What are the harmful effects of stimulant drugs
Henry Morales
Published Apr 07, 2026
Stimulants include caffeine, nicotine, amphetamines and cocaine. Large doses can cause over-stimulation, resulting in anxiety, panic, seizures, headaches, stomach cramps, aggression and paranoia. Long-term use of strong stimulants can have adverse effects.
What symptoms do stimulants cause?
- Increased alertness.
- Feeling high.
- Irregular heartbeat.
- High blood pressure.
- High body temperature.
- Reduced appetite.
- Insomnia.
- Agitation.
What are the negative side effects of ADHD medication?
Like any medication, ADHD medicines can have side effects. Not everyone gets side effects, though. The most common side effects are loss of appetite and trouble sleeping. Other ADHD medicine side effects include jitteriness, irritability, moodiness, headaches, stomachaches, fast heart rate, and high blood pressure.
What are the dangers of using stimulants while driving?
Drivers who have used cocaine or methamphetamine can be aggressive and reckless when driving. Certain kinds of prescription medicines, including benzodiazepines and opioids, can cause drowsiness, dizziness, and impair cognitive functioning (thinking and judgment). All of these effects can lead to vehicle crashes.What are some side effects from the use of stimulants to treat ADHD?
- Sleep problems.
- Decreased appetite.
- Weight loss.
- Increased blood pressure.
- Dizziness.
- Headaches and stomachaches.
- Rebound (irritability when the medication wears off)
- Moodiness and irritability.
What does it mean when stimulants make you tired?
Stimulants are substances that have an effect on the central nervous system and body, leading to increased alertness and difficulty in getting to sleep. This is in contrast to sedatives and hypnotics, which decrease the activity of the brain and increase sleepiness.
Do stimulants cause memory problems?
Drug abuse in adolescence may impair adult working memory. A recent study by U of I psychologists indicates that amphetamine abuse by adolescents can lead to potentially significant memory loss as adults even long after they’ve stopped taking the stimulant.
Does prescription drugs affect your driving ability?
Many prescription and non-prescription medicines affect your ability to drive or ride safely. Combining different medications may have an even greater effect on your ability to drive safely.How many accidents are caused by drugs?
Drugs other than alcohol (legal and illegal) are involved in about 16% of motor vehicle crashes.
Does ADHD medication damage the brain?A.D.H.D. drugs may cause long-term brain damage, reducing motivation.
Article first time published onDo stimulants cause seizures?
Stimulants including methylphenidate and mixed amphetamine salts are the first-line therapy for childhood ADHD; however, stimulants may have a potential to lower seizure threshold and increase the risk of uncontrolled or breakthrough seizures (Stevens et al. 2013).
Does ADHD cause violent behavior?
Children with ADHD have trouble sustaining attention. They are overly active and they may act impulsively. What’s more, they may act aggressive, angry, and defiant. But parents and teachers can manage this aggression without relying solely on medications.
How do stimulants affect heart rate?
Stimulants stimulate the sympathetic nervous system and increase heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration (dilation of the bronchioles in the lungs). They can cause a dangerously high body temperature, especially if paired with physical exertion. Other serious effects include: Seizures.
Why do stimulants cause headaches?
In others, the stimulants can cause lack of appetite as a side effect, and this leads secondarily to increased frequency of migraine headaches triggered by not eating.
Does Adderall make you age faster?
Research Shows that Amphetamines Accelerate the Aging Process. Amphetamines are a class of stimulants which include illicit substances like methamphetamines and cocaine as well as prescription drugs like Adderall and Vyvanse.
Do stimulants cause dementia?
Both the amphetamine use disorder and amphetamine-induced psychotic disorders were associated with the risk of overall dementia, Alzheimer dementia, vascular dementia, and other dementia.
How does dextroamphetamine affect the brain?
Dextroamphetamine is a powerful stimulant of the nervous system that manifests its effects by releasing dopamine and norepinephrine from presynaptic nerve endings, thus stimulating central dopaminergic and noradrenergic receptors.
What is the best drug to improve memory?
- Donepezil (Aricept)
- Memantine (Namenda)
- Namzaric.
- Rivastigmine (Exelon)
- Galantamine (Razadyne)
How do you sleep on stimulants?
If you take stimulant medication, make sure you are taking it as early as possible. Have a calming bedtime routine. Go to bed at about the same time every day. Sleep in a comfortable bed in a dark and quiet room.
How do you fall asleep on speed?
- Lower the temperature. …
- Use the 4-7-8 breathing method. …
- Get on a schedule. …
- Experience both daylight and darkness. …
- Practice yoga, meditation, and mindfulness. …
- Avoid looking at your clock. …
- Avoid naps during the day. …
- Watch what and when you eat.
Is crying a side effect of Adderall?
Psychiatric Side Effects Studies have compared amphetamines such as Adderall with methylphenidate, commonly known as Ritalin, and found that Adderall may cause more severe insomnia, proneness to crying, irritability, anxiety, nightmares and sadness/unhappiness, according to Dr.
Which antibiotic is best for accident injuries?
Bite injuries from a cat, dog, or human should be covered with amoxicillin/clavulanate or doxycycline and/or cefuroxime.
Where are drugs excreted?
Most drugs, particularly water-soluble drugs and their metabolites, are eliminated largely by the kidneys in urine. Therefore, drug dosing depends largely on kidney function. Some drugs are eliminated by excretion in the bile (a greenish yellow fluid secreted by the liver and stored in the gallbladder).
What are the two major drug categories?
- stimulants (e.g. cocaine)
- depressants (e.g. alcohol)
- opium-related painkillers (e.g. heroin)
- hallucinogens (e.g. LSD)
Can sedatives cause sleep driving?
The ingestion of zolpidem and other hypnotic sedative medications for the treatment of insomnia has been associated with sleepwalking and other complex behaviors including sleep eating and sleep driving. When ingested during the daytime, hypnotic sedatives impair cognition, memory, and motor performance.
What prescription drugs can't you drive with?
- amphetamine, for example dexamphetamine or selegiline.
- clonazepam.
- diazepam.
- flunitrazepam.
- lorazepam.
- methadone.
- morphine or opiate and opioid-based drugs, for example codeine, tramadol or fentanyl.
- oxazepam.
Do stimulants change your brain?
Stimulants raise the level of dopamine in the brain to where they’d be for someone without ADHD. ADHD meds shouldn’t change your child’s personality.
Can ADHD meds cause memory loss?
New research finds ADHD medications like Adderall don’t improve cognition in healthy college students and may even impair the memory of those who abuse the drugs. The demands of college can be high.
Does ADHD medication change your personality?
As long as the dosage is correct, the medication should not affect your personality or sense of humor. What it will do is curb your hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsivity. An excessively high dose could temporarily “flatten” your personality, causing you to seem unusually quiet or withdrawn.
Do stimulants cause anxiety?
Anxiety is a common side effect of stimulants. Your doctor won’t know how a medication will affect you until you take it, but it’s possible stimulants may make your anxiety symptoms worse.
Is anxiety a side effect of stimulants?
Stimulants include caffeine, nicotine, amphetamines and cocaine. Large doses can cause over-stimulation, resulting in anxiety, panic, seizures, headaches, stomach cramps, aggression and paranoia. Long-term use of strong stimulants can have adverse effects.