Why does illegal meth destroy teeth, but prescription meth does not?

[benburch]

Desoxyn is the legal prescription version, and I find no reference in the prescribing information to loss of teeth and hair;

http://www.ovationpharma.com/images/products/pdf/desoxyn_pi.pdf

But I *do* know from my dentist that he sees meth-related tooth loss all the time.

What is the variable? Is the clandestine synthesis (and hence impurities) the issue? Or is it the dosage taken by addicts?

[JuniperLea]

1. To snort, or not to snort?

Is that the question? Answer?

Stomach bile will rot your teeth too, but it doesn't hurt your innards under normal circumstances.

[LynneSin]

25. Have you ever seen the teeth of a full blown Bulemic

:scared:

Dentists are the first to know if your kid is regularly puking their guts out

[JuniperLea]

28. Yep... morning sickness is dreaded too

I puked every morning like clockwork for six solid months while carrying my daughter! I brushed the hell out of my teeth afterward, flossed and rinsed, the whole deal and I still had some problems. But my teeth were whiter than I'd ever seen them.

I only puked every morning for three months with the two boys... so, if you put the three together... two solid years of pukage!


Check out these photos! EW!


http://www.ada.org/prof/resources/topics/methmouth.asp

[Dora]

2. I've always assumed it's the method of ingestion.

I understand that smoking it is the most popular way to consume it now. That exposes the delicate tissues of the mouth to a lot of terrible chemicals.

It's only a guess, though.

[liberalnurse]

32. Here is an article I came across last fall....

It's a real keeper......Meth-Mouth.....

http://deseretnews.com/dn/view2/1,4382,600140819,00.html


Meth mouth: Ugly legacy of drug is taxing Utah jail, prison medical budgets

By Lucinda Dillon Kinkead and Dennis Romboy
Deseret Morning News

FARMINGTON — With her high cheekbones and pretty ponytail, Cassie Tippetts looks every bit the Utah college coed. She has bright hazel eyes and a smart personality. She is as cute as they come — until she smiles.

Laura Seitz, Deseret Morning NewsDentist Robert Anderson shows the rotten teeth of inmate Cassie Tippetts at the Davis County Jail in Farmington. "You're not going to like what you see here," dentist Robert Anderson tells visitors as the young woman opens her mouth. He is right.
Picture an old picket fence run over by a dump truck. Yellow splinters hang from red, swollen gums. The teeth that remain have thick, black cavities. "I try to hide it as much as I can," Tippetts says.

But she did this to herself, she says, using a drug that eventually stole her job, her money, her freedom and her smile. The 23-year-old Tippetts is not on a Utah college campus; she is in the Davis County Jail. Tippetts has advanced evidence of what is known as "meth mouth" — a condition rampant among methamphetamine users and particularly evident in jail and prison populations throughout the country. "It's pretty obvious when an inmate comes in addicted to methamphetamine," said James Ondricek, Davis County Jail nursing supervisor. "They smile and you see their teeth all rotted out and fallen out at the gum line."

[rustydog]

3. Read up on the ingredients used to make illegal meth

[varkam]

4. That's my first thought too n/t

[Sammy Pepys]

5. While I don't know how meth specifically would hurt teeth...

...I would imagine that most folks addicted to it don't bother to brush or floss too often, which exacerbates the problem.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

6. two reasons come to mind...

1. Undesired compounds in the illicit production of meth.

2. Neglect of basic dental care in illicit users.

[Flubadubya]

9. Controlled dosing...

of the prescription form vs. uncontrolled (i.e. unknown an at the user's whim) dosing of the street drug. Might have something to do with it.

[LeftHander]

7. because you are'nt doing it every few hours for weeks and months?

nt

[Spider Jerusalem]

8. Method of delivery has something to do with it...

a lot of street meth is smoked rather than snorted, and the trace elements of volatile chemicals left over from a less-than-pharmaceutical-grade synthesis are not good for teeth.

[catmandu57]

10. Illegal meth is a witches brew

and users aren't too big on hygene, at least around here anyway.

[Caution]

11. I was under the impression that it had to do with teeth grinding

That some people grind their teeth incessantly while under the influence of crystal meth.

[roguevalley]

12. isn't it made with solvents and whatever is at hand?

[Taverner]

26. Yes - the ingredients to cook meth

Are vile dangerous chemicals. The process involves taking Pseudophedrine and separating the ephedrine from the other chemicals.

[High Plains]

13. Or maybe it doesn't have anything to do with meth...

...and lots to do with the health profile of low-income meth users.

Thanks, Benburch, for pointing out this little anomaly.

[MadHound]

14. My guess, it's the ingredients that are used to make street meth

Muratic acid, ether, Coleman camp fuel, sulphur all kinds of fun shit. Thus you get the nasty side effects, like your teeth rotting out.

