ADHD drug prescriptions surge 38% in 2 years

Prescriptions for methylphenidate, commonly known as a study drug among students in Korea, have risen by nearly 38% over the past two years, particularly among individuals aged 19 and under, according to data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the Korea Institute of Drug Safety and Risk Management. In the first half of this year, 58.05 million methylphenidate tablets were prescribed, a 12.1% increase from the same period last year and a 37.8% increase from the first half of 2024.

This rise is especially concerning among the younger demographic, with 28.81 million tablets prescribed to individuals aged 19 and under, comprising nearly half of the total prescriptions. Males accounted for a significantly higher number of prescriptions at 20.9 million compared to females, who received 7.91 million.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.