Is Provigil Addictive?
Addiction Risk Seen in Wakefulness Drug Provigil By Daniel J. DeNoon WebMD Health News Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD March 17, 2009 – Provigil promotes wakefulness without getting you hooked. But now it seems that addiction may very well be a Provigil risk. Provigil (generic name, modafinil) is FDA approved for promoting wakefulness in people with narcolepsy, sleep apnea, and shift work sleep disorder. Because of its relatively benign safety profile, it’s often prescribed “off label” for people complaining of fatigue. Some prominent scientists have suggested that responsible, healthy adults should be allowed to use safer stimulant drugs such as Provigil and even Ritalin to boost intellectual creativity. But now researchers led by Nora D. Volkow, MD, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), report evidence that Provigil might be more addictive than thought. “There is an increasing use of this medication, and people have promoted the off-label use of stimulants and Provigi
