psychostimulant
Meaning of psychostimulant: A drug class named for what it does to alertness, familiar from coffee at one end and controlled prescriptions at the other.
Definition of psychostimulant
A psychostimulant is a drug that increases activity in the central nervous system, raising alertness, attention and wakefulness and reducing the sense of tiredness. Most work by increasing the amount of dopamine and norepinephrine acting at nerve endings in the brain. The group runs from caffeine through prescription medicines such as methylphenidate and amphetamine to illicit drugs such as cocaine.
What are they prescribed for?
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is the largest use, where these drugs improve the ability to hold attention and reduce restlessness. Narcolepsy and other disorders of excessive daytime sleepiness are the second. In palliative care they are sometimes used against the heavy sedation that strong painkillers cause, and against severe fatigue in advanced illness, though the evidence there is weaker than for the first two. Adderall, a mixture of amphetamine salts, is one of the widely prescribed examples.
What do they do to appetite and sleep?
Both are reduced, which is the opposite of what some older reference works state. Loss of appetite is among the most consistent effects of the amphetamine type drugs, enough that weight and growth are followed in children taking them over long periods, and appetite suppression was one of their earliest medical uses. Difficulty falling asleep is equally common, which is why doses are placed early in the day. A faster heart rate, raised blood pressure, headache, jitteriness and irritability as a dose wears off complete the familiar picture.
Why are most of them controlled?
| Drug | Typical use | Dependence potential |
|---|---|---|
| Caffeine | Everyday alertness | Mild, with a withdrawal headache |
| Methylphenidate | ADHD and narcolepsy | Substantial; tightly controlled |
| Amphetamine salts | ADHD and narcolepsy | Substantial; tightly controlled |
| Modafinil | Excessive sleepiness | Lower than the amphetamines |
| Cocaine | Rare topical use in surgery | High |
The same rise in dopamine that improves attention also produces reward, and a drug that reaches the brain quickly and at high concentration produces it strongly. A swallowed tablet releases slowly and blunts that effect, while crushing or injecting removes the brake, which is the basis of misuse.
Also known as
Used in a sentence
A psychostimulant was prescribed for excessive daytime sleepiness after other causes were excluded.
Good to know
Psychostimulants suppress appetite rather than increase it, and reduced intake with slowed weight gain is among the effects followed in children who take them over long periods.
Word origin
Where “psychostimulant” comes from
Psycho- comes from the Greek psyche, meaning mind or breath of life; stimulant from the Latin stimulare, to goad or prick.