Check it Out: • 1 LB of METH = 5 LBS of   TOXIC WASTE • In 2004 alone, there were more   than 10,000 meth lab cleanups   at a cost of $18.6 million (Source: DEA, NIDA, NIH, USDHHS)

Other Drug Information: Alcohol Cocaine Ecstasy Fentanyl Hallucinogens Heroin Inhalants LSD Marijuana Prescription Drugs Steroids

The Many Faces of Meth: Before After

(Source: Multnomah County Sheriff's Office - Faces of Meth™)

Treatment Exec Has Hopeful Message About Meth Addiction

Kermit Dahlen, president and CEO of Iowa's Jackson Recovery Centers, says it's a "myth" that nobody recovers from methamphetamine addiction, the Sioux City Journal reported April 10.

"Statewide in Iowa our methamphetamine addicts have a better outcome than any other drug of primary choice," said Dahlen. Officials at Jackson Recovery Centers say that 82 percent of meth addicts who complete treatment are still sober six months later. Dahlen credited the adoption of evidence-based practices for the success.

Jackson's Women and Children's Center has a 73-percent completion rate, said program director Janelle Tomoson. "Some do come through more than one time. Relapse is part of the learning process and part of the disease. It's a chronic disease," she said, adding that women tend to do better in gender-specific programs.

"The moms not only learn to get sober, but many of these women have never had an opportunity to learn how to parent," said Dahlen. "They do love their children. Our programs show them they are not a bad person and are capable of loving their children and are capable of providing them with a good home."