Gunnar Monical. Professor Greg Murray. Egl 101-13. 17 March

The use of opioids and other drugs continues to gradually increase in the United State. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of overdose deaths involving opioids has quadrupled since 1999” (CDC website). Individuals are abusing prescription opioids such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone. Prescriptions opioids that are supposed to be used as pain relievers, cough suppressants and for withdrawal symptoms are being use by individuals in order to feel relaxed or for the overwhelming effect of euphoria. These types of drugs are to be taken orally, but people are snorting, smoking, and injecting them in order to get a better high. I have personal encounters with opioid drugs and opioid abuser on a regular

With access to prescription drugs, people are able to treat a multitude of diseases and illnesses. These drugs help deal with pain, inability to sleep, depression, and much more. Every day we are increasingly living in a world where there is better living through chemicals. However, what most do not seem to see is the rising tide of pain, illness, and ultimately death being caused by the pills people take every day. Most keep drugs in a special place in their minds, where they see them as harmless. Sadly, this is not the case, and in some cases our prescription drugs can be just as harmful as illegal drugs (King 68).

With the increased pressure to succeed and the chaotic collegiate lifestyle taking a toll on students, Adderall has evolved into the “go-to drug.” The Class II prescription amphetamine is intended to solely treat individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and narcolepsy. The stimulant “works to enhance concentration by stimulating the production of dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain” (Stolz 585). Recently, there has been a dramatic increase in the use of Adderall on college campuses to enhance academic performance and cram for exams through the over-stimulation of the brain, therefore “creating super-enhanced focus” (Stolz 585), deeming it the “smart drug.” Due to the fact that several students are not truly diagnosed with ADHD, a majority of this use on campuses is illegal; this has become a growing problem affecting the health of students and entailing “issues of competiveness and fairness” (Jacobs 1). In recent years, the abuse of Adderall has circulated hundreds of college campuses and even secondary schools.

Summary: This article covers a wide variety of factors that result from the over abundant use of prescription stimulants on campuses around the United States. This includes the consequences of taking said drugs, specifically the medical, mental, and academic effects of stimulants. The author also points out four main reasons behind stimulant use on campuses. The first being the pressure of college life. Many students come into college thinking that it will be simple like high

In the modern world of college, an excessive use of the academic steroid, Adderall, has become an easily acquired study drug. It is important to note that Adderall use is becoming an increasingly prevalent issue among students, and can no longer be ignored. Many medical professionals have discovered the benefits of regularly taking Adderall, but unfortunately have unknowingly contributed to the ease of attainability of the academic steroid. Some may argue that the enhancer acts as a remedy to the growing need for focus, when in fact this resolution has led to a whole new set of overwhelming problems such as addiction and unnecessary use.

As the saying goes “Desperation can make a person do surprising things.” Not just in America but all around the world, getting accepted and attending a recognized college is almost impossible to achieve. In the United States College students have been subjected to an extremely competitive environment. The pressure to being successful can be almost unbearable because there isn’t a human being that’s perfect. Right now there are millions of students staring at their final exam review feeling hopeless due to the load of work. Willing to do whatever it takes to pass it. There is an alarming but popular trend among college campuses. It’s being used as today’s college steroid. According to a recent study from Brigham Young University, “Adderall is the most commonly abused prescription stimulant among college students” (Hanson et al.). A large number of students are wrongly using a very potent prescription medication called Adderall or known by students as the “study drug.” Adderall is well recognized drug or specifically known as a neuroenhancing drug which stimulates the brain to perform better. According to The Office of Alcohol and Drug Education at the University of Notre Damen, Adderall was first introduced around the late 90’s and approved by the Food and Drug administration as an alternative to Ritalin, another stimulant, which last twice as long than Ritalin.

Examining the prevalence of stimulant misuse and abuse among college students is crucial to understand how widespread this growing problem is. Understanding the extent of stimulant misuse can lead to better education among college students about the dangers of illicit stimulant use and the potential risks and side effects. In studies done at the University of Michigan and the University of Rhode Island, it was found that many students had used prescription stimulants illegally at one point or another in their lifetime, and found access to drugs such as Adderall very easy to obtain. Many students cited motives for using these drugs illegally, such as using it for a good cause, such as improving grades, and that it was okay because the

