High Price

that of a non–drug addict.
    Because the literature wasn’t as informative as I’d hoped, I wrote and received a grant to study larger methamphetamine doses in individuals snorting the drug. These laboratory studies detailed the immediate and short-term effects of the drug on measures of cognitive functioning, mood, sleep, blood pressure, heart rate, and the drug’s addictiveness. I tested doses up to 50 mg, which were, at the time, the largest doses tested in people. All of the drug doses were given in a double-blind manner—the research participants didn’t know whether they were getting placebo or real methamphetamine, nor did the medical staff monitoring the sessions. The research participants were carefully selected to make sure they were in excellent medical condition. All were addicted to methamphetamine and used more than 100 mg of the drug on a weekly basis. I wanted to make sure that I was not exposing them to more drug in the lab than they used outside the lab. Similar to the cocaine studies I had previously conducted, we intentionally recruited people who were not seeking treatment, because we felt it was unethical to give methamphetamine to someone trying to stop using.
    In the first experiment, we simply had research participants snort one dose of methamphetamine while our medical team carefully monitored their vital signs for twenty-four hours. We also asked the participants to do cognitive tests and rate their mood before and several hours after the drug was given. The findings were consistent with data from our previous studies when we gave the drug by mouth. 11 Participants reported feeling more euphoric and their cognitive functioning was improved. These effects lasted about four hours. The drug also caused significant increases in blood pressure (BP) and heart rate that lasted for up to twenty-four hours. The maximum levels were about 150/90 (BP) and 100 (beats per minute). While these elevations were undoubtedly significant, they were well below levels obtained when most people are engaged in a vigorous activity such as physical exercise. Another finding was that the drug reduced the amount of time our participants slept. 12 For example, when they took placebo, participants got about eight hours of sleep on that evening. But when the 50 mg dose was given, they got only six hours of sleep. Together, the results indicated that a large snorted dose of methamphetamine produced expected effects. The drug didn’t keep people up for consecutive days, it didn’t dangerously elevate their vital signs, nor did it impair their judgment. Around the same time, other researchers were studying the drug when it was injected or smoked and they were getting similar results. 13
    The human laboratory data were at odds with anecdotal reports and conventional wisdom. Maybe I hadn’t asked the right question. One of the most popular beliefs about methamphetamine is that it is highly addictive, more so than any other drug. In the next set of experiments, I set out to address this issue. Under one condition, I gave methamphetamine addicts a choice between taking a big hit of methamphetamine (50 mg) or five dollars in cash. They took the drug on about half of the opportunities. But when I increased the amount of money to twenty dollars, they almost never chose the drug. 14 I had gotten similar results with crack cocaine addicts in an earlier study. 15 This told me that the addictive potential of methamphetamine was not as had been claimed; its addictiveness wasn’t extraordinary. My results also showed me that methamphetamine addicts, just like crack addicts, can and do make rational decisions, even when faced with a choice to take the drug or not. This was consistent with the literature assessing cognitive functioning of methamphetamine users, but as noted above, only if you looked carefully. 16
    Still, the popular view of methamphetamine remained unchanged. Most media portrayals continued to emphasize unrealistic effects and exaggerate the harms associated with the drug. For example, in January 2010, NPR ran a story titled, “This Is Your Face on Meth, Kids.” The story described a California sheriff who was trying to stop young people from experimenting with methamphetamine. With the help of a programmer, he developed a computer program that digitally altered teenagers’ faces to show them what they would look like after using methamphetamine for six, twelve, and thirty-six months. These young people