Puberty 101Drug Abuse
| Amphetamines |
| What It Is |
| Amphetamines are stimulants which speed up the way your body works. They make your heart work faster and they pump adrenaline into the system. The most common type of amphetamine on the street is a white powder called amphetamine sulphate. This is an illegally manufactured powder of varying strength, usually of between 6% and 10% purity. Another form of speed known as 'base' is far stronger and is between 25% and 35% pure. |
| Street Names |
| Sulf, Whiz, Speed, Pep Pills, Copilots, Footballs,
Uppers, Billy, Phets, Crystal, Glass, Ice Cream, Ice, Meth, Bipetamine, Dexies,
Beans, Black Beauties, White Beanies, Crosses, Hearts Crank, Meth, and Crystal are street names for Methamphetamines. Dexies and Beans are street names for Dextroamphetamines. |
| How It Is Taken |
| Usually taken orally, snorted, sniffed, smoked or injected. |
| What It Does |
| Amphetamines give users extra energy for 4-6 hours,
prevents sleep, reduces appetite, speeds up breathing and heart rate and widens
the pupils. The user feels more energetic, cheerful and confident, and because
of these effects there is a high risk of psychological dependence. Regular users who take high doses may develop delusions, hallucinations and feelings of paranoia. This can develop into paranoid psychosis from which it may take many months to recover or which may be permanent. Many women who use amphetamines find that their periods become irregular or even stop. |
| Medical Uses |
| Amphetamine is used medically for treatment of ADHD, obesity, and narcolepsy. Medical use of amphetamines was common during the 1950's and 1960's for depression and weight loss. |