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Maybe you found a mysterious bag in your loved ones’ things with glass-like shards or a finely crystalline powder. Now you are left wondering: what does meth look like?
Or perhaps you found or purchased a substance from a street source. Is it the form of the drug you suspect or hope it to be? Do you realize the dangerous and highly addictive nature of the substance you are about to smoke, snort, or otherwise ingest?
For all of these reasons, we present our guide to the different forms of methamphetamine. Keep reading to find answers about the drug known as crystal meth now!
Due to its appearance, meth is often known as ‘glass’ or ‘shards.’ Crystal methamphetamine is a harder form of amphetamines. Like many drugs, crystal meth can affect the brain’s dopamine pathways, producing a strong sense of euphoria and intense craving.
Due to intense cravings, habitual crystal meth users often resort to criminal activity, including prostitution, fraud, or violence. In street jargon, regular meth users are known as tweakers because of their jittery actions and often outright suspicious behaviors.
Street names for the drug include:
Various factors, from production to cutting agents, can affect the appearance of meth. Crystal meth is usually bitter tasting and is typically smoked, though it can be injected as well.
In order for a batch of meth to be made, a supply of chemicals along with the knowledge of how to use them is required. Different forms of meth often have to do with errors on the part of the chemist, or amateur ‘cook,’ making the drug. Impurities and accidents that occur along the path to producing otherwise pure meth can cause all sorts of irregularities.
Different forms of meth also take different ingredients, which can lead to varying outcomes in terms of both appearance and purity. It may help to answer ‘what does meth look like’ by knowing a little more about the ways it is made.
Another form of manufacture that has been around for quite some time is the Birch Method, also known informally as the ‘Nazi Method.’ Often associated with biker gangs in the past, this ephedrine-based form of meth has been largely replaced by P2P meth in the current American drug market.
The drug made with this production method is typically yellow or clear with a rock-like appearance and can be injected, snorted, or smoked due to relatively high purity if properly produced.
Like other forms of methamphetamine, this has been seen to be cut with caffeine and the prescription stimulant Desoxyn to aid the onset and increase the effects over time. In the past, the involvement of red phosphorus has been known to produce a pinkish tint in some batches of this highly addictive drug.
Popularized during the late 90s and still used to this day, shake n’ bake meth is produced using the ‘one-pot method.’ Usually done by amateur cooks, this form of manufacture combines anhydrous ammonia with pseudoephedrine tablets, water, and a reactive metal such as Lithium into one container at the beginning of production.
This method reduces the amount of time taken for the overall process and avoids needing a larger laboratory. It can, however, be extremely volatile, as it combines many ingredients into a single vessel for preparation. The end product of this method is crystalline powder, rather than the mineral-like shards that typify more professionally synthesized operations.
Currently, the bulk of methamphetamine found in the United States originally comes from a Mexican cartel. The Jalisco New Generation (JNG) cartel is one such group and is known to traffic metric tons across the border annually. Cartels such as the JNG purchase large amounts of precursor chemicals, either domestically or from China, and create huge amounts of pure meth in large warehouse-sized labs. The region of Sinaloa, in particular, has become known for producing a high purity ‘super meth,’ using this method.
This form of meth is created using materials other than red phosphorus and ephedrine. Using industrial chemicals and highly volatile fuels, the pure meth created through P2P production has created an even more dangerous compound. The surge in meth overdoses in the US has largely been attributed to the higher average purity of the substance across the country.
Meth produced using P2P chemical synthesis often looks like the stereotypical quartz chunks envisioned by most as meth. Colors are then added at the tail end of the process, to make the product stand out or match the expectations of consumers in certain areas.
However, globally, methamphetamine does not come from one common source as it does in the United States and often derives from Southeast Asia. In the middle east, the lack of stability in Syria and Lebanon has led to these nations becoming leading producers of amphetamines in the Middle East. In the regions, methamphetamine is often found in various capsule or pill forms and is referred to by regional terms such as ‘yaba’ in Southeast Asia.
Powdered meth arrives on the drug market for a variety of reasons. In some cases, it is the result of a smaller batch of manufacture. In other instances, it is made into a powder form to make transportation (or mailing) easier. No matter the reason, it is easier to adulterate meth powder than a crystal due to many similar crystalline or granular substances.
The powder form of meth is typically a ground version of the larger crystals. It can also be the result of a smaller, ‘one pot’ method of manufacture. When they’re produced, the substance’s color, as well as its crystal structure, can vary widely.
Chemists add color using dyes and other means to differentiate their products. Powdered meth can be cut with raw forms of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, as well as caffeine. Caffeine can add different features for users and is often part of powdered meth that is intended to be pressed into pill form.
Crystalline powder forms may be more common, as well as ‘shard’ forms of methamphetamine. But meth pills are becoming increasingly common in the United States. The pill form of meth can be made into many shapes, and it is usually smoked or snorted rather than injecting it intravenously like crystalline or ‘pure’ forms of the drug.