[LostinVA]

15. And yet I have yet to see a anti-meth ad

Although those REALLY stupid anti=pot ads air like clockwork...

[benburch]

19. Meth is used by the GOP "base"

Can't be pissing off the "base" in an election year!

[LostinVA]

20. You got it! Those Liberal hippies smoke weed

[benburch]

21. I haven't in YEARS.

Miss it some times though. Especially on the 4th of July. "oooh! Colors!"

[blonndee]

31. I have. There's a fairly recent campaign

and I have to say, the ads are SCARY. There's one that depicts a girl bleeding in the shower from all her pick wounds, and another in which a tweaker obsessively plucks his eyebrows. There are more but I can't remember them. I wish I could find a link.

[tnlefty]

16. 'Many complain of dry mouth which is a physical effect where less saliva

is produced and more acids are produced. These acids can cause tooth decay, gum disease, bone and tooth loss'. www.fenwayhealth.org

This isn't the first site where I've read this. I thought that I had bookmarked some info. from a CBC documentary on meth use and abuse, but I couldn't find the part that related to tooth loss.

I've been trying to find info. that gives a clear, straightforward answer as to why crystal meth is soo addictive and why rehab and treatment often fail, but I haven't come across anything very definitive.

3 people in my little corner of the world have basically ruined their lives with this stuff. One went to the Ford Clinic and is still a user, one will break his addiction doing 10-15 yrs. in Brushy Mountain State Pen.

[warrens]

17. Illegal meth ain't meth, for one thing

But as I understand it, the base for illegal meth, P2P, is a truly noxious corrosive. I would guess that it gets in your saliva and rots out the teeth.

[CAcyclist]

18. I don't know but it tends to make users grind their teeth at night

I never did any drugs but I picked up the habit of grinding my teeth in my sleep from a former boyfriend who ground his teeth in his sleep. So now my teeth are a lot weaker and I have to wear a mouth guard at night. And, again, I emphasize, I never did any drugs - I just picked up this habit.

[iconoclastNYC]

22. Probably because people smoke the street stuff

Also....if you are on a 4 day meth binge do you think ur brushing your teeth? In a lot of cases probably not.

[Bandit]

23. Military has little pills called "stay awake tablets"

Methamphetamine sulphate. They are in or at least used to be in all survival kits.

[LynneSin]

24. I'm making assumptions but I could think of four things

First, someone legally taking Desoxyn is probably not doing as much as what a crankhead is doing with Crystal Meth

Second, for Desoxyn to be legally prescribed, it has to pass FDA standards and I'm assuming that the process for making Desoxyn does not contain some of the nasty chemicals that Crystal Meth uses. I mean, if you're a regular cooker of Crystal Meth in your home, after a year that home is pretty much superfund-certified.

Third: Meth users are notorious teeth grinders especially in their tweaking stage. And if you're grinding teeth you're grinding off enamel which helps to protect the innards of the tooth

Finally - I've seen several documentaries and read much about Meth uses and one thing was common for all of them - they weren't very neat people who took good care of themselves. Perhaps because of their addiction, teeth grooming has taken a back seat and thus increase the possibility of bad teeth

[JuniperLea]

27. Here ya go...

Meth effects
The oral effects of methamphetamine use can be devastating. Reports have described rampant caries that resembles early childhood caries and is being referred to as “meth mouth”.4,5,6 A distinctive caries pattern can often be seen on the buccal smooth surface of the teeth and the interproximal surfaces of the anterior teeth.4

The rampant caries associated with methamphetamine use is attributed to the following: the acidic nature of the drug, the drug’s xerostomic effect, its propensity to cause cravings for high calorie carbonated beverages, tooth grinding and clenching and its long duration of action leading to extended periods of poor oral hygiene.4,5,6


http://www.ada.org/prof/resources/topics/methmouth.asp


Further reading of this article reveals that the demographic is growing. College students and young professionals being the newest and most rapidly growing group.


It's monoamines re-uptake inhibitor effect explains the high and the addiction.

[AlienGirl]

29. Anything that dries up saliva will cause "meth mouth"

Among other causes, Sjogren's syndrome (an autoimmune disorder) and the aftereffects of radiation treatment for oral cancer will cause the same pattern of decay that meth users get. My guess is that the dosage of prescription meth is less than what heavy-duty users take recreationally, so the recreational use is more drying, thus causing more damage.

Tucker

[Berry Cool]

30. I just read somewhere on some Web site someone decrying the idea

that "meth mouth" is caused by anything other than a) lack of saliva and b) poor dental care as a result of the addiction. Saying that the media have it wrong when they say "it's the chemicals" and so on. Can't remember which site it was, but it said loud and clear: it's not the chemicals, it's the combination of a dried-up mouth and poor hygiene.