Stimulants like these are used by students because of the effects it has on the user. Adderall makes the user stay awake and feel alert and focused, this makes it the perfect drug for a college student looking to stay up all night to study. College students are the ones most commonly taking Adderall without a prescription because its effects can help students stay awake to cram for tests, Amy Laskowski in “The other side of Adderall” claims: “A fall 2007 American College Health Association study found that over 90 percent of college students felt overwhelmed by all that they had to do” (1). It is not a surprise when it comes to college students using these illegal prescription drugs to boost abilities and to study harder and longer. The problem
As with all drugs, the side effects of Adderall vary in severity and frequency depending on the individual and how they take it. When the drug is taken recreationally in high doses or in conjunction with other drugs, undesired side effects are more likely to occur. Some of the more common physical side effects include hypertension (high blood pressure), tachycardia (increased heart rate), and loss of appetite. Amphetamine also activates the area in the human brain stem that controls the respiratory center, this process consequently accelerates the rate and depth of respiratory movements (cite). The psychological effects of Adderall are partially dependent on the individual user’s personality and their state of mind, typical side effects in therapeutic doses are alertness, apprehension, concentration, decreased sense of fatigue, and increased sociability (cite). In rare cases, heavy users have reportedly experienced amphetamine psychosis. Those who overdose are most likely to suffer from amphetamine psychosis, this condition is characterized by delusional thoughts, paranoia, and even hallucinations. Current statistics project that the number of people treated for amphetamine psychosis that never completely recover could be as much as 15 percent
Duda also quotes study statistics by the Center for Substance Abuse Research who found that Adderall was the most popular drug taken by students to increase mental performance. He then goes on to explain the health risks from the drug and legal ramifications. He uses factual information stating that Adderall is a Schedule II drug, meaning using it without a prescription or selling it are state and federal crimes and can lead to expulsion from the University. The author then concludes the article by stating that students who do not take Adderall think that a chemically enhanced ability to focus gives users an unfair
The lack of knowledge concerning the effects Adderall has on one’s health and the misuse of the drug has led many students to believe that there are no negative side effects of the drug. The negative effects of Adderall on the human body outweigh the positive effects that are better known by college students. Ninety-five percent of the articles in media reports “mentioned at least one possible benefit of using prescription drugs for neuro-enhancement, but only fifty-eight percent mentioned any risks or side effects” (Lakhan). Since the negative effects of Adderall are not talked about much by the media not many college students are aware of what they are taking and what could happen. Negative side effects of Adderall and drugs similar to it
The difference between users and non-users is apparent in grade distributions and exam scores because of the significant advantage given to those taking Adderall with recent studies supporting the fact
Side effects are typically worse during initial days of treatment. Required “Black Box” warnings for Adderall include high abuse potential, drug dependence, and increased risk of serious cardiovascular adverse events and sudden death (Moore, 2014). Adverse effects of Adderall also include CNS and cardiac toxicity (Kee, 2012). This drug is contradicted in some patients. Adderall should not be prescribed to patients with known structural heart abnormality, arrhythmia, or hypertension. Inappropriate dosing or taking with alcohol increases the risk of serious cardiovascular side effects like myocardial infarction even without underlying cardiovascular risk factors (Jiao,
• One third of all new abusers of prescription drugs in 2006 were 12 to 17 years old (SAMHSA, 2008).
Pharmaceutical drug overdoses were recorded as one of the leading causes of death in the United States, killing more Americans than firearms or motor vehicle accidents (Prescription Drug Abuse Statistics, 2013). Many patients are being prescribed these medications after surgery or after suffering an injury that may not require surgery and through overuse, causing these patients to become addicted. Although many feel that doctors are still overprescribing narcotics, this epidemic of prescription drug abuse has been brought to the forefront of national consciousness causing many prevention strategies of abuse to be put in place, strategies that were not presented in the past. The hope for these strategies is to curb the amount of unnecessary prescriptions being prescribed. Some of these strategies include educating and training physicians and doctors in the diagnosis and treatment of addictive diseases, specifically the abuse and misuse of controlled prescription drugs, as well as the implementation of the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP), which
What most college students perceive to be performance enhancement is actually drug abuse. Adderall is a medical drug that is prescribed to patients with sleeping problems, attention and behavior problems. Being a sufferer of severe Narcolepsy, I have had years of personal experience with this medication. The medication is very potent with highly addictive properties and is directly connected the body’s “reward” system. There is a fine line between recreational drug use and drug abuse. Many people on campuses across the country abuse stimulants such as Adderall. The drug has become a common notion in many college institutions as a result of the positive impacts enhanced by students on the illegal application of the drug. Students assert on high performance, creativity effectiveness, attention and focus enhancement to be the result of the drug application. Provided with the concept that if the drug is illegally utilized it can lead to poor performance due to reduced creativity and causing different health risks; assessment of the impact of the drug can be probable. Therefore, despite the positive aspects enhancement of the illegal application of the drug to students, different cases of negative aspects have been reported and as a result it has impacted the health of the people. Different factors enhance the illegal application of the drug and as result, the society 's expectation,
Medications are used to help focus, minimize compulsive behavior, and deal with social, behavioral, and educational problems that come with the symptoms of ADHD.
According to the 2013 National College Health Assessment study, almost half of students surveyed stated they felt overwhelmed with anxiety in the last year (Novotney, 2014). These numbers continue to rise among high school students and college students around the country. It’s no question why the percentage of Adderall use among college students is also rising.
When you think of drug overdose, what do you think about? You probably said Cocaine or Heroin, but what if I told you that there was another drug killing hundreds of thousands of people every year and was somehow going unnoticed. I implore you to read on if you haven’t heard of the shadow epidemic that’s taking American lives everyday. That epidemic is Xanax. Xanax is a very commonly prescribed anti-anxiety drug which became popular in the early 2000s and only continues to rise in popularity as it becomes more of a mainstream recreational drug. Since it is the 8th most prescribed drug in the United States, it can be found in the homes of millions of U.S. families, Xanax is a dangerous, addictive, and easy to obtain drug that is not to be taken
The unprecedented use of prescription drugs by soldiers and veterans began during the second Gulf War and continues unabated today. The combination of increasingly prescribed drugs during and after military service has led to violence, suicide, incarceration, homelessness and in many cases chronic mental disabilities while under care and treatment from the VA. In many circumstances this has become a disability that most veterans can 't recover from because of numerous psychiatric drugs. I will be talking with you about the effects of prescribed medication and the effects that they have on veterans that could cause them to become unemployed and ultimately homeless. A lot of service members are skeptical about seeking professional help due to
There 's plenty of drugs the world may think is fine to use only because it 's given to you by a doctor. All prescribed drugs are made to help someone in some kind of way; some drugs are being issued without having the focus on how it can affect the patient in a harmful way. In most cases, these drugs are free based on the patient health insurance, which may cause some to take advantage of the treatments. In that case, both the doctor and patient should be aware of the uses, abuses and side effects of these drugs such as Adderall.
made aware of the drug and the negative effects that come from using it. This can