Focus: U.S. Myths About Methamphetamine

This week's focus article comes a day early this week, as today has been designated National Meth Awareness Day in the United States. George Marcelle, Communications Director, ORC Macro-Social & Health Services, Ltd., Los Angeles, highlights some of the most prevalent items of misinformation about the drug.

In 2006, methamphetamine continues its eastward spread in the U.S., attracting new users in new areas. Several myths about the drug may have helped alert the public to the problem and have prompt official action. But these myths have also misled many Americans, including some law enforcement and substance abuse professionals.

Myth 1: Methamphetamine is the country’s (sometimes, the world’s) number one drug problem. There are places where police, courts, child protective and placement agencies, drug programs, and hospitals may see more meth-related cases than for any other drug. For them, this may be their biggest drug problem on a given day. But national data provide put this into perspective. In 2003, methamphetamine admissions to public treatment programs ranked 6th at 7.7 percent of such admissions. (Alcohol alone led with 23.2 percent, followed by alcohol plus another drug at 18.7 percent,).[1] In 2004, not quite 600,000 Americans aged 12 years and older reported meth use in the past month. They were among 19.2 million past-month users of illicit drugs, while about half of Americans 12 and older are current (past month) alcohol drinkers. [2]

Myth 2: Methamphetamine use is increasing among teens. Meth use may be increasing among some teen subgroups (e.g.,gay youth; rural youth in some areas). Nationally, however, use among 12- to 17-year-olds has declined as the average age of first use has risen (to 22.1 years of age in 2004).[3] Use has fallen among high school students as well, although one researcher observed that “…it is possible that use is increasing among high school dropouts, who are not captured in the survey, and among young adults.”[4] Federal data for 2002, 2003, and 2004 show prevalence of past-year meth among 12- to 17-year-olds at 0.7 percent.[5]

Myth 3: Even one-time meth use leads to addiction. Experts estimate that it takes from 2 to 5 years to establish methamphetamine addiction, but acknowledge reports of meth addiction occurring in less that one year of regular use.[6] Addiction is usually the result of chronic use, leading to increased tolerance, higher and more frequent dosages, and changes in ingestion methods.[7] The intense euphoria meth users report may leave many who did not plan to continue using the drug eager to repeat the experience.

Myth 4: Babies born to meth-using women suffer serious, chronic problems. Some evidence indicates that meth use during pregnancy may result in some birth abnormalities or learning disabilities.[8] However, information about the effects of prenatal exposure to meth remains limited. Women planning for motherhood should avoid all forms of substance abuse, but inflammatory, stigmatizing terms like “meth babies” and “ice babies” should also be avoided.[9]

Myth 5: Methamphetamine is a major threat to children. Children in the care of adults who make, use or sell methamphetamine are at risk for being neglected or abused; their presence where the drug is being made puts them in harm’s way. But not all meth-involved adults neglect or abuse their children and most users do not make the drug themselves. Far more children are at risk because they live in households where there is alcoholism. In 2003, an estimated 1,300 U.S. meth lab incidents involved a child being exposed to toxic chemicals, and 724 children were removed from such sites.[10] But during the same period “more than 6 million children lived with at least 1 parent who abused or was dependent on alcohol or an illicit drug.” [11]

Myth 6: Methamphetamine addicts do not respond to treatment. Several states report meth treatment success rates ranging from 60 to almost 90 percent:[12] Among Iowa’s publicly funded programs, 65.5 percent of meth clients were abstinent 6 months after discharge.[13] The Matrix Model, (the curriculum is now marketed by the Hazelden Foundation) based on earlier cocaine treatment models, has also reported high rates of success in treating meth addiction.[14] In San Diego, The Stepping Stone, serving gay people, instituted a Sexual Behavior Relapse Prevention pilot program to increase client retention, decrease client recidivism, and reduce HIV-infection from drug- or sex-linked relapse. At 6-month and 1-year follow-ups, significant improvement on all three measures was reported for meth clients on the pilot-study track.[15]

Methamphetamine is a terrible drug, no doubt about it. The price for the exceptional euphoria it can produce can be even more exceptional for those who use it. It’s manufacture and trafficking bring violence and environmental damage and create great risks for anyone who happens to be nearby. At the same time, meth myths and misinformation serve only to misdirect scarce resources and complicate efforts to understand and respond to actual methamphetamine problems.

[1] The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Office of Applied Studies. 2003 Treatment Episode Data Set. As referenced by NIDA. March 2005. InfoFacts: Treatment Trends.

[2] The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Office of Applied Studies. Updated October 2, 2005. NSDUH 2004. Appendix H, Selected Prevalence Tables, Table H.3—Types of Illicit Drug Use in Lifetime, Past Year, and Past Month Among Persons Aged 12 to 17: Percentages, 2002–2004.

[3] The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Office of Applied Studies. The NSDUH Report: Methamphetamine Use, Abuse, and Dependence: 2002, 2003, and 2004: Highlights. http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k5/meth/meth.cfm

[4] Johnston, L.D.; O’Malley, P.M.; Bachman, J.G.; Schulenberg, J.E. December 19, 2005. Teen drug use down, but progress halts among youngest teens. University of Michigan News and Information Services: Ann Arbor, MI.

[5] The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Office of Applied Studies. September 16, 2005. The NSDUH Report: Methamphetamine Use, Abuse, and Dependence: 2002, 2003, and 2004, In Brief.

[6] The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. 1999. Treatment Improvement Protocols: TIP 33: Treatment for Stimulant Use Disorders, Chapter 2.

[7] National Institute on Drug Abuse. April 1998, Reprinted January 2002. Research Report Series: Methamphetamine Abuse and Addiction.

[8] Volkow, Nora, M.D., Director, NIDA. April 21, 2005. Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Labor, Health, and Human Services; Education; and Related Agencies. Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate.

[9] Lewis, D., M.D., Brown University. July 25, 2005. Meth Science, Not Stigma: Open Letter to the Media. Join Together Online.

[10] Office of National Drug Control Policy. February 6, 2004. "Fighting Methamphetamine in the Heartland: How Can the Federal Government Assist State and Local Efforts?"

[11] The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration/Office of Applied Studies. June 2, 2003. The NSDUH Report: Children Living With Substance-Abusing or Substance-Dependent Parents.

[12] National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors. May 2005. Fact Sheet: Methamphetamine.

[13] The Iowa Consortium for Substance Abuse Research and Evaluation. September 2004. Outcome Monitoring System: Iowa Project: Year Six Report.

[14] Hazelden Foundation. The Matrix Model Family of Products.

[15] Braun-Harvey, D.; Zians, J. December 2004. Using Sexual Behavior Relapse Prevention To Reduce Chemical Dependency Treatment Failures. Conference PowerPoint presentation at the 26th annual Southeast Conference on Alcohol Dependence (SECAD), Atlanta, GA.

George Marcelle
Communications Director, ORC Macro-Social & Health Services, Ltd., Los Angeles; past Chair, Substance Abuse Librarians & Information Specialists (SALIS)