10. Both the Axis and Allies Issued Their Troops Performance Enhancing Drugs
By 1938, the pharmaceutical company Temmler had begun to market the German answer to Benzedrine: an over-the-counter drug named Pervitin. Unlike Benzedrine, whose base was amphetamine, Pervitin was methamphetamine. The use of either substance leads to pleasant feelings of euphoria. Both render the user more energetic, with a greater ability to focus, and an irresistible desire to engage in activity and do stuff. When WWII broke out soon after the development of Benzedrine and Pervitin, both the Allies and Axis issued their version to try and get super performances out of their military personnel.
However, while both are addictive stimulant drugs, and thus have serious downsides, methamphetamine has far worse effects on the body than amphetamine. That is because although methamphetamine shares many similarities with amphetamine, it has one huge difference: it is far more intense. Methamphetamine goes into the brain significantly faster than other stimulant drugs. As a result, a powerful high is felt far more quickly than with amphetamines. That is why crystal meth, methamphetamine, is far more popular with addicts than amphetamine-based drugs like Adderall.
