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Whats smart about "smart drugs"?


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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9196039/Warning-over-online-smart-drugs-that-can-kill.html

 

In an effort to improve appearence,physical performance or brain power,it seems people are prepared to buy drugs off the internet etc, without being aware of the side effects, or dangers of long term use.

Its the same in these health stores,you can get anything for any condition,but how do you know these substances are safe,and have been properly tested?

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I am quite aware that all drugs have side effects as has been pointed out, but until i read the article i posted earlier i hadn't realised the extent of it.If it wasn't seen as a cause for concern it wouldn't have been published in the newspaper would it?

 

Ritalin for instance that some students have apparently taken to improve mental performance in exams.

 

It just made me think about the comparison with the hard drugs,which we hear so much about,and arouse such criticism yet these so called smart drugs hardly seem to get a mention and could be just as harmful in the long term.

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They give Ratalin to millions of kids to improve their concentration so it makes sense that it might do the same for adults. Wish I could get some!

 

Ritalin alters one of the chemicals in the brain doesn't it (dopamine) A lot of drugs have that action.

 

I know what you mean about the concentration and memory.huhh!

You can understand the temptation.

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The dopaminergic system regulates reward and habit formation, but the effects of smart drugs (and nutrients) tend to be completely different to any dopaminergic side effects they have.

 

One well studied drug is Modafinil, which not only keeps you awake without typical stimulant type side effects, but in a "standard human" improves concentration, improves cognition, improves visiospatial reasoning and acts as a general "mood brightener".

 

Other common smart drugs include piracetam, hydergine (invented by a Dr Hofmann of LSD fame) and centrophenoxine, which are all used in the treatment of dementia and alzheimers.

 

Most of the results, with the exception of modafinil, are inconclusive at best. Modafinil seems to be the only one worth bothering with from a nootropic perspective. Almost none of the so-called smart drugs (see Morgenthaler for a discussion on what constitutes a smart drug) have recreational drug like profiles, and generally have a very low potential for abuse.

 

The real categories of smart drug are already out there. Nicotine is probably one, cannabinoids are another, and psychedelics a third. If it works and it exists in nature, then humans are already taking advantage of it, and synthesising their chemical relatives

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Thats informative.

 

Actually although i mentioned Ritalin lightly, i don't agree with doctors prescribing it to children without (as in many cases) being certain it is really needed.I had heard about the side effects before.I've just found some information here.> http://akanemd.hubpages.com/hub/ADD-ADHD-and-the-Danger-of-Ritalin

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