Wendy Zukerman (Host)

What methamphetamine does... Is it floods parts of your brain with dopamine, but then... It stops that sucking up. And the fact that then it stops it getting sucked back, so the dopamine will hang around for longer as well?

What methamphetamine does... Is it floods parts of your brain with dopamine, but then... It stops that sucking up. And the fact that then it stops it getting sucked back, so the dopamine will hang around for longer as well?

Studies in rats have found that meth increases dopamine in a part of their brain by more than 1,000%. Compare that to cocaine, which bumped up dopamine by a measly 350%. Meth also crosses the blood-brain barrier really quickly, so if you're snorting, injecting or smoking it, it means you can get high super fast. Plus, that high can last for hours, some eight times longer than coke.

Studies in rats have found that meth increases dopamine in a part of their brain by more than 1,000%. Compare that to cocaine, which bumped up dopamine by a measly 350%. Meth also crosses the blood-brain barrier really quickly, so if you're snorting, injecting or smoking it, it means you can get high super fast. Plus, that high can last for hours, some eight times longer than coke.

So that is part of the reason that meth can give you this incredible high, because it's flooding your brain with dopamine. Dopamine also helps you focus and pay attention to things, which is why a little bit of meth can work as a medication for ADHD. But feeling that huge happy in your head, it doesn't last forever, because like other drugs, your brain builds up a tolerance.

So that is part of the reason that meth can give you this incredible high, because it's flooding your brain with dopamine. Dopamine also helps you focus and pay attention to things, which is why a little bit of meth can work as a medication for ADHD. But feeling that huge happy in your head, it doesn't last forever, because like other drugs, your brain builds up a tolerance.

Dopamine works by binding to all these little receptors on your brain cells. But as you keep using meth, your brain takes some of those receptors away. So here's Martin, our neuroscientist again.

Dopamine works by binding to all these little receptors on your brain cells. But as you keep using meth, your brain takes some of those receptors away. So here's Martin, our neuroscientist again.

So that is why you might not keep twinkling as bright as a teen heartthrob when you keep using meth. But then our next question is, what are the risks here? Because people say that meth can break your brain in all kinds of ways. And one thing that a lot of our listeners were worried about who had used meth was how the drug had affected their memory.

So that is why you might not keep twinkling as bright as a teen heartthrob when you keep using meth. But then our next question is, what are the risks here? Because people say that meth can break your brain in all kinds of ways. And one thing that a lot of our listeners were worried about who had used meth was how the drug had affected their memory.

And it is true that when you're using a lot of meth or soon after you stop, it can screw with your cognition and memory. One paper said it was similar to what you might see in folks with alcohol use disorder. You can even see abnormalities popping up in brain scans of heavy meth users.

And it is true that when you're using a lot of meth or soon after you stop, it can screw with your cognition and memory. One paper said it was similar to what you might see in folks with alcohol use disorder. You can even see abnormalities popping up in brain scans of heavy meth users.

Now, it's not that noticeable or bad for everyone, but one guy I spoke to who asked us to call him enough, he's used meth pretty much every day for the last four years. He told me that these days his memory is shot.

Now, it's not that noticeable or bad for everyone, but one guy I spoke to who asked us to call him enough, he's used meth pretty much every day for the last four years. He told me that these days his memory is shot.

But what a lot of the scary meth news articles out there don't tell you is that if you stop using meth, your brain can at least partly recover. Studies show that even after long-term heavy use, once users stay off meth for, let's say, six months, a year, their scores on cognitive tests improve, including their memory. Over time, some areas of the brain itself even start to look more normal.

But what a lot of the scary meth news articles out there don't tell you is that if you stop using meth, your brain can at least partly recover. Studies show that even after long-term heavy use, once users stay off meth for, let's say, six months, a year, their scores on cognitive tests improve, including their memory. Over time, some areas of the brain itself even start to look more normal.

Martin told me that this is good news here.

Martin told me that this is good news here.

In the longer term, there are some other things to worry about, though, like meth might put you at an increased risk of Parkinson's disease, which is a disease related to dopamine. But the big thing that you hear a lot about when it comes to meth is that it'll make you go basically psycho, where you start seeing things and hearing things.

In the longer term, there are some other things to worry about, though, like meth might put you at an increased risk of Parkinson's disease, which is a disease related to dopamine. But the big thing that you hear a lot about when it comes to meth is that it'll make you go basically psycho, where you start seeing things and hearing things.