[mintplant]

> No one doubts ADHD stimulants’ potential for abuse and addiction. Adderall’s active ingredient is amphetamine, a drug that functions in some ways like cocaine. Both deliver excess dopamine to the brain, enhancing motivation and concentration, and the cocainelike effect of stimulants is enhanced when they’re snorted. Hence the long-standing nickname for Concerta and Ritalin: Diet Coke. “There is a fear that the overuse of prescribed amphetamines could lead to the equivalent of another opioid epidemic,” said Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, who served as the FDA’s principal deputy commissioner under Barack Obama.

Concerta and Ritalin contain methylphenidate, not amphetamine. This is correctly stated elsewhere in the article, so I don't know why they're conflated here.

> In one of these rooms, Ascent’s founder and CEO — Sudhakar Vidiyala, Meghana’s father — points to a hulking unit that he says is worth $1.5 million. It’s used to produce time-release Concerta tablets with three colored layers, each dispensing the drug’s active ingredient at a different point in the tablet’s journey through the body.

Sort of; see "System Components and Performance" in [0]. There's an overcoat which contains an initial dose of methylphenidate that dissolves quickly. Under that, a three-layer core: two drug layers and one pump layer for an osmotic-controlled delivery system [1]. As the pill is processed through the body and into the gut, water is absorbed into the pump layer through a semipermeable membrane which causes the pump layer to gradually expand, pushing methylphenidate from the two drug layers out through a laser-drilled hole over time. It's a cool little mechanism.

[0] https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2007/02...

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmotic-controlled_release_ora...

[xkcd-sucks]

Kind of like "opioid" includes natural opioids (heroin), semisynthetic (oxycodone) and fully synthetic (fentanyl/analogues) all with different pharmacology it's reasonable to lump in the "releasers" (amphetamines) with the "reuptake inhibitors" (alkyl phenidates, cocaine etc)

I mean that ship has already sailed in the form of the "methamphetamine epidemic" but just to be pedantic

[DinoCoder99]

You're just reading a mildly ambiguous sentence in poor faith. Not only is the amphetamine comment clearly applying to Adderall—which is true—methylphenidate also delivers an uptick in dopamine, which is why it's effective at all. The difference between the two drugs—which is meaningful in many contexts—is not substantial in this context.

[gzer0]

> You're just reading a mildly ambiguous sentence in poor faith. Not only is the amphetamine comment clearly applying to Adderall—which is true—methylphenidate also delivers an uptick in dopamine, which is why it's effective at all. The difference between the two drugs—which is meaningful in many contexts—is not substantial in this context.

I disagree. The OP is correct in calling out the bogus languge used in the article.

Saying the difference between Adderall (an amphetamine) and Ritalin (methylphenidate) doesn't matter because they both just boost dopamine is like saying it doesn't matter whether you turn up the volume on your speaker by using a remote or by walking over and pressing a button. Yes, both methods make the music louder, but how they do it is different.

Adderall pushes more dopamine out, while Ritalin makes sure the dopamine that's already there sticks around longer. This matters because, depending on someone's unique brain chemistry and health, one method might be better for them than the other. It's not just about the end result (more dopamine); it's about how you get there and what side effects might come along for the ride. Just like some people prefer the remote for convenience, doctors and patients might prefer one medication over the other based on how well it works for them and how it makes them feel.

[DinoCoder99]

> Saying the difference between Adderall (an amphetamine) and Ritalin (methylphenidate) doesn't matter because they both just boost dopamine is like saying it doesn't matter whether you turn up the volume on your speaker by using a remote or by walking over and pressing a button. Yes, both methods make the music louder, but how they do it is different.

Ok, but considering the context your distinction has no relevance.