Unreliable transport arrangements‚ no internet access at home and campus housing shortages are increasingly causing students to turn to “smart drugs” to pass. This according to student accommodation group STAG African in a statement on Tuesday‚ saying the abuse of the drugs Ritalin and Concerta‚ intended to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)‚ is on the rise on campuses.The drugs are reportedly readily available outside campus libraries during exams‚ it said.Though there is limited quantified data to determine the extent of the problem‚ anecdotal evidence suggests there is one.Last month student Anita Cousins* told the Sunday Times that she takes Ritalin three times a year during exams‚ though she does not suffer from attention deficit disorder.Final-year student Ryan Joseph* has a prescription from a doctor for his ADHD but does not take his medication regularly. Instead he sells his supply to other students‚ he told the newspaper.STAG African director John Schooling says students are buckling under the pressure to perform and inconvenient living arrangements add to the problem.“Due to the on-campus housing shortage‚ many students do not have access to university-based studying resources – such as the internet or text books.“Students often end up pulling all-nighters in the library‚ due to long distances and unreliable transport‚ which makes getting home at night difficult and at times dangerous‚” he said.Research by the University of Pretoria found that one in six undergraduates use the medication‚ while only 3% of users had been diagnosed with an attention deficit disorder.Adrie Vermeulen of the South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (SANCA) said young people are also inclined to abuse stimulant drugs‚ normally used to treat hyperactivity‚ recreationally and to lose weight.She warned that the abuse of these chemicals may lead to various psychological and physical ailments: “It really is exhausting for the body to cope with this kind of pressure.“We don't know of any syndicate illegally manufacturing [these drugs]‚” Vermeulen said.Instead students abuse their own prescriptions‚ steal prescriptions from other students and doctors and form syndicates to sell drugs prescribed for their own use.One tablet can cost between R5 and R50‚ she said.SANCA is in the middle of its Drug Awareness Week‚ which will end on Thursday.*not their real names ..