This drug, with its effect on the central nervous system, is used as a means to stay awake. It is also believed that the drug is also beneficial for the feeling of tiredness some people with certain shift work sleep disorders experience.
Recently the drug is widely being used by students in order to help them stay awake to study. But is Modafinil safe enough to use long-term?
Is Modafinil Safe for Long-term Use?
Modafinil has gained importance as a smart drug that promises enhanced memory, motivation, and ability to focus. It may decrease sleepiness but it is not a cure for sleep disorders.
However, …show more content…
It is also stated that if you use Modafinil for a long time, you are likely to develop some sleep deficiencies similar to the ones experienced by cocaine users.
Long term usage of the drug can also have a bad effect on memory. As brain gets used to the chronic use, it is likely that it will function at lower levels since it has adapted to the drug.
Chronic use also causes some serious dermatological side effects and it also builds tolerance.
The drug is also harmful to people with kidney disorders as it is excreted as Modafinil acid and puts the kidney under a lot of pressure.
Some of the serious side effects of long-term usage are fever like symptoms, bleeding and bruising more easily, chest pain, white patches or sores inside the mouth or on lips.
Not to mention some serious effect on mental health like depression, anxiety, hallucinations, and …show more content…
Users can very likely sink into a state of melancholic depression.
The level of this depression becomes much more visible if the user develops a certain tolerance for the drug.
Headaches are also important side effects that reflect greatly on our daily lives. They may even become so severe that they would need treatment.
Liver dysfunction is another effect of long-term usage. High dosage administration could even cause severe forms of impairment in the liver.
If an individual has a history of hypertension, it is a very likely risk that they will face an increase in blood pressure, leading to hypertension.
While users administer the drug to cope with their sleep disorders, they are not aware that they also cause great damage to their immune system.
The drug also has an addictive nature as the doses have to be increased regularly. In some very rare cases, it can also cause peeling of the skin and allergic reactions that can sometimes result in death.
Moreover, it can decrease the effect of some hormonal contraceptives like birth control pills, implants, and intrauterine