Government warns freshers to avoid study drugs

A new government initiative is warning freshers to avoid study drugs such as modafinil.

The ‘Fake Meds Campaign’, run by a subsidiary of the Department of Health, is aimed at awareness of the problem of fake and unlicensed medical products. Students allegedly purchase study drugs primarily online, from unlicensed dealers.

The department in charge of the campaign is the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA). So far this year, they have shut down almost 5,000 websites dealing in unlicensed narcotics.

A spokesperson said: “You may be offered ‘smart drugs’ or ‘cognitive enhancers’ at university – some of them may be potent medicines which should only be prescribed by a doctor. Modafinil is licensed for specific medical conditions – not for use as a ‘boost’ during exams. Don’t put your health at risk by self-medication – it could have serious side effects.”

However, MHRA declined to respond to a Boar request for the number of people admitted to hospital for study drug abuse. When asked if any cases of this existed, a representative of MHRA declined to comment.

A survey of Warwick students carried out by the Boar in 2015 revealed that 56% would consider taking study drugs, from a sample of 205 students. In addition, 11% of students reported that they had tried study drugs.

First our degrees are turned into little more than financial transactions and our graduate opportunities are limited, then the government reacts with incredulity at people desperately trying to perform better

Malcolm Lowe, History finalist

However the new government warnings come alongside data that paints a more restrained picture of nationwide study drug use. In a survey of 1,009 young people aged 18-30, 14% of respondents said they were likely to buy study drugs in the coming year, according to MHRA.

MHRA said it did not have figures for the number of people nationwide taking study drugs, however it does have figures for seizures of illicit medication. This year, 31,250 doses of modafinil were seized during a ‘week of action’, down from 46,190 in 2015. The lower figure is blamed on the timing of the operation being during exams.

The Boar asked some Warwick students what they thought about the new safety warnings.

“They will probably just reinforce the views people already have,” said Clare Clarke, a third-year History student. “If you were not going to take study drugs anyway then it’ll confirm your view, but if you would take them then [the warning is] just the government advertising the fact that the drugs may actually work.”

Others were more political: “First our degrees are turned into little more than financial transactions and our graduate opportunities are limited, then the government reacts with incredulity at people desperately trying to perform better,” said Malcolm Lowe, a History finalist.

Dom Johnson, a third-year Modern Languages student, commented: “I’m not too familiar with the process of buying modafinil, but I doubt it starts with looking up the government’s position on it.”