Stimulant drug use increases

Professional athletes have brought the world’s attention to the practice of “doping” or taking drugs to enhance their performance on the field. But the latest debate over using chemicals is in the classroom and it’s happening everywhere across the country.

Recent trends suggest a rise in the use of stimulant drugs, those typically used to treat attention deficit disorders, among full-time college students. These “smart pills” like Adderall, Ritalin and Provigil, have become a favorite for students looking to pull an all-nighter cramming for an exam or writing a big paper. The competitive atmosphere as well as the ease in obtaining these drugs, have led to their popularity and sometimes-illegal usage on campus.

Vanderbilt nurse and recent college graduate Anabel Atkinson saw many of her fellow classmates popping pills. “It was pretty common, especially by (those in the medical field),” she explained, “I guess they felt like they needed help to keep up with such a crazy schedule.”

A recent study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration suggests full-time college students are twice as likely to use the amphetamine Adderall than those who do not attend full-time. According to the study, conducted during 2006-2007, among the students who used Adderall nonmedically in the past year also had a tendency to binge drink and were more likely to have used marijuana, cocaine and prescription drugs than their counterparts. This potential link between Adderall use and substance abuse is an alarming and dangerous relationship.

Stimulants such as Adderall do carry a high risk for dependency and abuse. Taking them without a legitimate prescription is not only a felony in Tennessee but also a dangerous game of Russian roulette.

“Prescription medications require a prescription for a reason. Regulations are in place for a reason,” said Belmont student Jennifer Bauder. “If a person is taking a drug not prescribed for them for pleasure, they are risking their lives.”

Drug interactions are happening with more frequently than ever and taking stimulants can also increase risks of heart failure and death.

Atkinson used to work 48-hour shifts as a psychiatric nurse and admits the temptation to take stimulants was there, but she said she saw firsthand in her patients how dangerous it was to play doctor with prescription meds.

But, young people have been drinking and doing drugs illegally for decades. The most recent controversy being debated on college campuses and among medical professionals is the ethical implications of taking these cognitive-enhancers. Do those who take them legally or illegally have an unfair advantage over students and professionals who don’t?

Belmont journalism major, Amanda Stravinsky sees the issue as one that is black and white. She feels those prescribed the medications by their physician can take them legitimately. “It’s when students who are perfectly capable of paying attention and they take the drugs before a test or to read a long chapter—that’s when there’s a problem.” Recognizing similarities between athletes taking performance-enhancing drugs and students taking cognitive-enhancers, she believes “both the student and athlete are cheating their way to success.”

Bauder, a junior at Belmont, agrees there are similarities but points out the bigger issue at hand. “At what point did our society or communities become so competitive that people twist it in their heads that they need artificial means to enhance performance? Are we that afraid of not being successful?”

There are some who argue that the use of cognitive-enhancers is no different than other more conventional means of gaining an edge. Private schooling, personal computers and tutors aren’t readily available to every student and stimulant medications should be thought of in the same way.

But when everybody’s doing it, some competitive students ask if they can afford not to?