Adderoll: The Study Drug
By Kirstin Le Grice
For the students attending CU-Boulder, December comes as both a blessing and a curse. While the fresh snow layering the foothills signals the start of “shred season,” it also marks the beginning of the end: finals.
Enter Norlin library on any given day in December, and you will hear the faint hum of headphones, rustling of notebook paper, and the all too common question, “Hey, do you know where I can get some Adderoll?”
According to the Food and Drug Administration, Adderall, which is a combination of amphetamine and dextroamphetamine, “is indicated for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).”
Adderoll is likely the most sought after drug on campuses during the school year, and especially during final exams. Matthew Hart, a junior at CU says he uses Adderoll during the school year to help him focus and get organized. “I don’t have the ability to sit down and do stuff on my own without it,” he says.
Adderoll, which is ingested orally in either pill or capsule form, is prescribed in doses ranging from five milligrams to 30 milligrams, depending on the aggressiveness of the patient’s ADHD.
The FDA has created an extensive list of symptoms characteristic of ADHD, a few of which are, “lack of attention to details, careless mistakes, lack of sustained attention, poor listening, poor organization, fidgeting, and squirming. Children are prescribed Adderoll if these symptoms cause “significant impairment in social, academic, or occupational functioning,” according to the FDA.
Many children are prescribed Adderoll at young ages, and continue to use it throughout their adolescence, and into their college years. With Adderoll in such high demand around college campuses, those prescribed Adderoll often sell off any pills that they end up not taking themselves.
Hart, who until recently was prescribed Adderoll, used to sell his Adderoll to his friends during his freshman year. Hart sold his 20 mg pills for $5 each, and his 10 mg pills for $3 each. “During finals week I easily made around $200,” says Hart.
Brad Cummings, a CU junior sells off his prescription Adderoll on a regular basis. “I currently sell to only about 10 people, all of whom I know personally.” Cummings, who is prescribed 20 mg pills, usually sells them at $5 for two pills, which is a “very good price,” he says.
Students who sell off their Adderoll can make quite a satisfying profit. As pills are prescribed monthly, bottles usually contains around 30 pills. Selling the pills for $3, like Hart did, can earn the dealer an extra $90 per month. During finals, profits can increase up to $150, if dealers raise their prices to $5 per pill.
Adderoll “helps me get into a rhythm when I know I have stuff to do,” says Hart. Hart justifies his use of Adderoll with the fact that he was prescribed it until the end of his freshman year at CU. Hart, who only uses Adderoll when he has exams or paper deadlines approaching, feels that “the people that don’t need it are the ones that are constantly asking for it.”
While he was dealing his Adderoll, Hart says he would feel bad about selling it to people whom he knew did not need it. “I knew they were abusing it,” he says.
As reported by the Associated Press and Bloomberg in 2005, Adderoll “was pulled off the market in Canada after regulators linked the drug to 20 sudden deaths and 12 strokes.” Since then, the FDA has required a “black-box warning” to be placed “on all amphetamines, including Adderall.”
AP and Bloomberg note such a warning “means that medical studies indicate these drugs carry a significant risk of serious, or even life-threatening adverse effects.” Adverse reactions to Adderoll include elevated blood pressure, sudden death, weight loss, diarrhea, rashes, impotence and changes in libido.
The FDA states that abuse of Adderoll can cause “tremors, rapid respiration, confusion, nausea, and vomiting.” Adderoll should always be administered in the lowest possible dosage, which is why students who are not prescribed it are at a higher risk of abusing, and overdosing.
For many students, those risks are worth taking. Jennifer Williams, a sophomore at CU, though not prescribed Adderoll, feels that she needs it to keep up with her schoolwork. “Without Adderoll I think my grades would drop,” Williams says.
During finals, when students are under enormous pressure to get papers written and study for exams, Adderoll’s ability to get students focused allows it to become one of the most desired substances on campus.
“It’s like I’m so stressed I can’t seam to manage it all,” says Williams. Williams, who prefers 20 mg pills because of their heavier dosage, admits that she “definitely abuses” Adderoll.
For many college students like Jennifer and Matt, the pressure is on to get the best grades. The pressure to excel has driven students to use, and abuse prescription drugs such as Adderoll and caffeine pills.
Hart and Williams both plan on ending their use of Adderoll once they are out of college, and admit that their use of it is a bad habit.
