Is Ritalin Good Essay

The Clinton foundation reports that between the years 1993 and 2006, the magnitude of college students who use prescription stimulants, such as Adderall and Ritalin, has increased by 93%, which suggests that Adderall usage in universities are at a record high (Clinton 2015). According to the National Institute of health, cognitive enhancing drugs are pharmaceuticals that are taken to improve one’s memory, learning, focus, attention, and other cognitive skills (Mehlman 2004). Adderall is a central nervous stimulant that is prescribed by a primary physician for treating medical conditions such as narcolepsy and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (Smith). Alan Desantis, a professor at the University of Kentucky, conducted a research

Ritalin is another example of a prescription ADHD stimulant that is misused frequently with a high mortality rate from overdose. Ritalin, which is more prevalent with high school age students, is primarily misused for weight loss and a feeling being high. The majority of children misusing prescription drugs such a Ritalin are under the impression that it is safer then illegal street drugs (CCHR, 2013). Ritalin is the most common stimulant drug prescribed to children with ADHD, but is also prescribed for other disorders, such as cancer, brain injury and pain management (Morton & Stockton, 2000). According to Morton & Stockton (2000) the effects of Ritalin are similar to the feeling of using cocaine, which may be one of the reasons that the ADHD drug is misused. According to research done by Musser et al. (1998) most school aged children using Ritalin did not think that Ritalin or any other prescription medication for ADHD could be abused. This ignorance may be part of the overwhelming reason that drugs such as Ritalin are becoming more widely

In this day and age, drugs are being prescribed without hesitation. In fact, many of these drugs are being prescribed for children with various disorders. One of these disorders is called Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). An estimated five to ten percent of children are diagnosed with this syndrome (Taylor 11). One of the methods to treat this disorder is to use stimulants, specifically Ritalin. This method is controversial because it has many side effects and its long-term effects are unknown. It can also lead to addiction. Approximately two to three percent of elementary school children are taking some kind of stimulant to treat ADHD (Taylor 64). Since so many children are taking this medication, new problems have arisen.

Most Americans have heard of Ritalin and Adderall, either being used to calm hyperactive children or used illegally across every college campus for the purpose of studying. These are two completely different circumstances, which may be confusing to some. The reason that these two different groups of people get two vastly different results from the same drug is that these belong to the drug class of central nervous system (CNS) stimulants. CNS stimulants increase alertness mentally and physically, but do the opposite for those with hyperactivity disorders. This is because these drugs release dopamine levels in the brain. Dopamine is a chemical in the brain that is related with motivation (Healthline Editorial Team).

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.

When taken as prescribed, Ritalin is a valuable medicine. Research shows that people with ADHD do not become addicted to stimulant medications when taken at prescribed treatment dosages. However, because of Ritalin’s stimulant properties, in recent years high levels of abuse of Ritalin by people who are not prescribed, has been reported.

Over the past couple of decades there has been a huge increase in the diagnosis and prescriptions given out for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. According to a news report done by USA Today over the past five years use of ADHD medications have risen 40% totaling 39.5 million individual prescriptions ("New findings," 2009). When statistics like this are seen it is only normal for someone to ask questions. People are becoming curious about the legitimacy of the disorder, and whether or not the treatments being given to individuals are appropriate. The argument seems to be strong on both sides of the fence, but the extensive research done on ADHD leaves it hard for one to believe that it is a made up disorder.

