Study Drugs And Academic Stress

The term study drugs refers to prescription stimulants approved for ADHD, such as Adderall, Vyvanse or Ritalin, taken by students who have no prescription of their own. Most want to stay awake longer and push through a heavy workload. Among Canadian college and university students, past-year non-medical use runs at roughly 4 to 6%. Exam calendars shape that use closely. At one American campus residence, amphetamine levels in the building's wastewater were higher during midterms than in the first week of classes, with the widest gap in the final exam period. 

What Are Study Drugs?

In plain terms, study drugs are a short list of medications built for ADHD or sleep disorders. Most come from two stimulant families, the amphetamines and methylphenidate. Both belong to the same drug class as cocaine and methamphetamine.

On campus, methylphenidate goes by vitamin R or rids, and students call Vyvanse vanies. A friendly label like study pills hides the fact that both families are controlled substances under federal law.

Modafinil, sold in Canada as Alertec, works differently. Health Canada approves it for excessive sleepiness in conditions such as narcolepsy. Researchers testing cognitive enhancers in healthy adults include it in the same trials as methylphenidate and amphetamine.

Brand name	Active ingredient	Drug class	Prescribed for
Adderall XR	Mixed amphetamine salts	Amphetamine stimulant	ADHD
Vyvanse	Lisdexamfetamine	Amphetamine stimulant	ADHD
Dexedrine	Dextroamphetamine	Amphetamine stimulant	ADHD
Ritalin	Methylphenidate	Methylphenidate stimulant	ADHD
Concerta	Methylphenidate, extended release	Methylphenidate stimulant	ADHD
Biphentin	Methylphenidate, controlled release	Methylphenidate stimulant	ADHD
Alertec	Modafinil	Wakefulness-promoting agent	Narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea

Adderall XR and Vyvanse rely on different amphetamine compounds, a contrast set out in Vyvanse vs Adderall. 

How Common Is Study Drug Use in Canada?

Canadian estimates come as a range, since the country has far fewer prevalence studies than the United States. The 4 to 6% figure rests partly on a survey of 41 Canadian postsecondary institutions. Past-year use of stimulants not prescribed to the student rose there from 3.7% in 2013 to 4.5% in 2016.

The 2019/2020 Canadian Postsecondary Education Alcohol and Drug Use Survey took in a wider group. Of students aged 17 to 25, 11.9% had used prescription stimulants in the past year. Within that group, 59.7% reported problematic use, with men slightly ahead of women at 61.1% compared with 57.7%.

In the United States, the 2015 Monitoring the Future survey estimated that 10.7% of college students used Adderall non-medically in the past year.

Why Students Turn to Study Drugs

The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) ran focus groups on Canadian campuses to hear the reasons directly. Students pointed to fear of failure and the exam stress of midterms and finals, describing Adderall as a way to keep studying late into the evening.

Weight loss came up as a secondary motive, mostly among women, because stimulants suppress appetite. Other students take them recreationally, to feel more sociable and energetic or to get high.

Participants in the same focus groups also explained why drugs for studying feel low-risk. The pills are easy to hide, and students considered them safe because they are legal and widely prescribed. A qualitative study of 175 American undergraduates found a similar belief, with none of the participants viewing non-medical use as a real health risk because a pharmaceutical company made the pills.

Friends supply most of these pills, and in one US study about three quarters of students who used stimulants got their pills for free. Under steady academic stress, some students come to rely on the extra focus and keep taking pills after exam season ends.

Do Study Drugs Actually Improve Grades?

Arria and colleagues checked the idea that Adderall helps you study against the grade records of 898 American college students without ADHD, following them through their second and third years. Students who used stimulants non-medically showed no improvement in grade point average, whereas those who never used them recorded a small, statistically reliable increase. 

A 2015 meta-analysis by Ilieva, Hook and Farah offers one explanation. Pooling placebo-controlled trials of methylphenidate and amphetamine in healthy adults, the authors found small gains in impulse control and short-term memory, plus a medium effect on delayed memory. Signs of publication bias led them to judge the overall effect on healthy cognition as probably modest. They also suggested that healthy users may be after energy and motivation more than sharper thinking.

Expectation explains part of the remaining gap, since students given a placebo they thought was methylphenidate reported better focus over longer periods. Anyone counting on Adderall for studying to lift a final mark may be relying on a feeling more than on any measured gain.

What Happens When You Take Adderall Without ADHD?

For a student who takes Adderall without ADHD, rising dopamine brings more alertness, energy and attention. Euphoria is a recognized short-term effect. Students in Canadian focus groups went further, describing a feeling of invincibility.

Effects on thinking vary from person to person. According to a review cited by CCSA, stimulant effects are likely more noticeable in people who perform poorly on a task to begin with.

No one has screened that student for heart conditions or checked for interactions with other medications. Lakehead University's health team warns that seizure and heart risks climb when stimulants are taken without medical supervision.

Brain regions tied to planning and self-control keep maturing until roughly the mid-20s. Researchers have raised concern that stimulants could disrupt that maturation, and the range of Adderall side effects widens at higher doses or with regular use.

Side Effects and Health Risks

Many side effects of study drugs can show up after a single pill, with some turning dangerous at higher doses.