A chemical cousin of meth is the prescription stimulant drug Adderall. Adderall pills are a powerful central nervous system stimulant and elevate the brain’s dopamine system, resulting in elevated levels of energy and euphoric effects that can be extremely pleasurable. Stimulants are often prescribed to treat conditions like attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or narcolepsy. They are highly susceptible to drug abuse and are often misused on college campuses by students with heavy workloads.
However, many seized and illicit Adderall pills often contain a mix of caffeine and a pharmaceutical-grade version of methamphetamine. In reality, many Adderall pills purchased online or on the street today are really meth pills. These fake prescriptions are often little more than cutting agents and meth and have led to student overdose deaths in several states.
Cooking meth does not usually lead directly to the creation of liquid meth. Instead, liquid meth is typically used to transport the drug from wholesalers in large amounts for processing. It is not likely to be encountered by the average meth user and is clear in its usual state. Liquid meth can also appear yellow, brown, or even an off-white shade.
However, dyes can be added to the liquid form of crystal meth to give it a bluish tint in order to make the end result in bluish crystals. This is just one example of a tint that is popular, for reasons that we will look more closely coming up.
The appearance of pink crystal meth gained attention and was picked up by the media several years ago. Although this form of ‘strawberry quick’ meth was depicted as being made to appeal to children, it is more likely that it was a form of meth cooks creating a distinct product to stand out and draw attention.
Along with the show, “Breaking Bad” on AMC came several characters with an interest in meth manufacture and distribution. The schoolteacher turned meth cook played by Bryan Cranston was known by both his character’s name, Walter White, and a pseudonym, Heisenburg that became popularized in both pop culture and among meth users.
In order to create a memorable product for their trafficking, the two main characters create blue crystal meth they term ‘Blue Sky.’ In a case of life imitating art, actual producers of the drug have also created meth with a blue shade to appeal to consumers and increase profits.
Meth can impact your health and mental health in a staggering number of ways. Meth can increase the number of medical risks, including a heightened risk of HIV, hepatitis C, and chronic physical issues. Intravenous use of meth dramatically increases these risks. If you or a loved one are struggling with substance abuse of this kind the greatest benefit will usually be from treatment placement tailored to stimulant use disorders.
In a recent study, people who used meth were four times more likely to have hepatitis C than members of the general population.
Some negative effects include:
Meth can impact your health and well-being in the long term, so avoiding this form of drug abuse entirely is the safest option. If you’re wondering whether using meth can impact your health, symptoms can include anxiety or depression, as well as weight loss, tooth decay, trouble sleeping, and weight gain.
Methamphetamine use may cause weight loss and nutritional deficiencies, and both are damaging to overall health. Meth can affect your sex drive and your appetite. Prolonged use can also impact the way the brain functions, and recent studies have linked meth to declining brain function.
Meth causes a number of direct health consequences, some of which can be reversible and others more permanent.
Meth use often creates an addiction cycle. Toward the end of meth use, the user often experiences an intense craving for the drug and a sense of desperation. This leads to binge use behaviors that often lead to cravings and multiple uses.
Due to this, meth addiction is usually best treated in a medical detox setting initially, and a variety of addiction treatment approaches can help even chronic meth users achieve long-term recovery.
Meth typically has a crystalline appearance, whether ground into powder or left in large shards that look similar to the mineral quartz. Other forms of meth include meth pills, liquid meth, and colored varients such as pink meth or blue meth to replicate the drug shown on the popular television show "Breaking Bad."
Although methamphetamines are difficult to smell with the human nose alone, the drug is often described as having a bitter taste. The smell of meth has been described as acrid as well, along with having a distinctly chemical odor when consumed by smoking.
Methamphetamine can have damaging effects on the users’ brains and bodies – up to and including an overdose or death. Stimulant forms of substance abuse can affect the user in several ways: It can affect their appetite and sleep, make them easily stressed out, affect their ability to sleep well, and impact their ability to think quickly and efficiently—often leading to a reduced IQ or other mental health issues.
The signs of meth use are typically first behavioral (such as getting angry and acting impulsively) before physical signs begin to become clear (such as sores or mouth damage). It is important to get help for someone misusing meth before the effects of the drug become entrenched and require long-term rehab treatment.
If you or someone you know is struggling, it can be hard not to get angry with yourself for making such a mistake or a loved one for using meth. But it’s important to look at your choices with love and forgiveness instead of bitterness and anger towards those around you. Rehab for meth is effective and can get your loved one help in finding lasting recovery.
Now that you know what meth looks like, reach out to the staff at Rehabs Of Armerica and get the help you or your loved one deserve!
Edward lives and works in South Florida and has been a part of its recovery community for many years. With a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Massachusetts, he works to help Find Addiction Rehabs as both a writer and marketer. Edward loves to share his passion for the field through writing about addiction topics, effective treatment for addiction, and behavioral health as a whole. Alongside personal experience, Edward has deep connections to the mental health treatment industry, having worked as a medical office manager for a psychiatric consortium for many years.
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