Methamphetamine - How Is It Taken?

How Is It Taken?

Methamphetamine is swallowed, snorted, injected, smoked, absorbed through the gums, or inserted through the anus.

Legal Form

The prescription form of methamphetamine (Desoxyn) comes in the form of a white tablet. Each tablet contains 5 milligrams of methamphetamine hydrochlorideA chemical compound composed of the elements hydrogen and chlorine, often in the form of a crystallized salt.. Its chemical formula is C10H15NHCl.

Illegal Forms

Illegally produced methamphetamine tablets often contain large amounts of caffeine. The tablets are sweet, brightly colored, and about the size of a pencil eraser. These pills are called ya ba, the Thai term for "crazy drug." Ya ba is especially popular in the Southeast Asian countries of Thailand, Burma, and Laos. It first appeared in the United States in 1999, with use centered in the Southeast Asian communities of California. In a September 2002 article for the North County Times, Louise Chu explained, "Ya ba has become a vague label for any type of meth in pill form, although it specifically refers to the brand produced in Southeast Asia."

The powdered form of methamphetamine is much more common. Users absorb it through mucous membranes in a variety of ways—snorted up the nose, rubbed onto the gums, wrapped in a cigarette paper and swallowed, or even wrapped and inserted into the anus. The powder dissolves quickly and is sometimes added to coffee or alcoholic drinks.

Liquefied methamphetamine is made by adding water to the powdered form of the drug. As a liquid, it can be injected directly into a user's vein or muscle.

Drug smugglers will try just about anything to get their product into the United States. This U.S. Customs photo shows the drug ya ba, a form of methamphetamine, concealed in a shipment of dead bugs. AP/Wide World Photos.
Drug smugglers will try just about anything to get their product into the United States. This U.S. Customs photo shows the drug ya ba, a form of methamphetamine, concealed in a shipment of dead bugs. AP/Wide World Photos.

Chunks of methamphetamine hydrochloride look like clear crystals and are often referred to as "ice." A common way to smoke ice is in a glass pipe with a bulb on one end. According to G. C. Luna in a 2001 article posted on the SciELO Public Health Web site, "some methamphetamine users break off the tops of light bulbs, put the drug into the glass bulb, heat the underside of the bulb, and inhale the contents."

A quarter of a gram of methamphetamine costs anywhere from twenty to sixty dollars on the black marketThe illegal sale or trade of goods; drug dealers are said to carry out their business on the 'black market.'.Methusersare willing to spend the money to purchase such a small amount of the drug because a long-lasting high can be achieved with very small quantities.