• Faster heart rate and higher blood pressure, as blood vessels narrow
• Difficulty sleeping, plus a loss of appetite
• Restlessness, sweating, dizziness or tremors
• Anxiety, aggression and paranoia with longer use
• Heart attack, stroke or seizures at high doses

Lakehead's student health team adds irritability, mood swings and disturbed sleep that leaves students fatigued.

Mixing Study Drugs With Alcohol

A stimulant can offset the sedating effect of alcohol, which may keep a person drinking longer. In a sample of 4,000 American students, nearly half of those who used prescription stimulants had combined them with alcohol. That group reported more impaired driving, car crashes and physical violence. One case report describes a heart attack in a young man who took Adderall XR with alcohol.

A pill taken in the morning still counts when drinking starts that evening, a point students may not realize. Vyvanse carries the same concern, as the side effects of Vyvanse and alcohol show.

Counterfeit Pills and Fentanyl

KFL&A Public Health in Kingston has warned that illicit fentanyl turned up in counterfeit pills made to look almost identical to prescription opioids such as Percocet. The health unit advises against getting drugs from friends, online sources or dealers. Lakehead applies the same warning to study drugs, noting that fentanyl test strips can miss contamination. If someone becomes unresponsive after taking an unknown pill, call 911.

Can You Get Addicted to Study Drugs?

Health Canada states that taking stimulants regularly over long periods can cause physical dependence. A stimulant use disorder goes further, with cravings and continued use even when the drug causes harm. Stopping can bring tiredness, sleep problems, low energy, anxiety or depression. Regular misuse can make Ritalin addictive as well, since the same dependence warning covers methylphenidate along with amphetamines. 

• Taking pills to get high or to feel better
• Losing count of how many pills were taken in one sitting
• Cravings when the supply runs out

Friends or roommates who notice these patterns in someone taking Adderall can check them against the signs of Adderall abuse.

Legal Risks of Study Drugs in Canada

Methylphenidate is listed in Schedule III of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. Amphetamines, including their salts and derivatives, appear in Schedule I. Modafinil is absent from the Act's schedules, though it remains a prescription-only drug.

Possessing a Schedule III substance without authorization can bring up to three years in prison on indictment, compared with up to seven for a Schedule I substance. The Act defines trafficking to include giving or transferring a controlled substance, so a student who hands one free pill to a roommate meets that definition. Maximum penalties for trafficking reach 10 years for Schedule III and life imprisonment for Schedule I. Because the Schedule III listing covers methylphenidate in any release form, choosing between Concerta or Ritalin changes nothing in legal terms.

Universities can impose their own penalties on top of the law. Duke University in the United States, for example, treats unauthorized use of prescription medication to boost academic performance as cheating. None of this is legal advice for a specific case.

Healthier Ways to Handle Academic Stress

The natural alternatives to Adderall worth trying first are ordinary habits that target the fatigue and pressure behind the urge to take one. CCSA focus group participants suggested study drugs appeal to students who arrive at college or university without the skills to manage time or academic pressure.

1. Protect sleep. Canada's 24-Hour Movement Guidelines set 7 to 9 hours a night as the target for adults, on a regular schedule.
2. Move every week. The same guidelines call for at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity per week.
3. Plan study blocks. Lakehead University recommends booking study time for the part of the day you feel sharpest, tackling the toughest subject first and splitting large assignments into pieces.
4. Use campus supports. Lakehead, for example, directs students who feel overwhelmed to its counselling services or an on-campus academic support centre.
5. Reach out early. ConnexOntario keeps a free, province-wide directory of addiction, mental health and problem gambling services, and Lakehead refers students who want to change their substance use to it.

How Parents Can Talk to a Student About Study Drugs

Changes in study habits can show up before any physical sign. In a study of 1,253 first-year university students in the US, those using stimulants non-medically studied less, socialized more, skipped more classes and finished the year with lower grades. A prescription bottle that empties faster than expected also deserves a question.

Parents of a student with an ADHD prescription have a second concern, since that student is a likely target for requests. In one US sample of 3,407 undergraduates, more than half of those with a valid stimulant prescription had been asked to share or sell it within six months. More than a quarter had done so.

A calm moment away from exam week works better for opening the subject, starting with workload before raising pills. Health Canada advises never sharing medication because it may seriously harm the other person, a point worth stating plainly. The prescribing doctor can reinforce it, since students were less likely to give away their medication when their healthcare practitioner asked about sharing and explained the consequences.

Professional help makes sense when use continues after exams, when a student cannot cut back, or when pills are being mixed with alcohol. CCFA's family program involves parents in the treatment work so they can support recovery at home.

Getting Help for Stimulant Misuse

The Canadian Centre for Addictions provides inpatient residential treatment at two Ontario centres, Woodlawn Inn in Cobourg and Hillcrest Mansion in Port Hope, with nursing staff available 24 hours a day.

Treatment combines individual counselling with psychotherapy and mental health support from psychologists. Sessions look at what drove the stimulant use, from exam pressure to anxiety, to build ways of coping without pills.

Our intake team offers a free, confidential consultation. Call 1-855-499-9446 to talk through treatment options.

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