As this semester comes closer to finals week, some Loyola students are looking for an extra kick to get started with studying. For History senior “Lucy,” studying for finals takes more than a cup of coffee. “I like to get comfortable at home and put on the radio,” she said. “But unless I take an Adderall, I’ll fall asleep studying.”According to a nationwide survey conducted by the University of Michigan, “Lucy,” who asked to remain anonymous, is not the only college student who studies with the aid of prescription medicines. The study indicates that more than 7 percent of students have used so-called “study drugs” such as Adderall to aid in completing school work, and the numbers are steadily rising. Primarily used in the treatment of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders, these drugs require a prescription from a doctor, yet are now hot commodities among college students who could use the boost during crunch time.The boost, according to psychology professor Evan Zucker, comes from the drug’s ability to increase the amount of dopamine released by the brain’s neurons as they send messages and prevent excess dopamine from returning to the neurons to be recycled. The leftover dopamine is associated with the “pleasurable experience” users feel when using the drug.”It’s great,” “Lucy” said. “You can concentrate on something without getting worried. I can write a 12 page paper in seven hours without any sleep.”These drugs have also been prescribed to treat narcolepsy as well as weight-loss because of the drug’s ability to increase metabolism. Traditionally, only patients with ADD-ADHD are subscribed to these types of medicines, yet Zucker said “physicians can prescribe a drug for whatever use they see fit.””If someone complains of having low energy levels and being easily distracted, a physician can prescribe something like Ritalin – or anything else, really,” he said. “What is required to get a prescription really resides in the doctor-patient relationship, where some physicians may be more liberal in prescribing medications, others not.”As these types of drugs become more accessible to patients, it is no wonder that their use has been rapidly increasing on college campuses. “Many students are taking some kind of ADD medication, so it’s not difficult to find a friend who can get you some,” “Lucy” said. “You can even go to a psychiatrist and fake the symptoms to get a prescription – I have known people that have done that.”Not only are drugs like Adderall and Ritalin available illegally and without a prescription, the network among students with and without prescriptions leads to the selling of these drugs on campus, with many students selling their medication at much higher rates during mid-term and finals weeks. “Prices will definitely go up before finals to about five to seven dollars a pill,” said “Lucy.” Zucker attributes this prescription drug trafficking to the “sooner than they should” refilling of prescriptions, providing the patient with surplus. This distribution of prescriptions can be dangerous in that each dosage is personalized for the individual who was originally prescribed the medication. Classified as Schedule II drugs by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Adderall and Ritalin “do have many medical applications, yet they are fairly high in terms of potential for abuse,” Zucker said. For instance, Schedule III drugs would have a lower medical usage and a lower potential for abuse. Patients report enhanced mood, alertness, energy and vigor, Zucker said. For those without any symptoms of ADD-ADHD, the drugs “facilitate performance on tasks requiring sustained attention,” he added. For Lucy, Adderall and similar drugs “increase her odds” with test taking, providing her with “what seems like so much more time,” she said.Physiologically, these types of drugs are capable of increasing heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, muscle tension and metabolism, and have the potential to become extremely addictive, according to Zucker. “In high doses, ‘psychotic’ states may occur, including delusions and hallucinations, to the point of resembling aspects of schizophrenia,” Zucker said. “They run the risk of leading to psychological tolerance (needing more to get the same effect), and there are withdrawal symptoms that are usually the opposite of the drug-induced effects.” Not only can withdrawal symptoms propel the user into taking more to get rid of the effects of withdrawal, but can also lead to “secondary psychological dependence,” a certain anxiety experienced by the user. Zucker also speculated that long-term use may possibly lead to the depletion of neurotransmitters in the brain which could result in memory loss. The effects can be so severe that the Food and Drug Administration released a public health advisory in early 2005 warning that Adderall may lead to heart disease and can increase the risk of sudden death. So whatever happened to the age-old reliance on a good dose of caffeine when preparing for finals? For music industries studies junior Mike Wilkinson, a strong cup of coffee is good enough to keep him going. “I’m not interested in taking anything else,” he added. “As long as I can get enough sleep beforehand.”Caffeine suppresses the body’s neurochemical adenosine that promotes sleep. Although the effect of caffeine may vary from person to person, its effects are much similar to those associated with amphetamine-based medicines like Adderall, but without any serious withdrawal and dependency symptoms. Is caffeine just not enough to keep students hard at work, in and out of the classroom? As a senior, “Lucy” is all too familiar with the stress to perform well in the college environment. “At this point, I’m taking my final classes – the last I’ll be taking as an undergraduate,” she said. “If I don’t get it together, then all is lost.”

Alex Woodward can be reached at [email protected].