Hopkins students turning to drugs to keep grades up - A growing trend on college campuses comes to Johns Hopkins as students use Adderall and Ritalin to help them stay awake all night

So what do you think really goes on in those study rooms on D-level, especially during finals week?

While the myth is out about students' recreation activities, many students nationwide, and especially at Hopkins, have turned to popping a pill of Adderall or Ritalin to stay awake.

"I've seen several students cut up pills with their J-cards and snort them right off of their textbooks," stated one junior who wished to remain anonymous.

According to several students, abuse of these amphetamine-like drugs is a "big problem" on campus.

However another junior claimed "there may be a few people that abuse it, but in general I think most people only take it on occasion". These occasions are most often before a paper is due or before an exam.

While taking it on "occasion" may not lead to any permanent damage, prolonged abuse can lead to phonetic tics, high blood pressure, increased heart rate, hallucinations and cardiomyopathy, among other things, said Dr. Dave Siegel, an emergency room pediatrician.

Students who use these drugs claim to be aware of these serious side effects and all side effects in general. This is the reason they give for turning to Adderall over Ritalin.

Common side effects of Ritalin include nausea, dizziness and weight loss, which is mirrored by Adderall and other drugs in this catergory such as Concerta and Medita. However the most research on ill-effects has been done on Ritalin.

Hopkins junior Ariel Berk added to this argument of Adderall versus Ritalin, claiming that "people do Adderall because it doesn't give you the same harsh effects as Ritalin. Adderall is less harsh and I've never seen anyone get really sick from it."

However, pediatrician Nandini Thillairajah countered that the real risk begins when people don't take the drug as a whole pill.

She worries about this trend of snorting pills, especially ones that have specific time releases.

"Snorting pills gives much less control over how much is absorbed over time and is much more dangerous. Doctors are less able to control how much gets into the body at a time. Pills are formulated in such a way to be absorbed into the blood stream over time to reduce side effects."

The real difference between Adderall and Ritalin, she said, is in their releases. Adderall is meant for extended release.

This means a dose of Adderall should last about six hours and remains active in the body longer than a dose of Ritalin, which is intended for a shorter release period.

However, for its longer effects, the cost of Adderall jumps up significantly versus Ritalin.

Berk states that the going rate for these two at Hopkins is about $1.50 for one pill of Ritalin and $5.00 for an Adderall, reflecting the more popular demands for Adderall.

Both Thillairajah and Berk state that the real problem lies in how easy it is for adolescents to get these medications.

One of Berk's friends asked his father to write him a prescription for Adderall and then sold it to his friends.

This "friend" only takes it when he needs to stay up all night and winds up making a large profit on his drug-dealing ventures.

Thillairajah adds that many new regulations have been placed on how often Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) drugs can be dispensed.

For adolescents, she states, new rules make it so that one person "can't get more than a month's dose at a time".

She also demands that all of her patients on Adderall, Ritalin, Concerta or any other drug of this nature, see her monthly to have his or her height taken, and weight and blood pressure measured.

Moreover, she looks out for increased heart rates or blood pressure both to monitor abuse and to determine if too high a dose was prescribed.

Also, since Adderall especially is an appetite suppressant she worries that young females will take to using it as a way to lose weight.

Adderall was originally designed over 20 years ago as a weight loss medication. Though it has not changed in its chemical makeup since then, it found commercial success in 1996 after the FDA approved its use for treating both ADD and ADHD.

When discussing abuse of Adderall and Ritalin among patients, Thillairajah states, "One patient told me he sold once I told him I would never prescribe any again."

She says most of her patients are honest with her when she asks them about their intent for Adderall and Ritalin when she prescribes them, but it's not a full-proof system. She encourages parents to have an active role and monitor their children, even though it becomes difficult when they move off to college and one can't see them daily.

Berk sums up her feelings on why students resort to using amphetamine-like drugs to study.

"I think it's our school that makes people feel they need to stay up all night to get work done. I'm not sure if it's morally wrong, but I know it's legally wrong," she said.

So before you assume someone's going at it on D-level come exam time, guess again because they may be playing with some special nose candy.