'Smart drugs': supplementing students

Unnamed 16-year-old student talks about her experience with nootropics as the pressure to succeed builds

Now more than ever before students are faced with rising levels of stress, tortured by exams that they are constantly reminded can affect the rest of their lives it is no wonder that some students feel they need something else to give them an edge to allow them to keep up and flourish ahead of their classmates. With the examination period fast approaching I was shocked to discover that a 16-year-old friend of mine had been taking supplements in order to stay ahead of the competition and pass her AS levels, although wishing to remain anonymous she agreed to speak to me about her experience with nootropics.

Note: Nootropics, better known as 'smart drugs', enhance the way in which the brain is able to process and apply information by directing all of its efforts towards desired tasks, more can be read about nootropics in Q&A: how clever is it to be messing with 'smart drugs'?

It was in a stress management lecture at college when the girl from the West Midlands was made aware of nootropics, where they were informed of brain foods and Omega 3 tablets and advised that if they did not already consume some of the brain foods which include asparagus, fish etc that it may help their mental agility.

The next day during her lunch hour, with the words of the lecturer still fresh in her mind and the thought of a pending exam later that day, she visited her local Holland and Barrett store which was less than half a mile away from her college. In the store she found many different brands, ranging in price before settling on a £7.50 container which contained 60 tablets to be taken four times a day.

"There was a lot of pressure, mainly from myself, to do well in the exams and worries for my exams in general contributed a great deal to me trying supplements"

Upon leaving the store she took her first supplement capsule, but to her surprise didn't notice much of a difference. Four days in and there still wasn't much of noticeable impact, by that time her friends who she had confided in expressed their concerns that she was taking nootropics and insisted she stopped. "None of my friends had tried them, but I was looking for a way to get ahead and do the best that I could do," she admitted.

She wasn't sure if the drugs would have more an affect on her if taken for a longer time, believing that is maybe a placebo. But added that she would probably still be taking the supplements if her friends hadn't told her of their worries over the long-term effects of taking supplements.

For another account of nootropics see: 'Smart drugs': journalist tells of his dalliance with drugs

Please note: Anyone who is considering taking any form of nootropics should consult a doctor prior to taking medication.

(A large thank you to the owners of the photographs, no copyright intended)

'Smart drugs': journalist's dalliance with drugs

Johann Hari freelance online journalist and columnist records his candid experience with nootropics in the Huffington Post

Note: Nootropics, better known as 'smart drugs', enhance the way in which the brain is able to process and apply information by directing all of its efforts towards desired tasks, more can be read about nootropics in Q&A: how clever is it to be messing with 'smart drugs'?

Inundated by a flood of foreign assignments Johann was tempted by nootropics after discovering a report documenting the rise in American students taking Provigil and intrigued by the description of the capsules being "Viagra for the brain." Within a short while one he had tracked down and ordered a batch and a week later the package had arrived, the pills were ordinary looking - small and white. Within a few hours of taking his first dose he found himself able to "read a book for six to seven hours at a time without looking up."

Provigil is a product of the analeptic drug Modafinil and is traditionally used to treat sleeping disorders such as narcolepsy and insomnia. The drug allows the brain to focus the majority of its energy into dealing with the task in front of it, compared with normal, where only a fraction of the brain is dedicated to working through tasks and the rest deals with processing memories and subconscious thoughts. Johann found he had the most productive few weeks of his life, firing out articles that he had longed to write for months in less than a few hours and with an unrelenting passion to write more.

"I inhale books and exhale articles effortlessly"

It wasn't until the third week that he noticed the side-effect of a severe lack of creativity in his life, "You are running on the imaginative store you built up before Provigil, and whizzing through it efficiently, but you aren't inventing anything new." He also noticed his appetite diminishing as his flat filled with uneaten food,"I would feel stuffed half-way through my normal meals, and push the food away unfinished."

After coming off Provigil he found that his brain returned back to its original slower "stop-start state" and that his imagination recovered once more "my creative impulses came back. I was more spontaneous again."

Despite the changes he experienced Johann still keeps a box of his 'seductive temptress' Provigil in his bathroom cabinet but now only allows himself to take the drug once or twice per month to combat exhaustion on long days.

For another account of nootropics see 'Smart drugs': supplementing students

Please note: Anyone who is considering taking any form of nootropics should consult a doctor prior to taking medication.

(A large thank you to the owners of the photographs, no copyright intended)