Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Nature Poll on Cognition-Enhancing Drugs


Nature ran a poll on the use of cognition-enhancing drugs and the results are now posted here. One in five respondents said they had used drugs for non-medical reasons to stimulate their focus, concentration or memory. Here is a sample:

All participants who took part in the survey were asked 10 questions designed to gauge their attitudes towards neuroenhancing drugs. Almost all respondents (96%) thought people with neuropsychiatric disorders who have severe memory and concentration problems should be given cognition-enhancing drugs. But perhaps surprisingly, a high four-fifths thought that healthy adults should be able to take the drugs if they want to. And 69% reported that they would risk mild side effects to take such drugs themselves.
Cheers,
Colin