Adderall has emerged as the leading prescription medication to treat ADHD. Approved by the FDA in 1996, Adderall prescriptions have grown in leaps and bounds, overtaking the once popular medication Ritalin as the leader in treating ADHD. The number of prescriptions given for the drug has skyrocketed in recent years, going from 200,000 in 2001, to 4.3 million in 2002, to 6.4 million in 2003. The profit margins for Shire have reflected such growth. According to manufacturers, Adderall brought in sales of $475.5 million in 2003, a 49% increase from its 2002 earning and a number that looks to continue to rise. The success of Adderall motivated Shire to extend their patent on its production until the year 2018. It also produced the birth of a new, more improved form of Adderall. Adderall XR has the same desired effects of its early counterpart, but is unique in that it contains two types of drug beads designed to give double-pulsed delivery of amphetamines, intensifying the effect and sustaining it over longer periods. While more and more doctors and parents are turning to Adderall and Adderall XR as an effective treatment for ADHD, the drug has found a comfortable niche among the college subculture.

The use and abuse of prescription stimulants is not only focused on one specific level of students it affects as young as 8th graders in high school who wish to accomplish a high level of academic performance to reach the so called “success in life”. In 2011 Dr. Arria said that, “Students believe in the myth that by using prescription stimulants nonmedically, students can improve their cognitive performance and gain a competitive edge. When in reality, Experimental research has shown mixed findings on the performance effect of prescription stimulants among study volunteers with no attention difficulties. There is much uncertainty about their effectiveness due to dosage issues, individual differences, expectancy of the effect, and type of task. Thus, it is unlikely that these drugs can improve academic performance in the long run” (Arria). Dr. Arria also explained that students who also abuse cannabis also with excessive drinking will play a role in the effect on the medication taken, students are most common to take Adderall or Ritalin. These prescription medications are used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

Thesis: Today there is a great debate concerning the diagnosis and treatment of ADD/ADHD and who has the right to decide what happens.

Ritalin is currently prescribed to approximately six million people in the US. Of those six million, 75% of these are children, with boys receiving Ritalin about four times more often than girls. Ritalin is a drug that stimulates the central nervous system. It interacts with chemicals in the brain and nerves that give way to hyperactivity and impulse control. Not only is Ritalin used to treat ADD and ADHD, it is also used to treat a sleeping disorder called Narcolepsy, which is an uncontrollable desire to sleep, but there is another drug that given just as Ritalin, and it is called Adderall. Adderall is almost the exact same as Ritalin except it actually enters the cell and helps it produce more dopamine.

Now that the scientists sort of know what causes the disorder, they can treat it. There are many programs and methods out there to help children with ADHD and their parents. Parents must realize that, “Medication alone is not the answer, research has shown that the most effective treatment and management of ADHD is a combination of medication and behavior modification programs [or therapy].” (About ADD) This is the most important statement an ADHD parent could hear. The type of drugs used are called stimulants or psychostimulants, they are both the same. Stimulant medications are used to control the symptoms of ADHD. They are not used to control behaviors. (About ADD) What they do is Alter the level of neurotransmitters in the brain. (Attention Deficit Disorder Association) They were first used in 1937. Effects of stimulant medications usually take effect right away. A common stimulant medication is Ritalin. People thought that was an addictive drug. In fact stimulant medications do not cause dependence. (Attention

To add to that, the research that has been conducted on the disorder has led to a variety of effective treatments. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (2014) the most widely used medication is a stimulant. There is a wide variety of stimulants available for ADHD subjects. Although, with these stimulants come side effects including sleep problems, decreased appetite, anxiety and other diverse uncommon side effects (NIMH, 2014). Stimulants tend to calm children with ADHD. However, these medications can be detrimental to the patient in many ways. Certain medications have been subject to abuse, including Adderall and Ritalin. These medications are in some cases abused by patients who are over diagnosed. Since these patients do not have the disorder they can feel the side effects and use the drug to achieve a certain kind of high. When using these drugs for non-medical purposes they can seem to replicate the effects of cocaine

1. Sub Point: Baylor University does a nice job of summing up student motives of such drastic behavior in its 2005 article “Study Drugs Still Popular despite Health Risks”.

Those children that are diagnosed with ADHD are usually prescribed psycho-stimulant medications, such as ‘methylphenidate’, otherwise known as ‘Ritalin’, as the primary method of treatment. (Chandler, 2010).