Pros And Cons Of Amphetamines

901 Words4 Pages
Since the beginning of humanity, our species has thrived on the pursuit of scientific knowledge.With this pursuit of scientific knowledge and profound explanations of the known and unknown, there has been much controversy. Such controversy is very much made apparent in the field of medicine. Presently, one such topic of controversy is whether or not doctors are over prescribing amphetamines to patients they believe to have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). It is no question that some may require the assistance of the medicine, however, this medicine is being prescribed to too many that do not require the assistance of medication. Doctors are prescribing amphetamines to many who do not need…show more content…
These are, nervousness, restlessness, nausea, constipation, loss of appetite, and weight loss, to name a few of the less severe side effects. Some of the more severe and life threatening side affects are, fast heartbeats, chest pains, seizures, mania, aggressiveness, changes in vision, and slowing of growth in children. In the year 1975, around thirty-five years after they began using amphetamines to treat ADD and ADHD, they had at least forty-three cases of amphetamine related deaths. "These include seven cerebrovascular accidents, six sudden cardiac deaths, three cases of hyperpyrexia, eight poisonings of uncertain mechanism and seven cases of medical complications of intravenous injection: the remainder were of uncertain cause" (H. Kalant 299). Amphetamines are strong psychostimulant drugs that are being prescribed to almost every child and adult who seem to have some semblance of a behavioral problem. With the drug causing heart problems and addictions in patients of all ages, doctors should be absolutely sure that they are in fact diagnosing the patient with the right disorder and not just pushing amphetamines with a speedy…show more content…
Student believe that the only way they can pass their classes is through the assistance of these psychostimulants. Dr. Robert A. Winfield, director of University Health Service at the University of Michigan, has noticed an alarming amount of students have falsely claimed to suffer from ADHD to get the medication prescribed to them(Jacobs 1). Once a student is prescribed, they either take the pill themselves, they sell them, or they give them away(Jacobs 1). It is almost impossible to discern those who actually have the disease from those merely vying for pills(Jacobs 2). Those diagnosed with ADHD feel that they must take the amphetamines, even more than the dosage prescribed. As in The Adderall Empire when Andrew K. Smith speaks about not wanting to take the amphetamines but they have a hold over him, and he does not wish to become the family embarrassment that he was before being diagnosed with ADHD (Smith 2). Amphetamines have an addictive hold over the user that can never truly be

More about Pros And Cons Of Amphetamines

Open Document