'People have the false idea that these are cognitive enhancers, that it doesn’t matter whether you have a diagnosis or not, that this is going to improve your performance,' says Cesar Soutullo, a professor of psychiatry at UTHealth Houston, who specializes in treating ADHD. Whether it’s taking Ritalin to cram for a test, or Adderall to manage working a night shift, these medications have acquired a reputation as 'smart drugs,' capable of helping people perform better at complicated tasks, even when they don’t have ADHD, a perception that has persisted in spite of a lack of evidence.
Adderall and Ritalin, medications used to manage symptoms of attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder, have long been considered study aids for people without ADHD.
