PILLS BECOME AN ADDICTIVE STUDY AID

At Colleges, Students Take A Deadly Risk By Abusing ADHD Drug

A tough math class prompted Rich to take the drug. The effect: "I
could study for, like, eight hours straight," said the University of
Wisconsin-Madison junior.

Samantha, a Marquette University sophomore, popped it on the eve of a
big history test.

"I stayed up all night," she said, "and totally zoned in."

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 UW-Eau Claire. He led a 2004 survey of students on a UW
campus that found 14% 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 have been reportedly
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.

In the 1990s, amphetamines re-emerged. A growing number of children
were being diagnosed with ADHD, a neurobehavioral disorder that makes
people hyperactive and incapable of concentrating. Adderall and
Ritalin, an amphetamine-like drug, were among the medications that
were approved as effective treatments.

Between 1992 and 2002, the number of prescriptions for ADHD
medications in the U.S. increased 369% to 23.4 million a year,
according to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse report.

In 2005, there were 31.8 million prescriptions for such medications,
according to IMS Health, a pharmaceutical information and consulting
company. The most popular was Adderall.

Colleges are now seeing waves of students who grew up on ADHD medication.

Some of the students don't need it, said Davis Smith, director of
student health at Wesleyan University in Connecticut who has been
gathering information about the use of ADHD medication for the
American College Health Association.

Smith said aggressive pharmaceutical marketing campaigns and pressure
from pushy parents have caused doctors to over-prescribe the drugs.

Eric Heiligenstein, clinical director of psychiatry at UW-Madison's
health services, agreed.

"We have students who come in and say they got it just by asking for
it at other clinics," he said.

When they don't need it, some students misuse their medication. So do
students who are wary of becoming dependent. Instead of taking it
twice a day, as often prescribed, these students only take it around
exam time or in other high-pressure situations.

In 2000, UW-Madison surveyed 100 students with prescriptions for ADHD
medication. It found that one in five misused the prescription regularly.

That has created opportunities for other students to get the
medication, Heiligenstein said. Students with excess pills are often
willing to sell them or give them away.

Abuse at competitive schools

A survey of students at 119 colleges nationwide found that, on
certain campuses, up to 25% of respondents had misused ADHD
medication in the past year. The survey, published last year in the
journal Addiction, found that rates were highest at colleges that
were competitive, those in the Northeast and those with high rates of
binge drinking. Students with grade point averages of B or lower were
two times more likely to use the drugs than students earning a B+ or higher.

Angie, a UW-Madison junior, said it's common for students to get
Adderall from friends. She has paid $5 for a couple of pills. At
other times, friends have given her the drug for free.

"Doctors are just handing it out," said Adam, a freshman at
Marquette. "Friends are willing to give it away."

Doctors are supposed to review a student's medical history before
prescribing ADHD medication. That's to make sure that they won't have
a heart attack or another extreme reaction.

Students who get Adderall from friends have no idea how their bodies
will react. Those interviewed for this story have had varied reactions.

Adam, the Marquette freshman, said Adderall gave him the energy to
stay up all night. It also changed his attitude.

"It's almost like you enjoy the work," he said.

But the next day, he felt like he had an extreme hangover.

The effect on Rachel, a senior at UW-Madison, was much worse.

"Three hours after taking it, I started shaking," she said. "I felt
like my heart was bouncing out of my body. I lost my appetite. I
couldn't sleep for a full two days. It was a nightmare."

Rich, the UW-Madison junior, has taken Adderall for two years to
study for tests. During that time his grades have improved. Today, he
feels dependent.

UW-Madison's health center is seeing a growing number of cases like his.

"We see a blend of psychological and physical dependence,"
Heiligenstein said. "Students take it, get better results and feel
like they can't go off. They say - I feel like I've built my whole
GPA on this. How can I stop?"

Critics worry the drug is now being used like an academic steroid,
creating an unfair playing field on college campuses.

But not everyone is popping it.

"I'll stick with caffeine," said Amanda Rosen, a freshman at
UW-Madison, as she walked into the campus library, a chai tea in
hand. "That way I'll know that I'm getting the grade."