What Are Amphetamines? Uses, Side Effects & Types

As the addictive properties of the drug became known, governments began to place strict controls on the sale of amphetamine. During World War II, amphetamine and methamphetamine were used extensively by both the Allied and Axis forces for their stimulant and performance-enhancing effects. Hence, the latter method may be used on samples that test positive using other methods to help distinguish Amphetamine Drug Profile between the various sources of the drug. GC–MS of amphetamine and methamphetamine with the chiral derivatizing agent Mosher’s acid chloride allows for the detection of both dextroamphetamine and dextromethamphetamine in urine. Amphetamine is generally only detectable by a standard drug test for approximately 24 hours, although a high dose may be detectable for 2–4 days. For example, racemic amphetamine can be treated with d-tartaric acid to form a diastereoisomeric salt which is fractionally crystallized to yield dextroamphetamine.

Your doctor will probably not prescribe amphetamine for you. Overusing amphetamine may also cause serious heart problems or sudden death. Although extended-release stimulants are not approved for children younger than 6 years, health care professionals can prescribe them “off label” to treat ADHD. We do not receive any fee or commission dependent upon which treatment or provider a caller chooses. Calls to numbers marked with (I) symbols will be answered or returned by one of the treatment providers listed in our Terms and Conditions, each of which is a paid advertiser.

What should I do if I forget a dose?

Pharmaceutical amphetamine is prescribed as racemic amphetamine, Adderall,note 4 dextroamphetamine, or the inactive prodrug lisdexamfetamine. The medication in each product is absorbed differently by the body, so one amphetamine product cannot be substituted for another product.If you are switching from one product to another, your doctor will prescribe a dose that is best for you. If you or your child are taking amphetamine for ADHD, your doctor will probably start you on a low dose of amphetamine and increase your dose gradually, every 4 to 7 days, depending on the medication.Your doctor may tell you to stop taking amphetamine from time to time to see if the medication is still needed. Do not stop taking amphetamine without talking to your doctor, especially if you have overused the medication.Your doctor will probably decrease your dose gradually and monitor you carefully during this time.You may develop depression and extreme tiredness. Behavioral therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) are proven to have the highest success rate when tackling addictions like amphetamines. Through treatment in an inpatient facility or with an outpatient rehab program, people with amphetamine dependence can detox from the drug safely and begin therapy to avoid relapse.

Moreover, dextroamphetamine induces synthesis of the cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART), a peptide neurotransmitter that regulates food intake. Evidence suggests that lisdexamfetamine’s treatment efficacy in BED is underpinned at least in part by a psychopathological overlap between BED and ADHD, with the latter conceptualized as a cognitive control disorder that also benefits from treatment with lisdexamfetamine. Children with ADHD who use stimulant medications generally have better relationships with peers and family members, perform better in school, are less distractible and impulsive, and have longer attention spans. One review highlighted a nine-month randomized controlled trial of amphetamine treatment for ADHD in children that found an average increase of 4.5 IQ points, continued increases in attention, and continued decreases in disruptive behaviors and hyperactivity. Additionally, a 2024 meta-analytic systematic review reported moderate improvements in quality of life when amphetamine treatment is used for ADHD.

Before having any laboratory test, tell your doctor and the laboratory personnel that you are taking amphetamine.
They’ll then gradually increase it until the medication is effective.
Evidence from human studies indicates that therapeutic amphetamine use does not cause developmental abnormalities in the fetus or newborns (i.e., it is not a human teratogen), but amphetamine abuse does pose risks to the fetus.
Mods used the drug for stimulation and alertness, which they viewed as different from the intoxication caused by alcohol and other drugs.

This medicine is available only with a doctor’s prescription. Amphetamine works in the treatment of ADHD by increasing attention and decreasing restlessness in children and adults who are overactive, cannot concentrate for very long, or are easily distracted and impulsive. It belongs to the group of medicines called central nervous system (CNS) stimulants. Cleveland Clinic’s primary care providers offer lifelong medical care.

Amphetamine combination drugs such as Adderall are also widely prescribed to treat ADHD.
Lisdexamfetamine’s therapeutic effects for BED primarily involve direct action in the central nervous system after conversion to its pharmacologically active metabolite, dextroamphetamine.
Some side effects may occur that usually do not need medical attention.

Are amphetamines addictive?

Amphetamine is frequently measured in urine or blood as part of a drug test for sports, employment, poisoning diagnostics, and forensics.sources 20 Techniques such as immunoassay, which is the most common form of amphetamine test, may cross-react with a number of sympathomimetic drugs. Hence, in contrast to dextroamphetamine, parenteral use does not enhance the subjective effects of lisdexamfetamine. Presumably due to its rate-limited activation by red blood cells, intravenous administration of lisdexamfetamine shows greatly delayed time to peak and reduced peak levels compared to intravenous administration of an equivalent dose of dextroamphetamine.

What’s the difference between amphetamine and dextroamphetamine?

