From 1933 to 1948, amphetamine was included in an over-the-counter nasal-congestion inhaler called Benzedrine.Īn amphetamine-based medication, such as Adderall or Ritalin, increases dopamine production in the connections between the prefrontal cortex and other locations in the brain, Franssen explained. Soon after Alles' discovery, pharmaceutical companies developed amphetamine medications for treating congestion and asthma, according to a review published in the American Journal of Public Health in 2008. biochemist, discovered that amphetamine had physiological effects. Only two years later, in 1887, Lazar Edeleanu, a Romanian chemist, synthesized amphetamine from ephedrine, according to the University of Arizona's Methamphetamine and Other Illicit Drug Education (MethOIDE) program. Nagai Nagayoshi, a Japanese chemist and pharmacologist, first isolated ephedrine in 1885. These chemicals are the basis on which amphetamines (including methamphetamine) were created. The plant contains ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, which are natural alkaloids, or nitrogenous organic compounds that cause a physiological response in humans. For centuries, many cultures have used ephedra as a stimulant and for treating congestion and asthma, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Amphetamines are derived from ephedra ( Ephedra sinica), a plant native to China and Mongolia.