I found this link when I put cognitive enhancement in the Web:
Nootropic - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To be honest, I didn't even know that there are drugs like this... I didn't even consider the possibility of existing drugs like this... Not very wise of me but it's true...

The question is how it works in a long run... Is it working? Are there any side-effects? It's interesting... I didn't decided if I want to use it and I hope to hear some opinions before I decide. It may be an opportunity founded by science... or the biggest mistake in one's life...

What drugs are you speaking of?

I dont get where morality comes form or goes too in this.
You take it, it kills you or makes you better.
Or you dont take it and you die or you stay better.
It is lottery not morality.
Is it moral to take asprin?
Comes form nature distilled by us.

Different drugs for different thugs?

Having quit smoking this week i can see what stimulant means, but did it make me a better or worse person for smoking i dont think it works that way.
Did the drug make my thoughts? i would like to think so but they probably did not.

The difference is probably not that great -- but people get tolerant to caffeine and need escalating doses, it's short acting, and it makes you jittery and have heartburn and have to piss all the time. People who take large overdoses of ritalin are probably not performing at some cognitively enhanced level compared with anything (including caffeine) -- maybe it will improve physical stamina. These are not wonderdrugs, we use them all the time with variable success in sleep disorders and ADHD.

Drugs always come with sacrifices.

Ask any college student who uses Ritalin or Adderall for studying, and you will get quite a different answer. Everything I've heard makes it sound more like a wonder drug than not.

have there been any reliable studies done that support the safety of these drugs in the long-term?

Adverse effects - Stimulants have been used to improve symptoms of ADHD for more than 50 years [44] and generally are considered to have a favorable safety profile. Rare, serious adverse events have been reported in children being treated with stimulants, but a causal association has not been established.


General - Many of the side effects associated with methylphenidate and amphetamines are mild, of short duration, and reversible with adjustments to the dose or dosing interval [16,17]. The occurrence of side effects is similar with methylphenidate and amphetamines, although treatment with mixed amphetamine salts may be associated with greater decrease in weight over time than treatment with methylphenidate [16,18,45,46]. Side effects may occur more commonly in children who are treated for ADHD during the preschool years [47]. Methylphenidate does not appear to increase the frequency or severity of seizures in children who also are receiving appropriate anticonvulsant medications [48-50].
Common side effects include:

• Anorexia or appetite disturbance (80 percent)
  
• Sleep disturbances (3 to 85 percent)
  
• Weight loss (10 to 15 percent)
  

Less common side effects include increased heart rate and blood pressure, headache, social withdrawal, nervousness, irritability, stomach pain, and rebound irritability or moodiness [51-57]. Deceleration of linear growth may occur, but adult height is not affected [58-63]. Patients treated with the methylphenidate patch may develop contact sensitization [22].


Manipulation of the dose or formulation may be helpful when children who respond to stimulant medications develop the adverse effects described above [11,64]. As an example, a shorter-acting preparation of the same medication (table 1 and table 2), may alleviate side-effects in a child who has difficulty falling asleep and has otherwise appropriate sleep hygiene [11]. Anorexia or appetite disturbance can be addressed by administering medications after meals, or eating within 30 to 40 minutes after dose administration. However, meals with high fat content may reduce the absorption of extended-release mixed amphetamine salt preparations and beaded methylphenidate preparations [65].


Cardiovascular - Adverse cardiovascular effects of stimulants and the cardiac evaluation for children receiving pharmacotherapy for ADHD are discussed separately. (See "Cardiac evaluation of children receiving pharmacotherapy for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder".)
We suggest that clinicians who prescribe medications for ADHD discuss the benefits and potential adverse effects of treatment with parents and patients [66,67]. This discussion should emphasize the uncertainty about a causal association between serious cardiovascular risks (including sudden unexpected death) and stimulant medications for children with cardiac symptoms or a positive family history of heart disease. We do not suggest obtaining a routine electrocardiogram (ECG) before initiation of pharmacotherapy for ADHD.


