Is it just people on meth tend to neglect dental care and don’t floss/brush? Or is there actually a chemical in meth that causes your teeth to go bad?
In: 73
It causes teeth grinding, and meth, like a lot of other drugs dehydrates your mouth, along with the rest of your body- but a dry mouth equals dry teeth. Dry teeth deteriorate faster. The more moist your teeth are, the healthier they are. I’m a dental technician.
Loads of people in this thread are **incorrectly** stating that methamphetamine is acidic. The molecule itself is **NOT acidic.** If you look up the chemical structure of methamphetamine you will note that it has an amine functionality which is basic in nature.
However, when methamphetamine is supplied on the street it might potentially include adulterants that are acidic in nature. I have no specific knowledge on this particular point.
I think its a bit of a myth. Meth seems to be demonized. I guess people with addictive traits perhaps dont look after their teeth so well. Ive smoked a fair bit and noticed no effects but I dont smoke every day or stay up for days. Ive also met lots of addicts whose teeth look perfectly normal altho I havent done close inspections. On the other hand weed smoke can cause me teeth problems.
Among all the other responses here, I’d add that this is completely a myth and you’d be hard pressed to find a direct correlation between these things in lab studies. Note: adderall and other amphetamine salts are chemically extremely similar to methamphetamine. Millions of people take adderall every day and they have fine teeth (prescription methamphetamine is also available and a lot of people take that and they are fine)
The idea that they are correlated is a relic of the war on drugs. Someone here mentioned that methamphetamine smoke is bad for your teeth. Yes, but so is tobacco smoke. When they pick photos of methamphetamine addicts for your high school health class, they also tend to pick people who have poor hygiene, hence why they look like that. Not because of the methamphetamine tho
Tooth neglect while being strung out + dry mouth from the meth + lack of nutrition / favoring sugary drinks + teeth grinding from meth
Bro it’s dehydrates the ever loving fuck out of your whole body. Dehydration when your body is 75% water mixed with no sleeping hardly when that’s the time your body heals the most? No shit your body is going to decay rapidly. It’s all dehydration and lack of sleep not the meth itself although the meth does not help at all.
Toxins get stored in fats and the brain is the organ with the highest concentration of fats protecting it (up to 60% of the brain). These toxins eventually leak down into the gums in an effort to remove them from the body. These toxins destroy enamel cells. Since toxins store in fat, for toothpaste I use coconut cream mixed with terramin clay.
Have you ever noticed that your mouth “tastes gross” when you wake up? That’s because the salivary glands stop cleaning and as a result bacteria starts to thrive, even if just a little. With meth, you have a very dry mouth. Allowing this bacteria to wreak havoc.
My dad is a user (can’t do anything about it, not my responsibility, also he’s “high functioning”) and he has pretty good hygiene habits. He was however predisposed to dental problems because of a prematurity birth defect. The meth did not do much to his teeth for years but I guess it is finally catching up with him as every time I visit he’s missing another one and they appear more dingy. My dad doesn’t really outwardly look like a meth head other than his distinct eyes, and recently his teeth.
I’ve heard this explanation from a friend, but I have no idea how accurate it is.
One method for cooking meth uses red phosphorus in the chemical reaction, and meth cooks are terrible at removing impurities in their product. Some amount of the phosphorus remains in the finished product, which binds and leeches the calcium in teeth, causing premature decay.
Latest Answers