4 ms·
I see a possibility of companies marketing drugs such as Ritalin and Provigil as "cognitive enhancers." I mean, caffeine is powerful CNS stimulant as it is and
by k0n2ad 17y ago
I see a possibility of companies marketing drugs such as Ritalin and Provigil as "cognitive enhancers." I mean, caffeine is powerful CNS stimulant as it is and it's completely unregulated. So what's to stop a drug company from making an analogue to Ritalin, or a lighter dose of Ritalin and marketing it as a brain booster? Selling it OTC? Given that the FDA is already having enough trouble regulating areas such as the energy drink/supplement market - all the different concoctions of caffeine, ginseng, ginkgo (and tons of other herbal supplements) are readily available to 12 year olds. I'm curious and a bit concerned at the prospects.
- chris11 17y agoWhile I wouldn't say that drug makers are marketing stimulants to the healthy, I would say that they are not differentiating enough between medical use and use for cognitive enhancement. It seems like the drugs are being marketed as a way to improve life, not just a way to treat a pathological illness. The difference may be subtle, but it is there. Advertisements usually show a kid's life changed for the better, whether it is making more friends, or getting better grades. These are probably all accurate. But everyone has had these problems to some extent. And these ads don't really differentiate between symptoms of an illness, and symptoms caused by some other problem, and viewers can't really tell the difference themselves. So these drugs are somewhat being marketed as a brain booster.
- asciilifeform 17y agohttp://yarchive.net/med/lifestyle_drugs.html http://yarchive.net/med/lifestyle_drugs.html