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Comment by WFHRenaissance | Hacker News Reader

I took stimulants at therapeutic doses for 8 years(Adderall and Vyvanse mostly) - I think more study is needed before we can say with confidence that there is no cardio risk associated with ADHD meds.

I have no history of CVD, but on occasion these meds will give me chest pains and palpitations. So much so that I recently decided to stop taking them and see a cardiologist. The cardiologist did not note any damage, but after the chest pain, palpitations, and seeing my HR hit BPMs that would scare most doctors... I'm not confident in these results.

Can someone with time/interest check to see if there is some p-hacking going on here?

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It's possible you were on too high of a dose. Stimulants definitely increase pulse, and palpitations are a common side effects, but they're not necessarily indicative of any danger, though it's very understandable that they can be scary.

> This groundbreaking finding comes from a new meta-analysis of 19 observational studies, including 3.9 million participants

ADHD medications, particularly Adderall, are very well studied. Amphetamine formulations have been prescribed for alertness since the 1930s.

Want to chime in and say I took a very low dose as prescribed for 2 years. I started experiencing random high blood pressure, random heart rate spikes, worsening anxiety and panic. This was the worst when I'd take a day or two break. The doctor told me to start taking anti anxiety meds or take even more Adderall. That made me decide to stop all together.

I do miss being able to do things on will. But over time the benefits started wearing off, and the drawbacks were horrible and scary to experience.

Amphetamines are sympathomimetic. On the heart, they have adrenalin-like inotropic and chronotropic effects. Heart beats faster and stronger, leading to higher heart rate, higher blood pressure, palpitations, higher oxygen consumption. It was theorized that these effects increased cardiovascular risk but apparently that is not the case according to TFA, at least with prescription amphetamines at therapeutic dosages. Abuse of methamphetamine definitely increases risk though. It seems to be common practice to use beta blockers like atenolol to treat the side effects if present.

Amphetamines can definitely alter your mood and worsen symptoms of anxiety.

Did you drink coffee?

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