Pubdate: Sun, 02 Apr 2006
Source: Olympian, The (WA)
Copyright: 2006 The Olympian
Contact: http://www.theolympian.com/legacy/services/forms/letter2editor.shtml
Website: http://www.theolympian.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/319
Author: Megan Twohey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

ADHD PILLS BECOME ADDICTIVE STUDY AIDS

MILWAUKEE -- For years, students have used coffee, NoDoz caffeine
pills and other stimulants to help them through exams, papers and
other demands of college.

Today, some students are taking a study aid that can be
deadly.

Adderall, a medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder,
or ADHD, has become popular among college students who don't have the
disorder, according to students, college health officials and an
emerging body of research.

Adderall is an amphetamine and works like cocaine. Those who use it
can stay focused and awake for hours on end. Students with
prescriptions sell it or give it away.

"If you can take a drug that allows you to stay awake through finals
week and concentrate on relatively boring topics, you can see how the
word would spread," said William Frankenberger, a psychology professor
at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. He led a 2004 survey of
students on a University of Wisconsin campus that found 14 percent had
abused Adderall or another ADHD medication.

But using the drug without a prescription is dangerous. The federal
government has classified Adderall under the same category as cocaine,
opium and morphine, drugs with a high potential for abuse. It is
illegal to sell it or use it without a prescription.

Side effects include insomnia, irritability and loss of appetite. In
extreme cases, the drug can cause paranoia, hallucinations and heart
attacks. Adderall and other ADHD medications reportedly have been
linked to the deaths of 25 people in recent years. U.S. Food and Drug
Administration advisers are recommending warnings on the drugs' labels.

Between the 1940s and 1970s, before their addictive properties were
known, amphetamines were used to treat obesity, fatigue and
depression, according to a 2005 report by the National Center on
Addiction and Substance Abuse. Pilots used the stimulant during World
War II to stay awake. Dieters used it to lose weight rapidly. 
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MAP posted-by: SHeath(DPF Florida)