Prescription drug abuse among college students have increased over the past few years and is now a national problem. College students are abusing stimulant prescription pills just to stay awake to study and they will abuse the prescription pills just to stay awake to socialize with friends. According to the journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, they have come up with a new term called Generation RX, which is known to the rising group of young adults who are abusing prescription medication. In 2008 the National Drug Survey on Drug Use and Health had found an increase of 21.1% in the general population in the use of nonmedical prescription between the years of 1992-2003 and 15% of people ages 18-25 reported the use of prescription pills. Research showed that in the past ten years prescription stimulants has passed the abuse of other drugs on college campuses. The only drug that research says that prescription pills did not pass for being used more commonly was marijuana. College students have reported saying that they use prescription stimulants for both academic and recreational. To be more specific, college students said, "Alcohol, marijuana, prescription barbiturates, and cocaine were used mainly as "have fun" drugs. While ADHD medication was used for "getting good grades". (DeSantis et al., 2008, p. 317).

7 out of 10 College students on campuses say that it is easy to collect stimulants without a prescription according to a survey done on eight U.S. campuses. 18% of freshmen and undergraduates tell of misusing prescription stimulants mostly Adderall. Most of the students get them from their friends and most of them say the usage of the drug is to help them to stay up to study or improve grades. One in four undergraduates report that they use pain medications, sedatives, or stimulants for the expirementopposite of medical reasons. The (HECAOD) conducted a survey which included 3,918 students which attended six public schools, and two public colleges and Universities in 5 different states. This survey included undergraduates, and professional students. ⅓ of all of them said it’s easy or extremely easy to obtain on multiple campuses.

In an age where a college degree is becoming more of a necessity, the high stress levels and competitiveness experienced by students at colleges and universities can become to much to bare. In turn, certain individuals seek the help of study drugs, also known as nootropics, “refer to the out-of-accordance use of prescription stimulants like Ritalin, Vyvanse, and Adderall to increase mental focus when studying. These drugs are commonly prescribed for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) patients and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD) patients. When used without a prescription, however, they can be dangerous. But despite the risks, 1 in 5 college students use study drugs to get a short-term energy boost to plow through the dreaded all-nighters” (“Study Drugs”).

The use prescription drugs for a nonmedical purpose such as Adderall, OxyConton, etc is rising amongst young adults. Past research shows that some post-secondary students use these drugs to improve concentration while studying or writing assignments. Research also shows students often use these drugs to stay awake longer or to be able to consume more alcohol during a longer period of time when out socially drinking. The researcher of this study would like to focus on the unclear association between the nonmedical use of prescription drugs and the social and academic behaviors in post-secondary.

Back in the 1990s, doctors were persuaded to treat pain as a serious medical issue. There's a good reason for that: About one in three Americans suffer from chronic pain, according to a 2011 report from the Institute of Medicine. Pharmaceutical companies took advantage of this concern. Through a big marketing campaign, they got doctors to prescribe products like OxyContin and Percocet in droves — even though the evidence for opioids treating long-term, chronic pain is fairly weak, despite their effectiveness for acute, short-term pain. Painkillers proliferated, landing in the hands of not just patients but also teens rummaging through their parents’ medicine cabinets, other family members and friends of patients, and the black market. Seeing

The pressures placed on university students to excel, as we all know, is immense. This has managed to push at least 11% of students, according to a survey done at the university of the Free State, into the trap of using Amphetamines such as Adderall, Ritalin, Strattera, the generic Methylphenidate and Concerta, as performance enhancers.

A common trend on college campuses is the use of performance enhancing drugs for both academic and athletic motives. Most college students know of someone who abuses one of these drugs with the most common being cognition enhancers like Adderall and Ritalin. (Greely 2008) These medications are only available legally by prescription, therefore students are illegally dealing to each other for the buying and selling of these drugs. Their purpose for using is to have an advantage over their peers, despite these dealings being crimes in the United States. Hyperactivity disorder, also known as ADHD, is what these prescriptions are intended for but in a healthy student the drugs are used to stay up late, focus on their studies, enhance cognitive

For amphetamines such as Adderall, the distinction between medical use and illegal, nonmedical drug use is more clear. Adderall is a drug that is most commonly prescribed to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It is a stimulant that affects the central nervous system, altering the naturally occurring levels of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine in the brain (American Addiction Centers, 2017). Its medical use for ADHD centers around increasing attention span and decreasing impulsive behaviors. The abuse factor comes in when Adderall and other amphetamines are used without a proper diagnosis and prescription by a doctor. This most commonly occurs when Adderall is used as a “study drug” to increase alertness and focus. By decreasing fatigue, illicit Adderall use enables students to spend more time and attention on their work. The consequences of this type of misuse, similar to the misuse of OxyContin, often include a formation of dependency on