Prescription Drugs

Although alcohol remains the drug of choice for most college students, prescription drug abuse is increasingly prevalent on campus. Despite recent high-profile cases of accidental prescription drug overdoses, many students mistakenly believe abusing prescription drugs is not harmful. Because these drugs are legal substances created in carefully regulated labs and prescribed by doctors, some students think they are safe to take without medical supervision.

Prescription medication is second only to marijuana for abused drugs in the nation, and abuse is growing most rapidly among young people 18- to 25-years-old, the age of the majority of the college population.

Students have easy access to prescription drugs. They may fake a medical condition to get a prescription from a doctor or buy the drugs from online pharmacies that do not require prescriptions. Overwhelmingly, students are given or steal prescription drugs from someone they know: family members, friends, or acquaintances with valid prescriptions.

Abuse

Students are most likely to abuse:

1. Opioids/painkillers, such as OxyContin, OxyCodone, and Vicodin. Narcotic pain relievers are the most abused class of drugs among Americans aged 12 and over. These drugs may cause feelings of happiness, euphoria, and being “high”; such effects are enhanced when the drugs are taken in combination with alcohol. Students often crush the pills to compromise their time-release coating, enabling a large amount of the drug to be released at once, thereby increasing its effects.
2. Central nervous system (CNS) depressants like Valium and Xanax. Normally prescribed to treat anxiety and insomnia, students may abuse these drugs to “come down” from a high, mellow out, or help them sleep.
3. Stimulants, including Ritalin, Adderall, Concerta, and Dexedrine. Stimulants have a calming effect when used as prescribed to treat patients with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Students abuse stimulants to increase alertness, attention, and energy. Some students may use these drugs as study aids, while others abuse them to control appetite, stay up all night, or elicit feelings of euphoria. Research has shown that up to 25 percent of students have abused stimulants on some campuses. As with painkillers, students swallow the pills whole, chew them, inject or snort the crushed pill in powder form to achieve a quicker high, and often take them in combination with alcohol.

Consequences

All prescription drugs have side effects that can only be managed by a doctor. The risk of adverse consequences increases when they are taken with alcohol and other drugs.

Taking painkillers for long periods of time develops a tolerance to the drugs, leading to increased frequency of use and the need to take higher doses to achieve a high. Students who stop taking the drugs can experience withdrawal. Those who take large doses of prescription painkillers or mix them with other substances risk respiratory depression and death.

Like painkillers, long-term use of CNS depressants can lead to increased tolerance and physical dependence. Withdrawal from the drugs can cause life-threatening consequences. CNS depressant abuse can lead to respiratory depression and death.

Stimulants are not physically addictive, but can lead to psychological dependence. Students who begin using higher doses are at risk of paranoia, hostility, high body temperature, heart failure, seizures, and death.

Effective Prevention

It is important to note that many students do have valid medical reasons for taking prescription painkillers, CNS depressants, and stimulants, so prevention efforts should not stigmatize such drugs. Rather, efforts should focus on minimizing the risk for abuse.

Limiting access is the most effective way to prevent prescription drug abuse on campus. Campus medical staff should be selective about prescribing painkillers, CNS depressants, and stimulants. They should be on the lookout for students who suddenly develop symptoms of a disorder that requires these drugs for treatment, students who ask for these drugs by name, and those who frequently “lose” drugs and need additional prescriptions or higher doses. Medical staff can also work with students’ primary care physicians to confirm they actually do have diagnoses that require treatment by these drugs. Finally, campus administrators can block access to online pharmacies from campus computers.

For More Information

Two Catalyst reprints focus on prescription drug abuse and prevention on campus: “Legal but Not Necessarily Safe” and “Online and Easy!” The Center’s publication “Other Drug Use and Abuse on Campus: The Scope of the Problem” also discusses prescription drug abuse.