Stimulants are being used with increasing frequency by students across college campuses (see ‘Harvard Students: Reaching for drugs to boost brain power). Many of them, however, probably aren’t well aware of the various side effects. In addition to chronic cognitive problems, amphetamines can also induce catastrophic acute events.

An article in the December 2006 issue of Neurology [Reference here] describes a couple of cases of carotid artery dissections following amphetamine use. The carotid arteries are two of the major blood vessels that travel up the neck and supply blood to the brain. When these arteries dissect (tear), strokes often ensue. A stroke is a focal area of permanent brain death due to lack of blood flow.

Cocaine, another sympathomimetic (drug that mimics the effects of sympathetic nervous system stimulation), has also been reported to cause tears in major blood vessels.

It is also important to note that amphetamines and cocaine can also lead to strokes via another mechanism: inflammation of blood vessels in the brain [click here for reference]. The medical term for this process is Vasculitis.

Since the vast majority of strokes are "silent", I suspect the prevalence of strokes due to stimulants is much higher than officially reported or recognized.

As far as more common chronic side effects, an earlier smartkit post details how just 3 months of Ritalin use (an amphetamine) can significantly damage the very blueprint of cell architecture- DNA.

In future posts, I’ll discuss oxidative damage as well as cardiac side effects.

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One of the main benefits of stimulant drugs (such as cocaine, ephedrine, and amphetamines like Ritalin) is their ability to dramatically increase mental energy and concentration. They can make it easier to focus on your work and studies for prolonged periods of time.

How is this achieved? Basically, it’s thought that psychostimulants increase catecholamine neurotransmission in the brain.

Catecholamines are a special category of brain chemicals used for neurotransmission. They include epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine.

Unfortunately, however, these drugs often have very harmful side effects (both long- and short-term), and taking them can sometimes result in death. What most people don’t realize is that there is a much safer, more natural way to boost brain catecholamines: Acute Bouts of Aerobic Exercise.

Both stimulants and aerobic exercise exert similarly powerful effects on: norepinephrine, dopamine, and epinephrine. There is quite a bit of evidence in the scientific literature to back this up. [see References 1-6 below].

Since it is widely believed that the beneficial effects of stimulants stem from their ability to boost catecholamines in the brain, it certainly makes sense that aerobic exercise would produce these same beneficial effects (dramatic increases in mental energy and concentration). Is there any direct evidence to support the idea that aerobic exercise actually enhances cognition? Absolutely:

• “Acute exercise can improve learning and mental performance.”[Reference 7]

• “Acute bouts of exercise selectively facilitate multiple cognitive processes; exercise can, under certain conditions, enhance response speed and response accuracy, and it can facilitate cognitive processes that are central to problem-solving and goal-oriented action.”[Reference 8]

• “Exercise produces a condition during which individuals are able to perform both simple and complex tasks rapidly and efficiently.”[Reference 8]

• “Acute bouts of exercise improve the ability to block irrelevant information and to select and respond to task-relevant information.”[Reference 9,10] (Note: This is the basis of concentration)

• “Recent studies have provided the research community with clear support for an improvement of cognitive performance during exercise”[Reference 11]

So yes, it’s true. One of the most powerful nonpharmacologic ways to boost your ability to concentrate and focus while studying is to exercise aerobically beforehand.

References: 

1.Winter B, Breitenstein C, Mooren FC. High Impact running improves learning. Neurbiol Learn Mem. Dec 2006.

2.Ransford CP. A role for amines in the antidepressant effect of exercise: a review. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1982;14(1):1-10.

3.Peyrin L, Pequignot JM, Lacour JR, et al. Relationships between catecholamine or 3-methoxy 4-hydroxy phenylglycol changes and the mental performance under submaximal exercise in man. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 1987;93(2):188-192.

4.Meeusen R, De Meirleir K. Exercise and brain neurotransmission. Sports Med. Sep 1995;20(3):160-188.

5.Pagliari R, Peyrin L. Physical conditioning in rats influences the central and peripheral catecholamine responses to sustained exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1995;71(1):41-52.

6.Pagliari R, Peyrin L. Norepinephrine release in the rat frontal cortex under treadmill exercise: a study with microdialysis. J Appl Physiol. Jun 1995;78(6):2121-2130.

7.Cotman CW, Berchtold NC. Exercise: a behavioral intervention to enhance brain health and plasticity. Trends Neurosci. Jun 2002;25(6):295-301.

8.Tomporowski PD. Effects of acute bouts of exercise on cognition. Acta Psychol (Amst). Mar 2003;112(3):297-324.

9.Hogervorst E, Riedel W, Jeukendrup A, et al. Cognitive performance after strenuous physical exercise. Percept Mot Skills. Oct 1996;83(2):479-488.

10.Lichtman S, Poser EG. The effects of exercise on mood and cognitive functioning. J Psychosom Res. 1983;27(1):43-52.

11.Brisswalter J, Collardeau M, Rene A. Effects of acute physical exercise characteristics on cognitive performance. Sports Med. 2002;32(9):555-566.

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One of the greatest misunderstandings people have about the brain is their belief in “free energy”.

Hundreds of millions of students and workers all over the world consume drinks and pills in the hopes of magically relieving fatigue and boosting their energy levels without suffering any downside. Hence the popularity of Red Bull, Monster, Mountain Dew, Coke, Pepsi, energy pills, caffeine pills, amphetamines, cocaine, and of course coffee.

I’m a firm believer that when it comes to brain circuitry and energy metabolism, Newton’s Third Law still holds: Every action has an equal an opposite reaction.

Based on my years of studying the brain and expertise as a neurologist, I am deeply convinced that, on a fundamental level, the consequences of a chemical energizer are twofold:

• As high up as the drug brings you, you will afterwards sink to an equally commensurate low
• Pushing neural circuits into overdrive stresses the hardware, and leads to cumulative wear-and-tear type brain damage

In life, there are always tradeoffs, and everything has a benefit and a risk. Surely, there are times when it is worthwhile to consume a chemical energizer. The important point is to realize there is a downside to taking it, and therefore only use the minimal amount needed to get the job done.

Taking a large dose initially doesn’t mean the beneficial effect will last longer. It just means your handgun gun just magically became a nuclear bunker buster.

Back in college, I never thought twice about downing an oversize vanilla cappuccino to help get in the studying mood. In actuality, all that was probably needed was a few sips at the start and maybe another couple sips an hour or two later.

Just because Monster Energy shoves 16 ounces of caffeinated sugar into a can doesn’t mean you need to drink all of it.

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A new study done by Scott Hemby and colleagues at Wake Forest University of Medicine finds that long term cocaine use leads to “profound changes in brain function”.

Cocaine, Ritalin (amphetamines), and coffee all work differently on the brain, but in the end, they are all stimulants, and they can all induce euphoria by modulating the amount of the neurotransmitter dopamine.
I suspect it’s just a matter of time before research shows that long term consumption of coffee also leads to “profound changes in brain function”.

Will people find this suprising? Will they care enough to modify their consumption?

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