When it comes to the twenty-first century, it’s all about finding faster and more accessible ways to make life easier. In the case of college students throughout the nation, Adderall has become on of the top drugs to keep them on their “A” game.
Adderall has gone from being used as a stimulant to treat individuals with ADHD to helping students stay up all night to study and feel less tired and more focused. People, especially women, are now using the drug because it suppresses their appetites and helps them lose weight quicker.
Adderall is the combination of dextroamphetamine and amphetamine, which increase the amount of dopamine released in the brain, according to the FDA. Higher dopamine levels cause the feeling of pleasure and satisfaction. When the body is satisfied, it does not feel hungry, resulting in a loss of appetite that could lead to rapid weight loss.
“Probably 90 percent of the women I treat use it for that reason,” said Kimberly Dennis, a psychiatrist who specializes in eating disorder treatment and addiction recovery. “Even when women don’t have a full-blown eating disorder, when they abuse Adderall, one of the reinforcing effects … is the appetite suppression and weight loss — in our culture [there] is tremendous pressure on women to be thin.”
Chelsea Putman, a CSULB nursing student said she has seen many cases of Adderall addiction while interning at various hospitals throughout Long Beach. She noted that coming off of an Adderall addiction takes a tremendous toll on its abusers and that most addictions are the result of women using the drug for weight loss purposes.
“Some of the physical symptoms you would see are headache, irritability, anxiety and difficulty concentrating,” Putman said.
The drug has typically been used as a crutch to increase students’ attentiveness so that they can cram for their tests and final papers and not become distracted or tired.
The use of this drug is hitting very close to home, since several Cal State Long Beach students have admitted to using Adderall. These students say it’s giving them the opportunity to raise their lowering grades when their workloads become too heavy or stressful.
“This is a very concerning trend that has been seen over the years,” said Heidi Ortiz, CSULB’s Alcohol, Tobacco and other Drugs coordinator. “Many young adults in college are reaching for these drugs without having taken into full consideration to potential adverse effects that can be caused.”
Ortiz said that despite what students believe, Adderall does not enhance learning or thinking ability among people who do not have an ADHD diagnosis.
Brandon, a senior communications student at Cal State Long Beach is prescribed the drug for attentiveness and has found that, over the years, taking the drug has given him more of an edge on his studies and has now begun to use it more frequently during stressful periods at school. Brandon spoke under the condition that his last name not be used.
“I do have a prescription for it,” Brandon said. “The purpose of the Adderall, for me, is to help me focus for school. I use it when I know I have a lot of homework to get done or a test to study for. It helps me to get my studies done, blocking out the distractions.”
He uses the drug around once or twice a month and only recently started after transferring from a community college. He realized university work was much more difficult, and Adderall helped him when his grades began to suffer.
However, some students are not using it for the correct purposes. According to a 2015 study conducted by Ohio State’s Center for the Study of Student Life found that 18 percent of undergraduates admitted to misusing Adderall, and 83 percent of these students received it from a friend with a prescription.
“The perception of risk for these drugs on behalf of college students is rather low,” Ortiz said. “They think because they are a product created by a pharmaceutical company that they are medically safe to use even if they don’t have a prescription for them.”
Adderall is a Schedule II drug, which means that it has a high potential for abuse that may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence. Dennis said she has seen Adderall abuse in some of her patients that led to the abuse of illicit drugs such as meth and codeine. Cocaine is also a Schedule II drug.
About 6 percent of college students between 18 and 34 have used Adderall recreationally, and of those students, 89.5 percent of abusers were also involved in binge drinking, according to statistics provided by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
Adderall is also considered a gateway drug with statistics showing that full time college students who abuse it are three times more likely to use marijuana and eight times more likely to have used prescriptions tranquilizers in a recreational sense.
Dennis emphasizes that Adderall addiction can have a physical impact on its abusers that increases heart rate, the possibility of developing heart rhythm abnormalities, increases in blood pressure, a decreased appetite, and, in some cases, hallucinations.
And not all consequences can be physical. Because Adderall is a Schedule II drug, the use or sale of it can result in state and federal crimes and can also lead to expulsion from the individual’s university, according to an article from Boston University.
“I’ve been tempted to take [Adderall] when I have a lot of schoolwork to do and I’m exhausted and can’t focus, but I don’t want to have to rely on a drug that I don’t need to accomplish the hard tasks I’m given at school,” said Maddy Snider, a sophomore fashion merchandising major.
Some students still see the value in old-fashioned hard work, though.
“I chose to be a student and continue my education,” Snider said. “That’s my responsibility, and I made that choice, so I am going to push through it no matter how hard it gets. I want the work to come from me, not a drug.“
Lindsey Maeda also contributed to this article.