Amphetamine

Amphetamine is a prescription stimulant, most familiar as the mixed amphetamine salts sold under the brand name Adderall, used to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and (in some formulations) binge-eating disorder. Taken as prescribed under medical supervision it can improve attention and reduce impulsivity and hyperactivity, but it is a controlled substance with a recognized potential for misuse, dependence, and addiction. Misuse — taking more than prescribed, using it without a prescription (for example to study or stay awake), or taking it by routes other than swallowing — raises the risks substantially. Regulators have strengthened warnings about the serious risks of prescription stimulants, including misuse, addiction, overdose, and death.

Amphetamine increases the activity of the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain, boosting alertness, attention, and energy and, at higher doses, producing euphoria that can reinforce repeated use. The same stimulation activates the cardiovascular system, raising heart rate and blood pressure. In people with ADHD, carefully dosed stimulant medication can improve focus; at higher or misused doses the same mechanisms drive the drug's dangers — cardiovascular strain, agitation, and, with heavy use, disruption of normal dopamine signaling that can affect mood and behavior. With repeated misuse, tolerance and dependence can develop.

At therapeutic doses, amphetamine improves attention and wakefulness and can suppress appetite. Common effects, especially at higher or misused doses, include increased energy and alertness, euphoria, talkativeness, reduced appetite, insomnia, dry mouth, and a faster heartbeat. As the dose rises, effects can include anxiety, restlessness, irritability, raised blood pressure, and — at high doses or with heavy use — paranoia, hallucinations, and stimulant psychosis. Coming down can bring fatigue, low mood, and difficulty concentrating. Long-term misuse is associated with cardiovascular problems, weight loss, sleep disruption, and mental-health effects.

The main acute danger is cardiovascular: amphetamine raises heart rate and blood pressure and can, particularly at high doses or in people with underlying heart conditions, contribute to dangerously high blood pressure, irregular heart rhythms, heart attack, stroke, seizures, or dangerously high body temperature. Unlike opioids, there is no reversal medication for a stimulant overdose — emergency care is the response, so chest pain, severe agitation, very high temperature, or seizures mean calling 911. Combining amphetamine with other stimulants (including cocaine or large amounts of caffeine) compounds cardiovascular strain, and combining it with opioids or other depressants is dangerous because the stimulant can mask sedation and lead to taking more of the depressant. Heavy or high-dose use can trigger stimulant psychosis. Misuse can lead to dependence, and any pill obtained outside a licensed pharmacy can be a counterfeit containing other substances, including fentanyl, so naloxone is worth having on hand. For poisoning guidance call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222; for substance-use support the SAMHSA National Helpline is 1-800-662-4357.