Smart Drugs Guide

John Harris, the director of the Institute for Science, Ethics and Innovation at the University of Manchester, states students should be given the choice to use smart drugs to get better exam results.

Ritalin is a smart drug used to treat ADHD.

Professor Harris bases his statement on the facts that people are already prescribed drugs for non-therapeutic reasons, for example Viagra is described for individuals who do not have erectile dysfunction. Using cognitive enhancers in tests should be seen as a benefit to society.

He also says Universities should have policies for using smart drugs during examinations. There side effects on many drugs, both physical and psychical. Also poor children wouldn’t have similar possibility to buy the drugs and thus could lose the competition.

About a week ago American academics wrote a similar article in the scientific journal Nature asking the cognitive enhancing pills to be allowed for use. You can read the original article at Telegraph.co.uk website.

A pharmaceutical company called Sydenham Laboratories has launched a new health drink to fight stress and boost energy. The drink, Peak, contains micronutrients and is marketed for people with a stressful work.

What makes the drink different from other is the ingredient L-Carnitine. L-Carnitine is a natural antioxidant turns fat into energy. With a healthy diet and enough exercise L-Carnitine improves body’s energy production capability and helps to fights stress.

Studies have shown that L-Carnitine has a positive impact on memory, mood, and cognitive ability. In addition to L-Carnitine the new drink also contains taurine, zinc, and vitamins A, C, and E. The drink is available in flavors mango and dalandan.

In a report published in the Journal of Medical Ethics warn employers may soon try to force their employees to take brain enhancing drugs to be more efficient workers, presuming the same development in the smart drug culture continues.

Macleans.ca interviewed Dr. Jacob Appel, a bioethics lecturer at Brown University in Rhode Island about the subject:

“I’m a strong supporter of individual autonomy and I think people should be able to enhance themselves all they want, but my concern is that employers will try to compel individuals to do that. Eventually, employers will begin to demand that their employees accept neurological enhancement as a condition for employment and promotion—and the working stiffs of the world will not have the financial power to resist.”

The original report, When the boss turns pusher: a proposal for employee protections in the age of cosmetic neurology, can be downloaded from the Journal of Medical Ethics Online as a PDF file.

Ginkgo Biloba is known for its reputation as a natural brain and memory enhancer. According to a recent research it may also have brain protecting properties. In a research published in the journal Stroke research tested the function of Ginkgo on mice with promising results.

For the study, researchers gave mice various daily doses of gingko and then induced a stroke. They found that the mice treated with gingko had 51 percent less neurological dysfunction than the mice who didn’t receive gingko. Areas of brain damage decreased by 48 percent in the gingko group.

The results suggest that an element in Ginkgo has properties that can protect brain cells against damage in a stroke. This may be due to Ginkgo increasing enzyme levels that work to remove free radicals around the stroke site.

To see if the buzz around smart drugs is worth it, a writer of Times of London decided to try Modafinil, a drug normally prescribed for narcolepsy. He writes a report of his experience in Times Online.

Imbued with visions of a new, improved me, I visit that conveniently unregulated online pharmacy. Ritalin costs £58 for 10 pills; Modafinil, £10 for 10. No questions asked, no electrocardiograph tests required. … A dodgy package arrives in the post. Wrapped in low-grade manila, wonkily stamped “Mumbai — India”, is a loose strip of 10 x 200mg legit-looking Modafinil pills

After ordering and receiving the package of Modafinil. He pops the Modafinil pill in the morning. After an hour he feels similar boost to his normal caffeine buzz:

San Diego Union-Tribune has investigated the drug policies of National Football League (NFL) and players that have been linked to performance enhancing drugs. According to the Union-Tribune’s investigations there are 52 Pro Bowl players that are among the 185 NFL players who can be tied to illegal use of such drugs since 1962.

The San Diego Union-Tribune has done its own “Mitchell Report” of sorts on performance-enhancing drugs in pro football. The baseball Mitchell Report had 85 names going back to about 1993. The accompanying list has 185 names linked to such drug use dating to 1962 and also 85 names since 1993. It includes 52 former Pro Bowl players and four Hall of Famers.

Purple Glove Syndrome means a dangerous skin disease where one’s extremities swell and become discoloured and painful. In a recently released report Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is investigating cases where use of Dilantin has lead to this potentially dangerous disease.

Purple Glove Syndrome starts as a pale blue or dark purple discoloration which appears around the intravenous insertion site 2 to 12 hours after the administration of the drug. Progression occurs during the next 12 to 16 hours as developing edema and continued discoloration spread around all sides of the affected limb. If a patient is fortunate, the discoloration and edema will gradually fade, and the affected limb will heal within 2 to 4 weeks.

Professors and students at the University of Cambridge Science Festival were interviewed about the implications of smart drugs. Here is some comments that were given. Watch the video below.

“I found it was very useful when I was just working. I felt I was more creative. I didn’t have a lot of inhibitions. When I was starting something the idea came to my head, I did something to it immediately, rather than putting it off to later.”

Lately a new kind of energy drink was developed by two graduates from the University of Tennessee. The beverage is named Neuro Fuel and unlike the normal energy drinks, it doesn’t contain any caffeine. Instead, the active ingredient in Neuro Fuel is piracetam.

Piracetam is often used to boost improve cognitive functions. In addition to piracetam the beverage contains 100 percent of the daily value for seven vitamins and minerals. The inventors tell the drink promotes “a happy feeling” in those who gulp it down. The official Neuro Fuel news release says:

In Nature magazines survey the readers was asked about their use of cognition-enhancing drugs. The poll was taken aproximately 1400 readers which most of was scientists and others indicated they were academics or journalists. The results showed 86 percent of the participants had used brain enhancing drugs to improve concentration.

The survey was focused on three drugs: beta blockers, Ritalin, and Provigil. Beta blockers are often prescribed for cardiac problems, whereas Ritalin (methylphenidate) is normally prescribed for individuals suffering from ADHD. Provigil (modafinil) is normally prescribed for sleeping disorders. The given options were “never used”, “used with prescription for a medically diagnosed condition”, and “used for non-medical reasons”.