Australian research confirms dangers of amphetamines for casual users

Researchers from the University of Western Australia on Friday confirmed well-established fears that long-term use of amphetamines is detrimental to the vascular system, China's Xinhua news agency reported.

"These findings show an increase in the risk of strokes, heart attacks, and many other arterial diseases from abuse of the substance," University of Western Australia School of Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences associate professor Stuart Reece said.

The study compared and examined 55 amphetamine users, along with 107 tobacco users, 68 methadone users and 483 non-smokers over a period of five years.

Researchers concluded that the drug can cause the arteries to harden, greatly increasing the chance of deadly diseases.

Even for casual users, long-term use can have dire consequences on the vascular system.

The findings come at a time when Western Australia is seeing huge problems with methamphetamine use.

A University of New South Wales study found that there are approximately 270,000 regular users of drugs in Australia.

Researchers hope the study may help to provide further information on how to combat Australia's challenging drug problem. --Bernama