At university, many undergraduate students are overwhelmed with the amount of information they are expected to retain for exams and, in turn, become very familiar with the Schedule II drug, amphetamine—namely Adderall. The prescription drug that is used to treat individuals with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has found its way onto university campuses and is illicitly being used as a study aid. There are many misunderstandings however; pertaining to the effects of the drug and the associations it has with studying and expected grade outcome.
Procrastination is one of the many challenges students face and, if not avoided, can lead to cramming just before exams. Moreover, anecdotal evidence has led students to believe that the
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By resting immediately after learning, this allows for the consolidation of the memory traces, whereas the strenuous mental work of cramming just before an exam leaves the traces weak. Thus, Adderall is an insufficient study aid when students are cramming for exams because although the drug allows students to cram more information; the information is still not being consolidated.
The brain regions involved in information retention are also important considerations. For instance, the hippocampus plays a critical role in the consolidation by converting immediate memories into long-term memories. The hypothetical process of reconsolidation is an important process to keep in mind when studying as it proposes a memory trace is revised and reconsolidated in the hippocampus. Moreover, this process can become an indefinite cycle and the information consolidated will have extremely strong memory traces, making it effortless to recall the information from long-term memory.
In summation, Adderall should not be used as a study aid. Although the benefits may seem obvious initially, anecdotal evidence cannot refute the scientific evidence suggesting poor consolidation when cramming, even when taking