Because amphetamines reduce appetite and fatigue, they can cause vitamin and sleep deficiencies and malnutrition, and make people more prone to illness. This means that the person needs to take more and more of the drug to get the desired effect. Regular use of amphetamines, especially when the drug is smoked or injected, can quickly cause addiction. In children who are hyperactive, however, amphetamines and related drugs, in the correct doses, can have a calming effect. The effects of amphetamines are often different from person to person.

• Amphetamines including methamphetamine (MA) are a global health problem and there is concern that amphetamines abuse will continue, despite awareness of multiple harms [1].
• However, none of these are proven to prevent amphetamine use in everyone.
• If you are taking amphetamines as a new parent, talk with your provider about whether or not it is safe to breastfeed.
• Between 2001 and 2019, there were decreases for age groups of 14–19, 20–29, and 14 and over who had recently used meth/amphetamine.

Data extraction

For diagnosis of a substance use disorder, most mental health professionals use criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), published by the American Psychiatric Association. Addiction means that cravings and compulsive use of the drug become very important to a person. If drug use is stopped, the person usually goes through withdrawal, also called “the crash.” Symptoms of withdrawal can include fatigue, restless sleep, irritability, intense hunger, depression, suicidal behaviour and fits of violence. The average score in global state was reported in three of the four included studies. See risk of bias tables in the “Characteristics of included studies” table.

Amphetamines’ Effects on Your Brain

Or ask for a referral to a specialist in drug addiction, such as a licensed alcohol and drug counselor, or a psychiatrist or psychologist. In an opioid overdose, a medicine called naloxone can be given by emergency responders, or in some states, by anyone who witnesses an overdose. Steven Shoptaw and Uyen Kao conducted the article searches, study selection, data extraction, data analysis, and write up of updated review. Keith Heinzerling provided feedback on the data analysis and assisted in writing the discussion section.

Russel was forced to take amphetamines at age 7

Once you decide you want to do something about your drug use, the next step is to get help and support. Tachycardia, hyperthermia, volume depletion, agitation, seizures, and rhabdomyolysis are sentinel findings. Diagnosis is facilitated by a high index of suspicion and urine amphetamine screening.

Recognizing unhealthy drug use in family members

This can be through sharing used needles with someone who has an infection. Or, it can be through having unsafe sex because drug use can lead to risky behaviors. You should only take the amount of amphetamine as prescribed by your healthcare provider. Misusing or taking amphetamines that your provider did not prescribe to you can cause dangerous side effects and could lead to addiction or death. This could feel like a “rush” or a euphoric feeling that makes you happy and elevates your mood. This sensation is something that can cause addiction because people might look to feel that rush more often than they should, as prescribed by their healthcare provider.

• External cooling therapies should be rapidly administered when patients present with temperatures exceeding 107 °F.
• Data sources include Micromedex (updated 7 Jul 2024), Cerner Multum™ (updated 14 Jul 2024), ASHP (updated 10 Jul 2024) and others.
• Of the amphetamines, methamphetamine likely has the largest potential for abuse.
• Patients with agitation should be treated with parenteral benzodiazepines.

Although there are a variety of amphetamines and amphetamine derivatives, the word “amphetamines” in this review stands for amphetamine, dextroamphetamine, and methamphetamine. The review was conducted based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. The reference lists of included studies were hand searched for more information.

Strength and limitations of this study

In addition, the causes possibly leading to the significant heterogeneity of a data set were discussed. Other than raw data (e.g. death), the outcomes derived from only valid scales were included in the reviews. In this review, a valid scale means a scale that has been published in a scientific journal.

Marijuana, hashish and other cannabis-containing substances

Hyperthermia (a dangerously high body temperature) is an acute effect of methamphetamine use that may cause muscular and cardiovascular dysfunction, kidney failure, heat stroke, and other heat-induced syndromes. There are no medications for methamphetamine-induced thermal dysregulation, amphetamine addiction and treatment is focused on reducing patients’ body temperature, packing them in ice or using cooling fans or cold-water baths. Patients should be given naloxone or nalmefene regardless of medical history because of the likelihood of methamphetamine adulteration with fentanyl.

• We found no effect for mirtazapine on adherence to treatment, general condition, amphetamine withdrawal symptoms, or cravings.
• The amount ultimately used may be more than several times the original dose.
• Amineptine is a central stimulant and dopamine reuptake inhibitor with biochemical and pharmacological effects similar to those of amphetamine (Samanin 1977).
• Amphetamines are illegal when they are used without a prescription to get high or improve performance.