addictive. A survey conducted by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare stated, “for people aged 14 or over, 1.4% had used methamphetamine in the past 12 months. 1 in 70 people have used methamphetamine in the past 12 months, but the impact can be a much greater scale.” The survey's results then continued to state “56% of people who had tried methamphetamine had admitted to having methamphetamine on a regular basis”. 

Comparable to other drugs, Methamphetamine is a highly destructive drug that has the possibility to kill the user within a 10 year period. In total, there was an estimated amount of 2000 methamphetamine-related deaths over a 7 year period where 74% were male. Studies controlled by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre had shown that 43% of methamphetamine-related deaths were an overdose, 22% were due to heart related diseases, 18% were due to suicide, and 17% were due to other natural causes and accidents (mainly vehicle-related).

In the brain, methamphetamines long term effects is the drugs destructive potential it dominates over brain cells. Methamphetamine can cause a variety of mental disorders, but the most common disorders developed by methamphetamine are Dementia, Alzheimer's disease, Bipolar disorder, Schizophrenia, Depression, Anxiety, PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), GAD (Generalised Anxiety Disorder), and several others.

In the chest, an increase in heart rate and blood pressure can lead to cardiovascular diseases like Coronary Artery Disease, high blood pressure, cardiac arrest, congestive heart failure, and Arrhythmia. Methamphetamine has a vital role with kidney and liver damage. Lung issues methamphetamine has a role in also include disorders like ILD (Interstitial Lung Disease), COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), and Asthma.

Conclusion

Methamphetamine is an illicit drug with high addictive properties and is usually manufactured in illegal laboratories. The most common method in the production of methamphetamine is the concoction of ephedrine, Hydrochloric acid, and red phosphorus light. Methamphetamine’s chemical formula is C10H15N, its molecular weight is 149.24 g/mol, has a melting point of 170°C, and a boiling point of 212°C.

The user can experience a meth rush which stops dopamine going back up in the neuron to the dopamine vesicles. Methamphetamine takes control of the whole process and goes in inside the neuron and takes dopamine from the dopamine vesicles. It triggers dopamine release even in the absence of action potential. The dopamine release is to a much higher quantity than if the user was not high. Eventually, the quantity of dopamine release increases with increased dosage due to the user's eagerness to receive more pleasure which often leads to an overdose. After the drugs wear off, the user could experience a crash and could possibly enter the sleeping beauty phase which enters the user into a deep sleep that could last between 2-7 days. Methamphetamine can be the primary cause if the user develops any diseases or disorders. Methamphetamine is highly addictive as it gets messages from the VTA (Ventral Tegmental Area) rapidly sent to the prefrontal cortex.

Methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug, where the main cause of death is usually an overdose. A study done by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare stated 2000 people died from methamphetamine over a 7 year period. 43% of the meth-users (approximately 860 users) died from an overdose, which is the leading cause of methamphetamine-related deaths in Australia. Methamphetamine takes control of the user's neurons and increases the amount of dopamine released causing a higher reward pathway. While under the influence of methamphetamine the user begins to feel all-knowing and feels like the user could do anything. The user would probably go in a car and drive like a race car driver leading to a vehicle related death while under methamphetamine (17% of meth-related deaths are caused by natural causes and accidents (mainly vehicle-related)). Methamphetamine is also very fond of the heart and lungs as well as the brain. 22% of the meth-related deaths over the 7 year period were related to heart and lung diseases. This is because when the user is under methamphetamine the heart is set to overdrive and pumps (the equivalent of someone running) for around 72 hours which deteriorates the heart's functions and can lead to blood clotting, high blood pressure, Coronary Artery Disease, and many others. Astoundingly, 18% of the meth-users had committed suicide. It's hard to say if it was because of the drug or if it was a personal problem, but methamphetamine boosted the suicide rate sixfold. Methamphetamine, along with other drugs, decreased Australia's national life expectancy by 6% over a 2 year period in 2014-2016.

Public Education Piece

For my public education piece I made an information report to advise the general public of the information showed in this report.

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