By Tim Person
Correspondent
With all the diversions that college has to offer, many students may find it hard to concentrate on their studies. Some, however, are taking their desire to focus to the next level. According to results from a recent study conducted by a Massachusetts psychopharmacologist, prescription attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drugs have grown in popularity amongst college students.
Eleven percent of respondents to the study who held legal prescriptions for ADHD reported they sold their pills, and 22 percent reported misusing their prescriptions.
Students seeking the quick fix of the prescription medication - which can allow for short periods of focus and productivity - primarily use stimulants like Ritalin, Adderall and Adderall XR.
Adderall XR - a newer version of the drug that was approved by the FDA in 2001 - releases its effects over an extended period and may last for nine hours or more.
Students studying late into the night for hours on end believe the drug makes them feel much less fatigue than they would otherwise.
One University student - who wishes to remain anonymous - said the habit is alive at Rutgers.
"Around finals time, a lot of people were looking for [prescription drugs]," the student said. "People were selling one pill for 30 bucks."
Rutgers health officials suspect they have had encounters with students who abuse their medications.
"We give a student a month's supply, and they come back a week earlier," said Najmi Sheikh, the director of mental health at Hurtado Health Center at the College Avenue campus. "They say 'I lost it on the bus.' If it happens once, it can happen. But if it's a repeated pattern, we get suspicious."
Despite the illegality of taking prescription drugs prescribed to someone else, and even with the potential adverse effects that can occur, college students who use them seem to feel like the risks are outweighed by the concentration and alertness they gain.
The larger the size and academic competition of a college, the more ADHD prescription drugs are used and abused, said psychiatrist Eric Heiligenstein at the University of Wisconsin.
Since the drugs are designed to offset imbalanced neurological chemicals in the brain, use of a drug like Adderall XR by people who are not prescribed it can produce unwanted side effects. Users have reported hyperactivity and even mild paranoia when attempting to study after ingesting one of the drugs.
The misuse of the stimulant can result in sudden death or cardiac abnormalities.
These incidents are rare, but can occur if someone has a cardiac problem they are not aware of. These drugs have recently come to require a "black box warning" on their packaging, which informs the user of these potential risks.
The number of students who use of these drugs - gathered from studies - may be lower than the actual figures, according to a prepared statement. Often, people are hesitant to admit to the misuse of a prescription drug, and the use of these drugs is hard to track for police.
The drugs are designed for individuals who suffer from disorders such as ADHD, a condition that results in abnormal hyperactivity and an inability to concentrate. Their use counteracts symptoms of these disorders by stimulating areas of the brain linked to task performance and productivity, and by balancing key neurotransmitters in the brain.
Be the first to comment on this article!