Attention grabber

Health | Risking addiction, healthy students use ADHD drugs for that exam-time edge | John Dawson

The first time he used Adderall, it turned him from a freshman procrastinator into a study hound. And that's just what he was looking for. Justin—not his real name—got the pill from his University of Texas roommate, who sold his surplus Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) medication to other students for a small fee.

Justin had an end-of-term paper due the next day on a book he hadn't even cracked. "My roommate was like, 'Take this and see if it works for you,'" Justin said. He said he sat down to read a 200-page book on the history and significance of the Erie Canal.

The first 20 pages were normal: "Suddenly I was very engrossed and I just read the whole book." Powered by ADHD medication, he didn't just read the whole book; he did it without even getting up from his chair, leaving sweat marks in the seat. "If I thought I missed something, I would go back and reread it. My mindset was that I wanted to know everything about the Erie Canal. I was thinking about even doing some further research after finishing this book because I found it so interesting." For Justin, that was the power of Adderall. It even made the history of the Erie Canal interesting to a college freshman.