Amphetamines were in common civil use, available over the counter and only restricted in the US in the 70s. They were in diet pills and pep pills etc. You grandparents may very well have taken amphetamines at some point in their lives.

But no, not commonly part of the narrative. Remember, drugs are literally Hitler.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_and_culture_of_subst...