Neuroenhancement: Changing The Chemistry In The Brain

Neuroenhancement is when people use pharmaceutical drugs to change the chemistry in the brain, in order to function better. Some of these drugs might be for memory or attention, for example. People who have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are often prescribed a neuroenhancer, typically from a class of drugs called stimulant medications. Unfortunately, over the years that these drugs have been out, the number of people who have been abusing them has increased dramatically. Stimulant medications, especially, are sold on the black market with significant mark-up over what they would cost from a drugstore. People are prescribed these medications and purchase them with cash or their medical insurance, turning around and making many times profit on them on the streets. The easy access to such powerful medications is

ADHD is diagnosed more often than it needs to be, meaning that a many of the children who are currently on Ritalin and other stimulant medications really do not need to be. This happens because there is a lot of pressure for boys to conform and because schools expect kids to sit for hours on end. Little kids are meant to move around and to play. When they have a hard time sitting down the schools think there is something wrong with them. Teachers get frustrated with their students' behavior and because their classrooms are overcrowded they pressure parents into getting medications for their children. Sometimes even it is the parents who are frustrated with their kids, maybe for many of the same reasons. We live in a society that expects kids to be like little adults and to be quiet and calm. Kids are not wired the same way as adults, and it does not mean that there is something wrong with them. Even though it's doctors who are prescribing the medications, if the children do not really have the condition isn't this just another form of drug