Look Who's taking Ritalin

by Katherine West

The non-prescription use of Ritalin has doubled among high school seniors, reports a study from the University of Michigan. This has made Ritalin a hot commodity in the illegal drug department on college campuses and even in high schools. Drug officials report that of all controlled drugs, it is the one that reported stolen most often in the U.S.

As far back as 1996, the DEA has warned of the dangers of Ritalin, the drug that is given to many ADD-ADHD children daily in this country, and they said that if the drug fell into the wrong hands, the likelihood of abuse would be high. Well that time is here. It is now, in this new millenium, when the harmful effects from Ritalin abuse is finally emerging, and it is getting worse instead of better.

Ritalin consists primarily of the chemical methylphenidate, which is really an "upper" much like the chemicals found in amphetamines or in those over the counter pills with mega doses of caffeine. In ADD-ADHD children, this drug stimulates a part of the brain, which is not working properly. Since children on this drug are required to receive monthly checkups and close monitoring of blood pressure levels and other effects, so prescribed use is relatively safe. The dangerous aspect of Ritalin is the easy accessibility of this potentially harmful medication. Without proper medical supervision and use, Ritalin can kill. This is especially true on college and high school campuses, where very often drugs are misused and experimented with in a careless manner.

When did this all start?

In the mid-nineties, Ritalin abuse was first seen in college prep schools and affluent colleges on the East Coast. Slowly, the illegal use of this drug has spread itself across the country and into high schools too. Now even some adults abuse this drug in an attempt to get more done or keep pace in their busy lifestyle. Not only is the drug prescribed to non-ADD students, as in the case of many of the East Coast students' cases, but it is also frequently stolen from students and even pharmacies.

What makes the availability of "Vitamin R" or "R Ball", the slang terms that students use to refer to Ritalin, even more ample is that many children and teens buckle to the temptation of easy money. Since many students are responsible for taking their own medication, and there is such a demand for illegal use, massive amounts of the drug on all college and high school campuses is the result. Ritalin tablets sell for anywhere from $2-$8 on school campuses across the country-- illegally of course. This tempts some to sell some of their medication, especially since a prescription only costs around forty dollars for a month's supply.

Why is Ritalin Being Abused?

Many times it’s the good students or at least the concerned students that buy this drug. Their reason, of course, is grades. Sadly, many of these students do not need the drug at all to get excellent grades, but they have convinced themselves that they can't focus and compete in the high-stress world of academia without it. Other teens that buy it illegally do it for the "high" or the sudden rush of energy and focus that they feel. Still others "get off" on the intense feeling of euphoria that comes from overuse. These reasons are outlined by the DEA, who recently put Ritalin on its list of "Drugs to Watch". The growth of Ritalin abuse has been associated with adolescents and young adults who use it for the stimulation for different reasons. These are some of the reasons why students abuse Ritalin: appetite suppression, wakefulness, and increased focus/attentiveness (for long nights of studying), and the "high".

These students take the tablets, crushing it into a fine powder and snorting it. This is why the illegal use of Ritalin is so dangerous. This drug was never intended to be used this way. Snorting this drug sends a sudden rush of the chemical into the central nervous system. The result can be stroke, seizures, and even psychosis. Heart arrhythmia is also associated with the illegal use of this drug due to the increased heart rate during use. Officials are not overly concerned because the drug was not concocted in a dark alley, but in professional drug labs. There is very little risk of it being laced with other dangerous chemicals or improperly made, but ultimately, the result of illegal use by snorting Ritalin can even be death.

Is this abuse only in U.S. schools, or is it worldwide?

No information from foreign health magazines or centers for disease control reports a problem with Ritalin abuse in any other countries. To date, it appears to only be U.S. high schools and colleges plagued with this prescription drug nightmare. To date, The BBC, an authority on most health issues in Europe has nothing about Ritalin abuse in its database, so we may conclude that it is not a problem anywhere but here in America.

This lack of problems in other country points the finger of guilt at the way Ritalin is prescribed and ADD-ADHD is over diagnosed in this country. Are doctors the problem-- lax government regulations-- or the schools? Who's to blame? Perhaps it is a combination of all three of these factors.

How Can We Stop the Illegal Accessibility of Ritalin?

1. The only sure way to do this is to make it much harder to get diagnosed with ADD-ADHD, which is a much-needed change in any case. Doctors are too ready to diagnose this disorder without first performing the proper physical and psychological tests. Now we have an even greater reason to change this fact.
2. Another way to get the drug out of the schools is for the schools themselves to be more open to classroom modifications and behavioral differences. Expecting students to be little robots whom sit still, they urge parents to take their child to a doctor for simply being active.
3. Thirty percent of school age children in some states are on Ritalin, yet a national average shows that only approximately 11% of kids actually have ADD and/or ADHD. Why is this? It is because of the over diagnosis of ADD and the pressure that children and parents, even doctors, feel from teachers and school administrators.

Tips for Parents:

• Personally take all prescription medication to your child's school.
• Keep track of the number of pills very carefully.
• Flush any old prescriptions of the drug.

By using a little common sense and increased caution, you can help prevent any type of temptation. While you may not be able to monitor your college student as closely, it is still possible to keep a very close count on the number of pills in each prescription. It is the parent's insurance that these pills are bought with in the first place, so it should be the parents that are ultimately responsible.

Sources:

Washington Post

CNN