Among this group, the most closely related compounds are phenethylamine, the parent compound of amphetamine, and N-methylphenethylamine, a structural isomer of amphetamine (i.e., it has an identical molecular formula). Amphetamine has a very similar structure and function to the endogenous trace amines, which are naturally occurring neuromodulator molecules produced in the human body and brain. This enzyme was found to metabolize amphetamine, tyramine, and phenethylamine with roughly the same binding affinity for all three compounds. Among these metabolites, the active sympathomimetics are 4-hydroxyamphetamine, 4-hydroxynorephedrine, and norephedrine.

Your healthcare provider or a pharmacist are the best experts to tell you about medications to avoid so you don’t have interactions. Amphetamines can interact with many other medications. Dextroamphetamine’s effects are stronger than levoamphetamine’s.

Adverse effects

These brain-chemical interactions cause increased alertness, focus, and reduced fatigue. Amphetamines are a drug class belonging to central nervous system (CNS) stimulants and have both illicit and legal variations, both of which are regularly abused. You may report side effects to the FDA at FDA-1088. If you notice any other effects, check with your healthcare professional. Other side effects not listed may also occur in some patients. Also, your health care professional may be able to tell you about ways to prevent or reduce some of these side effects.

Other uses for this medicine

Call your doctor if you have any unusual problems while taking this medication. Talk to your child’s doctor about the risks of giving amphetamine to your child. Amphetamine may slow children’s growth or weight gain.Your child’s doctor will watch his or her growth carefully.Talk to your child’s doctor if you have concerns about your child’s growth or weight gain while he or she is taking this medication. Talk to your doctor about the risks of taking this medication.

That might affect the availability of some of these medications from your pharmacy. Those shortages affect various dosages and formulations (immediate release vs. extended release) into 2025 and possibly beyond. They may even recommend changing you to another form of the medication, like an extended-release form. They may offer solutions like changing your dose or shifting when you take your medication. But these are unlikely when you take your medications exactly as prescribed.

Amphetamines can cause a wide range of side effects. They’ll then gradually increase it until the medication is effective. Dextroamphetamine is a subtype of amphetamine. Amphetamine and methamphetamine have similar chemical structures.

What should I know about storage and disposal of this medication?

The pharmacokinetics of lisdexamfetamine are similar regardless of whether it is administered orally, intranasally, or intravenously. When urine pH is abnormal, the urinary recovery of amphetamine may range from a low of 1% to a high of 75%, depending mostly upon whether urine is too basic or acidic, respectively. Conversely, an acidic pH means the drug is predominantly in a water-soluble cationic (salt) form, and less is absorbed.

The substituted derivatives of amphetamine, or “substituted amphetamines”, are a broad range of chemicals that contain amphetamine as a “backbone”; specifically, this chemical class includes derivative compounds that are formed by replacing one or more hydrogen atoms in the amphetamine core structure with substituents. Amphetamine is eliminated via the kidneys, with 30–40% of the drug being excreted unchanged at normal urinary pH. When the urinary pH is basic, amphetamine is in its free base form, so less is excreted. The half-lives of amphetamine enantiomers differ and vary with urine pH. At normal urine pH, the half-lives of dextroamphetamine and levoamphetamine are 9–11 hours and 11–14 hours, respectively. Following absorption, amphetamine readily distributes into most tissues in the body, with high concentrations occurring in cerebrospinal fluid and brain tissue. Some evidence suggests that amphetamine interacts more strongly with female sex hormones than other psychostimulants such as methylphenidate, which may result in relatively greater variability in drug response across the menstrual cycle.

Frequently prepared solid salts of amphetamine include amphetamine adipate, aspartate, hydrochloride, phosphate, saccharate, sulfate, and tannate. At room temperature, the pure free base of amphetamine is a mobile, colorless, and volatile liquid with a characteristically strong amine odor, and acrid, burning taste. Like amphetamine, both phenethylamine and N-methylphenethylamine regulate monoamine neurotransmission via TAAR1; unlike amphetamine, both of these substances are broken down by monoamine oxidase B, and therefore have a shorter half-life than amphetamine. In humans, phenethylamine is produced directly from L-phenylalanine by the aromatic amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) enzyme, which converts L-DOPA into dopamine as well.

Reviews of clinical stimulant research have established the safety and effectiveness of long-term continuous amphetamine use for the treatment of ADHD. Phenethylamine is the parent compound of amphetamine, while N-methylphenethylamine is a positional isomer of amphetamine that differs only in the placement of the methyl group.sources 4 It is also the parent compound of its own structural class, the substituted amphetamines,note 5 which includes prominent substances such as bupropion, cathinone, MDMA, and methamphetamine. Keep a written list of all of the prescription and nonprescription (over-the-counter) medicines, vitamins, minerals, and dietary supplements you are taking. Be sure to schedule appointments with your doctor on a regular basis so that you do not run out of medication. Before having any laboratory test, tell your doctor and the laboratory personnel that you are taking amphetamine.

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