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Published online 17 March 2009 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2009.170
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Cognitive enhancement drug may also cause addiction
Modafinil's effect on the brain suggests it could be addictive for some.
A drug used to treat narcolepsy — and often taken to increase alertness and improve cognitive performance — may have the potential to become addictive, a small pilot study has shown.
Brain-imaging studies performed on ten men before and after taking the drug, called modafinil (Provigil), showed that it boosts levels of a chemical called dopamine, which influences the brain's reward system1.
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Modafinil (Nuvigil) must suffer the same heinous and draconian regulatory environment as addictive substances nicotine, ethanol, and caffeine - none at all. "May have the potential to" cause erythema multiforme, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis, and drug rash with eosinophilia should elicit sufficient caution.