The Exposures Study

It is titled “Environmental Methamphetamine Exposures and Health Effects in 25 Case Studies” by J.Wright, M.Kenneally, K.Ross and S.Walker and was published in the ‘Toxics Journal’ on 20 August 2020. Commonly referred to as the “Exposures Study”.

Environmental Methamphetamine Exposures & Health Effects in 25 Case Studies - NAMC | National Association for Methamphetamine Contamination

The study is of 25 households, totalling 63 people who were exposed to third hand contamination of methamphetamine in residential properties from 2013 to 2019. The properties were a mixture of government and private rentals and purchased by new owners.

The Exposure Study found a clear link between the participants third hand exposure to methamphetamine and adverse health effects. The time span of exposure was from a few weeks to a number of years.

The most common effects were:

· Skin irritation or rashes

· Sore or watering eyes

· Persistent cough, asthma or asthma like symptoms

· Consistent sinus or respiratory infections

· Headaches

· Difficulty Sleeping or unusual dreams

· Fatigue or tiredness

· Increased aggression or irritability

· Depression

· Anxiety or moodiness

· Vagueness or not thinking clearly or memory issues

· Exacerbation of pre-existing conditions.

For a detailed breakdown of the symptoms and numbers see Table 3 on Page 17 of the article. Only six participants reported no adverse effects from the third hand exposure to methamphetamine residues. Most of the participants in the study reported their symptoms cleared up from a few hours, days or weeks once they had left the property.

The Exposure Study also tentatively identifies the source of contamination whether it is a ‘clanlab’ or ‘smokehouse’ or possibly both. There was no discernible difference for the health effects of the participants due to the origin of the contamination. There was some correlation between eye issues and clanlabs.

One very concerning aspect of the study was three of the case studies were in properties with levels of contamination below the Australian Action Level of 0.5µg/100cm2. The participants in the study residing at these dwellings all suffered effects from third hand exposure to methamphetamine.

Hair samples were also collected and analysed from 36 of the participants, children had some of the highest readings of methamphetamine in their hair, this was due to a combination of their hair is more porous than adults, the nature of their play, such as on carpets, poorer washing of hands, mouthing of hands and objects etc.

In conclusion the research paper found:

“There were no discernible differences in exposures or health effects reported in properties contaminated from former manufacture or use.

The characterisation of contamination at these types of properties is complex, as are the situations in which exposure has occurred in each of the case studies evaluated, with the majority of these properties not being known to have had a drug history prior to occupancy. This study has demonstrated that these properties have the potential to be a significant public health risk. It is, therefore, important that these properties are properly identified and cleaned up and that procedures are developed to ensure that clean-up occurs. Additionally, properties known to be contaminated but not cleaned up need to be disclosed to future occupants.”