It’s exam week, your stress levels are through the roof and you haven’t even started studying for your first midterm tomorrow.
For some, a little extra help to boost concentration is a popular first resort. That little boost comes in the form of a small pill called Adderall.
The pill, prescribed to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and narcolepsy, is an amphetamine and contains similar chemicals to those found in crystal meth.
Although the recreational use of Adderall is common on college campuses, it can pose a threat to the body due to its harmful effects.
Adderall should be used only by those in serious need of it, said Adrianus De Ruyter, a private practice psychiatrist from Brandon, Fla., who specializes in patients with ADHD.
De Ruyter said that for an Adderall prescription to be appropriate, a patient should be inattentive and have a lot of concentration problems. In most cases, they are ones diagnosed with ADHD.
Those who use Adderall occasionally to improve their performance while studying may not be aware that it has long-term effects on the body. Hypertension and heart problems are the main consequences of taking Adderall recreationally, De Ruyter said.
“If you become dependent on it, it becomes a nasty problem,” De Ruyter said.
He said if someone becomes dependent on it, he could get addicted and have a higher risk of turning to crystal meth, a stronger stimulant.
The difference between a person who is in serious need of Adderall and one who isn’t is that those who don’t need to take Adderall are able to focus without it, De Ruyter said. Besides the warnings of drug use, there still is a ubiquity of Adderall use by college students.
Josh Chandler, a UF student, knows quite a few people who use Adderall to study and said they use it about once every other week, depending on the test.
However, Chandler said he doesn’t see a drastic improvement in his friends’ test grades when studying on Adderall.
“They get more done, but I’m not sure if it translates to better grades,” Chandler said.
Sam Schewe, a UF student who is diagnosed with ADHD, has been prescribed Adderall for almost a year now and believes that it is much more beneficial to him than to those who use it recreationally.
“People who use it just to study for an exam are cheating out of their responsibilities,” he said.
