Pharmacological neuroenhancement and the ability to recover from stress – a representative cross-sectional survey among the German population

Table 2 Use of prescription and illicit drugs to enhance cognitive performance or mood without medical indication

Substance group / Single substances^a	n^b	Lifetime %^c (n)	Last year %^c (n)	Last month %^c (n)	Last week %^c (n)
Stimulating prescription drugs	1115	4.3 (48)	2.2 (25)	0.8 (9)	0.3 (4)
Prescription drug containing amphetamines	1112	1.7 (19)	0.8 (9)	0.3 (4)	–
Methylphenidate	1110	2.2 (25)	1.1 (12)	0.3 (3)	0.1 (1)
Anti-dementia drug	1110	1.0 (11)	0.6 (6)	0.2 (2)	0.2 (2)
Modafinil	1.107	0.4 (4)	0.1 (1)	0.1 (1)	0.1 (1)
Stimulating illicit drugs	1118	10.2 (114)	3.8 (42)	1.3 (14)	0.6 (6)
Cocaine	1114	6.1 (68)	1.9 (21)	0.3 (4)	0.1 (1)
Amphetamines	1115	6.9 (77)	2.5 (28)	0.8 (9)	0.3 (4)
Meth-Amphetamines	1111	2.0 (22)	0.6 (6)	0.1 (1)	0.1 (1)
Mood modulating prescription drugs	1110	20.3 (225)	10.6 (118)	5.9 (66)	5.6 (62)
Anti-depressant	1096	8.5 (93)	4.0 (44)	1.6 (18)	1.5 (16)
Beta blocker	1080	8.5 (92)	5.2 (56)	4.1 (45)	4.0 (43)
Benzodiazepines	1088	8.9 (98)	3.5 (38)	0.9 (10)	0.7 (8)
Cannabis	1109	23.4 (260)	8.6 (94)	3.7 (40)	2.8 (30)
Any medication or drug	1121	38.8 (435)	19.1 (214)	10.1 (113)	8.5 (95)

N = 1128
^aAs multiple selections were possible and some individuals used several substances, values could not be added up per substance group; ^bN refers to valid values, i.e. all observations without missing values in the respective question; ^cWeighted according to the distribution of the general population in Germany as reported by the German office of national statistics, n refers to the absolute frequency and % refers to the relative frequency of participants that have taken the respective substance ever in their life, in the last year, last month or last week

ISSN: 1747-597X