Many parents are faced with helping their child make good grades to get into the best schools. Wanting the best for their child, some parents have resorted to dangerous measures. In 2005, the average MD received 11 requests for ADHD medication from parents for their child – just to help boost the child’s grades. Uninformed parents are setting their child up for a life of drug use and possibly drug abuse, drug addiction and drug rehab, starting right from their very own medicine cabinets


The use of “study drugs" on college campuses is on the rise from California to Florida. Students looking for the next step up from “No-Doz" are taking ADHD drugs, often in the form of Ritalin and Adderall, to help them stay up late, focus and make the grade. Ritalin, a brand name of methylphenidate, and Adderall, a mixture of amphetamine and dextroamphetamine, certainly aren’t hard to come by. An April 2006 FDA Advisory Committee found that ADHD drug prescriptions filled annually total $3.1 billion dollars.


Why the “chemical advantage" on college campuses? In addition to the usual strain and pressure of college life (which, let’s face it, doesn’t diminish once one graduates into the “real world"), there is the ever present philosophy in today’s society that there is a pill for everything. And besides, it is a prescription drug, so it can’t be dangerous, right?


Unfortunately, what is missed is the obvious. Ritalin, for example, is a schedule II drug, same as cocaine. It acts on the central nervous system and resembles the stimulant characteristics of cocaine. Its side effects include insomnia, loss of appetite, weight loss, drug dependence syndrome and severe depression upon withdrawal. These medications are drugs, with dangerous effects just like street drugs. And, like street drugs, it may take drug rehab to get off them.


The scary part is that when the pill isn’t enough, it can be crushed and snorted, or liquefied and injected to increase the stimulant effect to the level of speed or low grade meth. Of course, the possibility of drug addiction can’t be overlooked when it comes to that, nor can death by overdose. Surveys conducted by All Positive Options.com show that individuals who use “study drugs" find it very easy to graduate up to other, more powerful stimulants.


If you start your child off on drugs to improve their academic performance, you may be looking for a successful drug rehab program in the future. Don’t take that risk – give your child the chance to have the future they’re working so hard to attain.