Psychiatric - The FDA has received reports of potential psychiatric adverse events in children treated with stimulant medications. These include psychosis or mania, including hallucinations that emerged with treatment [68-70]. The symptoms resolved with discontinuation of the medication in many cases, and recurred with resumption in some [69]. However, the warnings section of the prescribing information for stimulant medication was revised to indicate the possibility of emergent psychotic or manic symptoms (eg, hallucinations, delusional thinking, or mania) during stimulant therapy in children and adolescents.
We suggest that ADHD medications be discontinued in children who develop acute unexpected behavioral reactions such as suicidality, hallucinations, or increased aggression. The medications can be discontinued abruptly, without tapering. We do not recommend initiation of anti-psychotic drugs for these patients, but referral to a qualified mental health clinician and/or psychopharmacologist.


Tics - Approximately 15 to 30 percent of children who are treated with stimulant medications develop motor tics, most of which are transient [10]. In children who have chronic tics or Tourette syndrome (approximately 50 to 60 percent of whom have comorbid ADHD), low to moderate doses of methylphenidate often improve attention and behavior without worsening tics [71-74]. On the other hand, withdrawal of chronic methylphenidate in children with ADHD and Tourette syndrome can result in a decrease in frequency and severity of tics, with an increase when methylphenidate is reinitiated [75]. Although predicting the effect of medication on tics is not possible, most children with tics and ADHD benefit from moderate doses of stimulants without worsening of tics [10,16,74]. (See "Tourette syndrome", section on 'Attention deficit disorder and tics'.)


Diversion and misuse - Stimulant diversion consists of the transfer of medication from the patient for whom it was prescribed to another individual [76]. Stimulant misuse consists of taking higher doses of medication than prescribed to achieve euphoria or combining stimulant medications with illicit drugs or alcohol [76].


A systematic review of studies related to diversion and misuse of ADHD medications indicated that 5 to 9 percent of grade- and high-school-age students and 5 to 35 percent of college-age individuals reported nonprescribed stimulant use in the year before the study [77]. The proportion of students with stimulant prescriptions who were ever asked to give, sell, or trade their medications ranged from 16 to 29 percent. Diversion and misuse were more common among whites, members of fraternities and sororities, students with lower grade point averages, and students who report ADHD symptoms. Diversion and misuse also was more common with immediate- than extended-release preparations. The most commonly reported reasons for stimulant diversion and misuse included studying, staying awake, improved alertness, experimenting, and "getting high."


Another survey compared diversion and misuse of psychotropic medications (eg, stimulants, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants, alpha-adrenergic agents, etc.) among 55 adolescents and young adults with ADHD and 42 adolescents and young adults with other conditions [76]. Stimulant diversion and misuse were more frequent among subjects with ADHD than with other conditions (11 versus 0 percent for diversion and 22 versus 5 percent for misuse) [76]. All of the ADHD subjects who diverted or misused their medication had either comorbid conduct disorder or substance use disorder.


Stimulant diversion and misuse can be prevented, to some extent, by prescribing long-acting formulations (table 2) with less potential for abuse, and by keeping track of prescription dates [11]. It is also helpful to have an open discussion about stimulant diversion and misuse with patients and parents so that students can be prepared if they are approached by peers to sell or misuse medications and so that parents can remain vigilant in monitoring medications [11].

Hi. As my job is quite boring I usually have some podcasts to listen to. Recently I got "philosophy bites" and there was a very interesting podcast treating about cognitive enhancement drugs...

Is there anyone who tried it? What do you think about it?

I have to admit that I have mixed feelings. On the one side it seems to be bit... immoral(?)... but not, it isn't a good word... It's like cheating... sort of...

On the other side... if it helps, why not? Progress, development, improvement... evolution [IMG]file:///C:/Users/Jerry/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.gif[/IMG]