Teens Turn To New Deadly Drug

One of the most potent illegal drugs on the street, methamphetamine, has become the drug of choice among a growing number of American teen-agers, a new survey finds. The trend is especially disturbing to anti-drug officials because most teen-agers don't see the risk in using it.

Methamphetamine is not a new drug. It is known on the street and school corridors as crank, speed and ice.

"We don't have kids thinking it's harmful. We don't have parents talking to their kids about how harmful it is which predicts we may have a steep increase in the use of methamphetamine, a dangerous drug which they're calling the cocaine of the '90s," Thomas Hedrick of the Partnership For A Drug-Free America told CBS News Correspondent Jerry Bowen.

A survey found that 56 percent of teens nationwide see no harm in using methamphetamine.

"They get bored of marijuana and they go on to something harder," said one teen-age girl.

In an effort to change attitudes, an ad campaign is being launched and a new game is available on the Internet. The target audience starts with 9-year-olds, the time when kids are starting to form attitudes about drugs.

A crystal-like powdered substance, meth sometimes comes in rock form, which flakes off into glassy shards. It can be snorted, swallowed, injected or smoked. If smoked or injected, users report a "rush" and increased energy.

Side effects of prolonged meth use can resemble schitzophrenia, where users have hallucinations and become paranoid. They also tend to have delusions of being swarmed by parasites on their skin.

"It is an easy drug to do. It's not like it has an odor or a scent. The teachers can't tell," a teen-age boy said.

Meth is addictive, and long-term use can lead to "toxic psychosis" which is often displayed in aggressive, violent behavior coupled with extreme paranoia.