Brown: Adderall provides a quick fix

Column photo

By Erin Brown

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Full-time college students between the ages of 18 and 22 are twice as likely to use Adderall for non-medical purposes than those not in college, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. The illegal use of this prescription drug is a growing trend among college campuses, including the University of Kansas. Although the benefits of this drug are tempting for those facing tough academic schedules, students should be aware of possible side effects and the threat of dependence, addiction or abuse.

photo

Cartoon by Nicholas Sambaluk

Adderall is an amphetamine that serves as a stimulant, and is prescribed to patients with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to drugs.com, a drug information Web site. For those with this disorder, Adderall helps regulate hyperactivity and impulse controls. For those with ADHD, Adderall makes them average, and for those not diagnosed with ADHD, Adderall makes them better than average.

Some common side effects of Adderall include insomnia, headache, loss of appetite, nervousness, dry mouth and even addiction, according to adderall.net, an amphetamine information Web site. Less common side effects include high blood pressure, depression and hallucinations.

Not only can Adderall be dangerous, but it is also illegal to use Adderall without a prescription. For most college students, the benefits outweigh the costs. The notion of an increased GPA with less effort is enough for some students to overlook the side effects and the law. Adderall won’t increase intelligence, but it will enhance concentration, motivation and the alertness necessary to pull an all-nighter before your exam.

Adderall is another drug to add to society’s list of quick fixes and fast results with less effort. Diet pills promise the loss of pounds in merely weeks, steroids promise a better performance and the use of Adderall enhances academic careers.

Adderall is to college students what steroids are to athletes: The drug helps increase the ability to study just as steroids help increase the abilities of an athlete. The use of steroids is considered cheating in sports, and so should the non-prescription use of Adderall be in academics.

When used occasionally, the side effects of Adderall are easily manageable and the threat of long-term effects is small. However, the possibility of dependence or addiction is always present.

Students who use Adderall only occasionally for big projects, papers or exams may find that eventually they cannot perform well without the use of the drug. If Adderall is needed to pass a big exam, other problems in the future such as business projects or career goals may also seem impossible without the illegal use of a stimulant.

People have been taking stimulants for years before Adderall, but if students must rely solely on the illegal use of a prescription drug they are only hurting themselves in the long run. The desire to succeed by one’s own effort should never be something that is drug induced.

Maybe if I took Adderall I wouldn’t be wondering if I have any new e-mails, or checking Facebook every 10 minutes. I probably could have finished this column quicker and more efficiently, but I wouldn’t be able to say I did it on my own.

The benefits of using Adderall seem tempting, but those who do not use the stimulant will know that they owe their success to nothing but themselves.

— Brown is a Wichita junior in journalism and political science.

Advertise Here

Comments

pantheon (anonymous) says...

"Adderall is to college students what steroids are to athletes: The drug helps increase the ability to study just as steroids help increase the abilities of an athlete. The use of steroids is considered cheating in sports, and so should the non-prescription use of Adderall be in academics."
What classes are you taking where you're competing with other students for your grade? Are your grades not merit-based? If you find an empty class to take, do you get an automatic A? And if that's the case, why bother taking Adderall when you can just sabotage your fellow students without risk of "insomnia, headache, loss of appetite, nervousness, dry mouth and even addiction"?
Weird, those symptoms sound familiar.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caffeine...

November 17, 2009 at 4:38 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

connerm (anonymous) says...

Which is worse to consume on a daily basis? 5 cups of coffee or one Adderall?

November 17, 2009 at 5:06 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

pantheon (anonymous) says...

http://www.indwes.edu/Faculty/bcupp/t...
Based on a combination of that and the wikipedia entry I linked, you're going to get "caffeine intoxication" every single day if you're drinking five cups of coffee.
As far as Adderall? I can't find any data. I mean, I've got the data for how much amphetamine/dextroamphetamine they prescribe people who have things like narcolepsy, ADD, etc. but as far as recreational/study use, a cursory search hasn't turned anything up.
I will say this: http://www.minddisorders.com/A-Br/Amp... says up to 60mg/day amphetamine for narcoleptic persons, and http://sleep.emedtv.com/amphetamine-a... says not to exceed 40mg/day.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adderall says the pills come in up to 30mg tablets, so even assuming you're talking about the biggest pill you can get, it's still below the maximum recommended dosage.
Either way, I'm sticking to caffiene.

November 17, 2009 at 5:46 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

Advertisement