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Meth Use is on the Rise
July 8, 2010 Updated Jul 8, 2010 at 4:03 PM EDT

Methamphetamine is described as cocaine times ten. It's more powerful, potent, and the addiction can start the first time you pick up the drug. But, despite the warnings, the use of this drug continues to rise. Previously, the National Institute on Drug Abuse estimated that more than 12 million people over the age of twelve have used the drug. Now they say that number is too low. Sgt Jason Grellner, with the Franklin County Sheriff's Dept, says that "Methamphetamine is the worst drug we've ever come up against. It's the most addictive drug we currently know about. And once you are addicted to it, we don't have many success stories of people getting off of it until their lives are completely ruined."
But, is there something parents can do to keep their kids away from meth? It's a difficult question, but one former meth user says that she wishes her parents were firm and tough with her. Jamie Kane, a 19 years old former Meth user, says "If it's not going to better them in life don't let them do it, you know. Explain why they can't do it. I've never had anybody there telling me not to do something, or it's gonna mess your life up, or it's going to send you to jail. I had to find out the hard way."
According to the DEA, methamphetamine is second only to alcohol and marijuana as the drug used most frequently in many Western and Mid-Western states.

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