General Effects of CNS Stimulants

CNS Stimulant 

The class of drugs designated as central nervous system [CNS stimulants] includes the two most frequently-used drugs on the planet, Caffeine and nicotine.

General Effects of Stimulants :

• All stimulant drugs cause an increase in general behavioral activity.
• When taken short-term (one or two weeks), stimulant drugs cause states of euphoria, optimism, and general feelings of well-being.
• Initial feelings of anorexia are frequent, a quality that leads to their use/abuse in weight loss products.
• Insomnia is also frequent.

General Effects of CNS Stimulants

These responses indicate that the part of the brain which controls these functions, the hypothalamus, is strongly affected by these drugs and that the dopamine transmitter system is primarily involved in manyof these effects.

• Other effects are:
  
  • decreased feelings of depression
  • increased thoughts and associations
  • increased talkativeness
  • increased blood pressure
  • anxiety
  • irritability
  • decreased fatigue .

Tolerance to CNS stimulants :

Tolerance to the mood-elevating and appetite-suppressing effects develops after about two weeks of daily use. Little tolerance develops to the behavioral-arousal effect, which is what makes these drugs useful in the long-term treatment of narcolepsy (Stahl, 1999).