In recent years, the use of prescription stimulants has become a popular subject for debate. These stimulants are used by a vast number of people but they are especially popular on college campuses; students have found them useful for providing the focus and alertness they need for productive study and test-taking. These drugs are effective enough that many in academia have wondered whether they might provide an unfair advantage. On the other hand, some experts believe that there is no significant difference between stimulants like Modafinil and a strong cup of coffee. Regardless of your opinion when it comes to stimulants, one of the big concerns when taking any prescription drug should be the potential for interactions with other substances
Unfortunately, students are being deceived by the stimulant drug’s valuable qualities, masking the serious, detrimental effects that the drug induces. Even worse, contributing to Adderall’s extensive abuse across campuses, “instead of condemnation it is implicitly being praised and validated by parents and students who view these drugs as a means of academic
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.
The world’s most popular drug is legal, inexpensive, and believed to amplify workouts. It supposedly motivates athletes and helps them stay alert and focused while also boosting physical endurance by twenty to fifty percent. This stimulant is found naturally in sixty-three plants and is consumed by eighty percent of Americans. This white, bitter, crystalline substance is known as caffeine, and is commonly consumed in efforts to enhance athletic ability (http://gopher1.bu.edu/COHIS/substance/caffeine/about.htm).
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
Caffeine has many negative effects on humans, such as increased heart rate (Lane, J.D., 2002), depression (Goldstein, 2008), and addiction to this “drug.” You may be asking yourself, “What is caffeine?” Well, caffeine is actually a stimulant (Barone, Roberts, 2008) that is found in beverages such as tea, coffee, and soft drinks. In fact, caffeine is the highest grossing and most used stimulant in the United States (Barone, Roberts, 2008). It is estimated that 85% of adults living in the United States consume caffeine on a daily basis (Barone, Roberts, 2008). That means for every 100 adults, 85 of them have had a drink that contained caffeine on any given day. One reason caffeine is so widely available compared to other stimulants is
Conclusion: Policies and interventions should be developed on college campuses to address non-medical use and abuse of prescription stimulants among college students.
In this article, Talbot’s targeted audience plays a large role in the organization and choice of evidence that she provides to the reader. The targeted audience that Talbot reaches to are those readers who are interested in the use of the stimulants as cognitive enhancers and their benefits. Talbot’s choice of evidence through testimonials is a crucial part of her being effective toward the targeted audience because she uses the examples she knows that the readers want to hear. The extended use of Talbot’s “Alex” example in the article helps to support her
Finals week remains a stressful time for college students. A student may have three to five tests in a matter of four days. However, these tests, unlike most, can be worth up to twenty percent of a semester grade. That is a great amount of pressure on a student. With about six hours of sleep a night, eighteen hours of study never seems like enough. Then again, there may be a solution that allows the student to focus on the study so eighteen hours is enough. Better yet, maybe sleep is unnecessary. This is a reality for the 6.4 percent of college students that use unprescribed Adderall. College students all over the country take Adderall everyday to improve performance in school.
Yet, there are those that believe CED usage is unfair to the students that do not take CEDs, as they do not have added cognitive benefits of their CED using counterparts. There is research that suggests the consumption of common CEDs‒ methylphenidate and modafinil‒ does not have a more significant impact on the overall cognitive performance of individuals involved in cognitively demanding tasks than the caffeine in a standard cup of coffee5. It was found that consumption of CEDs methylphenidate (2 x 20 mg), modafinil (2 x 200 mg), or caffeine (2 x 200 mg) during a cognitively demanding task resulted in an increase in cognitive performance when compared to the placebo trials5. There was no significant difference between the increases in cognitive performance between any of the CEDs and, while a wide range of CEDs was not tested, the fact that there was no significant difference between the fair CED, caffeine, and the unfair CEDs, methylphenidate and modafinil, should be some indication as to the overall fairness of these substances. So, while it is clear that there are cognitive increases in performance from these CEDs, these overall increases are similar to the increase seen from the caffeine in a cup of coffee. But there are no claims of unfairness from
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.
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 most consumed stimulant drug in the world is caffeine, a dangerous thing for the human body, but is still yet used every day because it is in numerous forms of drinks and food such as medicine, tea, coffee, and many other things humans consume, which is why there should be an
*This drug may cause drowsiness, trouble with thinking, trouble with controlling movements, or trouble with seeing clearly.
f. .stimulants can cause enhanced brain activity increase and llertness in energy elevated blood pressure increase heart rate increase respiration and sleep deprivation…. Ultimately these three drugs possess the same long term affect when abused; high potential for physical dependence and addiction.
“Asked if the improper use of stimulants was cheating, students were split. Some considered that the extra studying hours and the heightened focus during exams amounted to an unfair advantage. Many countered that the drugs “don’t give you the answers” and defended their use as a personal choice for test preparation, akin to tutoring.” (Schwarz)