ADDERALL

With drug testing and its introduction to the realm of eGaming, BSCG has decided to include some information Adderall and potential Adderall side effects and concerns.

Sport drug testing rules have been introduced to eGaming.  A 2015 New York Times article noted this development, the main points being:

• Professional gamers remarked on their use of prescription drugs like adderall to help them focus in a competition in games like Counter Strike.
• As a result, the E.S.L. or Electronic Sports League, said it would work jointly with two international agencies, namely the same ones that help oversee anti-doping policies for cycling, the Olympics, and other sports, to create anti-doping guidelines and a testing program for players.
• By encouraging and making drug tests standard, this offers a high degree of legitimacy to e-sports, who will likely be expected to pass drug tests at the Olympic level.

Adderall, by some studies, has been known to cause as many 70 different side effects. Its most common side effects are: anxiety, dry mouth, lack or loss of strength, loss of appetite, stomach pain, and weight loss.

While Adderall does a fantastic job of treating ADHD and narcolepsy, it carries a huge stigma as “a study drug.” The most common abuse and mismanagement of this drug occurs at college campuses, where some students will take high quantities during midterms or finals to get an edge on their classmates.

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, over 6% percent of college students between the ages of 18 and 22 have used Adderall in a recreational (non-medical) way.

In addition, a very high correlation has been found between participation in binge drinking and Adderall abuse, with 89.5 percent of students who reported abusing Adderall also involved in binge drinking.

Other statistics have shown that students who were in college full time and abusing Adderall for recreational purposes were three times as likely to have used marijuana and eight times more likely to have used prescription tranquilizers and muscle relaxants recreationally as well. These statistics reveal some of the dangers associated with Adderall abuse.

Commonly used, or abused, drugs like Adderall are important medically but their broader use in electronic sports or by college students for non-medical purposes should be considered further and addressed as needed.