20:48 06 January 2016
Ben Zand, a film editor, has shared his experience with so-called smart drugs that are currently growing in popularity. He has heard about them from his friend who was taking them to deal with her “big day” ahead.
After reading glowing reviews online, Ben decided to try Modafinil, which was dubbed as the “world’s first safe smart drug” by researchers at Harvard and Oxford universities. He ordered online and received the package less than a week later.
He took the first pill at the University of Cambridge as part of a cognitive test, where his visual sustained attention, spatial working memory, executive function, and episodic memory were examined before and after taking the drug. Results show that his attention improved by as much as 100per cent. He also begun to feel more awake and a bit less prone to frustration. However, the drug’s amazing benefits proved to be short-lived. As the time passed, Ben began to develop a very bad headache, lost his appetite, and had the urge to use the bathroom constantly.
In the end, Ben concluded that the negative aspects of taking the drugs far outweighed the positive. He said: “I would definitely not be tempted to try them again.”