Academic Doping With ADD Meds

I guess I'm clueless and far removed from the college scene, which is probably a good thing based on my academic performance all those years ago. I had fun though

I found an article recently published online by The National Post on students who take ADD drugs, and how they are selling them to healthy students, who believe the drugs' stimulant properties can sharpen their minds. Wow! I'm shocked, but should I be? It kind of reminds me of my post last month about the movie called Limitless about down-and-out writer who gets his hands on a top-secret pharmaceutical drug that makes one smarter. Here is what Tom Blackwell of The National Post has to say:

"It started during finals last year, when someone suggested the University of Western Ontario student try a little helper to get him through a punishing exam schedule.

The sociology major popped one of the Adderall XR pills his friend recommended and, as advertised, found he was soon hitting the books in a new way.

"Within maybe 20 minutes, I felt different. I felt that my brain had maybe sped up a bit. It was weird," said the second-year undergraduate, who asked not to be named. "I just read chapter upon chapter, no worries. I was reading faster and I wasn't getting bored by it."

A mild form of amphetamine, or speed, Adderall is usually prescribed to patients suffering from attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Increasingly, though, Adderall, Ritalin and other ADHD medications have become favourites of healthy students, who believe the drugs' stimulant properties can sharpen their minds while cramming for tests and writing essays.

The idea of using the pills for non-medical "cognitive enhancement," though seemingly common in the U.S., has until recently been discussed and debated as a largely theoretical issue in Canada. Evidence is slowly emerging, though, that the phenomenon is becoming entrenched on campuses across the country."

Read the full article at The National Post