Methamphetamine has been around for a very long time, though the procedures for manufacturing the drug have changed throughout the years and made it much more potent. In Germany, in the late 1800s, amphetamine was developed, and in 1919, Japan created methamphetamine, which was easier to produce than amphetamine. The drug was widely used in combat during World War II to promote wakefulness. After World War II, there was an epidemic of methamphetamine abuse in Japan, according to the Foundation for a Drug-Free World.