A nationwide study of students attending four-year universities and colleges has found 7 percent of college students have used or are using prescription stimulants for non-medical reasons.

Although the study shows campuses in the Northeast have had the highest rates of abuse of prescription stimulants for non-medical reasons, there have been reports of students using mild stimulants at Iowa State.

College students have reported that using mild stimulants allowed them to study better, party harder and experience a buzz, said Frank Schabel, assistant professor of health and human performance.

“All stimulants have a short-term effect of pleasant feelings, stronger confidence and heightened awareness of surroundings,” Schabel said.

White males in fraternities were most likely to abuse non-prescribed stimulants like Ritalin, which is commonly used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, the study said.

Schabel said signs that someone is using prescribed stimulants for non-medical reasons include rapid speech, exaggerated movements and mood swings.

If someone is using stimulants that aren’t prescribed to them for a long period of time, it could lead to addiction, anxiety and paranoia, Schabel said.

The danger of all medications is that they can lead to very serious side effects. If a medicine isn’t evaluated for an individual patient it only adds to the danger, said Marc Shulman, a staff physician at Thielen Student Health Center.

The nationwide survey also found that students who misuse stimulants are likely to abuse alcohol, ecstasy and cocaine.

The progression to using stimulants like ecstasy and cocaine depends on the effect one is looking for, Shulman said.

“Ritalin usually in such small quantities is a gateway drug,” said June McDonald, treatment coordinator at Ames’ Center for Addiction Recovery.

McDonald said that college students who abuse alcohol, marijuana and especially methamphetamines use mild stimulants like Ritalin as an alternative drug when available since they don’t get a high like they would on meth.

Shulman said there are many ways students acquire stimulants that are not prescribed to them, including buying them online.

“I’m sure there are certain brands you could find online,” Shulman said. “You can find almost everything online nowadays.”

Students who have a disease may also sell their medication to make money.

“We haven’t seen a lot of that, although I’m sure it does happen, but not on a widespread basis,” Shulman said.

Both Shulman and Schabel said this is an ongoing problem and not just a trend.

“As new medications come out, people are always trying to use them without prescription,” Shulman said. “It’s something we’ve seen in the past and we’ll continue to see in the future.”

McDonald believes the problem is only going to get worse.