Modafinil improves sleep cycles in people with narcolepsy or shift work sleep disorder (problems sleeping during scheduled hours for night or dayshift workers). It is also used in conjunction with breathing devices to treat obstructive sleep apnea.
Sleep measures showed statistically significant normalizing effects of modafinil compared to placebo on slow-wave sleep, improvements in total and REM sleep time and decreases in stage N1-2 sleep latency.
How Does Modafinil Work?
Modafinil, sold under the brand name Provigil Australia, is a powerful wakefulness drug used to treat sleep disorders such as narcolepsy and obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome. It can help rebalance your sleep cycle and improve your overall mood. Modafinil also reduces excessive daytime sleepiness that can interfere with work, school, and other daily activities.
In one randomized, double-blind placebo controlled trial of shift work sleep disorder patients, 200 mg modafinil administered in the morning was associated with improvements on objective measures of daytime performance and subjective measures of sleepiness, including the multiple sleep latency test and Clinical Global Impression of Change (GCI) test.
Moreover, the results of polysomnographic sleep measurements and fMRI indicated that the modafinil group showed greater reductions in both waking and napping latency and a longer stage N3 sleep duration compared with the placebo group.
Modafinil was also shown to have an effect on brain activity measured by fMRI during an overnight sleep deprivation task in healthy subjects. This study revealed that the modafinil-induced improvement in performance was correlated with decreased histamine levels and increased dopamine levels in the prefrontal cortex.
These results suggest that histamine and dopamine may play an important role in the cognitive process of sleep deprivation. This suggests that these neurochemical systems may be a good target for future interventions designed to enhance alertness in shift-work sleep disorder.
Side Effects of Modafinil
Buy Modafinil Australia is a powerful stimulant that has been shown to enhance cognitive performance in non-sleep-deprived subjects. It has been shown to be able to improve memory, and is also able to help people who suffer from attention deficit disorder focus better. However, modafinil can have a number of side effects that can affect your health, including an increased heart rate, anxiety, and nausea. In some cases, the drug can even cause depression.
Modafinil has a lower risk of addiction than other traditional psychostimulants like amphetamine and methylphenidate. This is due to the fact that it has been shown to be less likely to interact with the dopamine receptors in your brain. However, there is still a possibility that you could become addicted to this medication.
One of the most common side effects of Modafinil is gastrointestinal distress, which can include nausea and stomach pain. This can usually be mitigated by taking the medication with food. Other side effects can include headaches, dizziness, and drowsiness. It is important to talk with your doctor about any potential side effects of Modafinil that you might be experiencing.
When you take this medication, you should avoid drinking alcohol or taking any other drugs that can interfere with the effectiveness of the drug. You should also tell your doctor about any prescription or over-the-counter medicines that you are currently using, as well as any vitamins or supplements.
Modafinil and Mental Health Symptoms
Despite its many benefits, Modafinil has the potential to affect a person’s mental health. The drug can cause mental health symptoms if taken in excess or if used by someone who does not have proper medical care.
The most serious symptoms of misuse include severe skin reactions, which can lead to Stevens-Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN), both of which are life-threatening conditions. Modafinil can also cause hallucinations, especially in people with preexisting mental health problems.
A study of shift work sleep disorder showed that patients treated with 200 mg of modafinil on the first night of their work shift experienced less sleepiness than those who received placebo. This effect lasted throughout the day and into the night shift. In addition, patients who took the drug on their first night of work experienced fewer mistakes and accidents at the workplace.
Modafinil has also been shown to improve cognitive function in healthy adults during simulated sleep deprivation. A single dose of 400 mg of modafinil reduced errors on the Wisconsin Card Sort Test and Stroop Interference Task compared to placebo, but had minimal effects on RT or arithmetic performance.
Unlike stimulants, Modafinil does not appear to have an addictive potential. However, it is sometimes purchased off-label as a cognitive enhancer, and this use may be contributing to the rise in cases of abuse.
Modafinil and Birth Control
Modafinil interacts with the chemicals in your brain that control the sleep/wake cycle. It increases the availability of neurotransmitters like norepinephrine and dopamine, which promote wakefulness and decrease drowsiness. It also has weak to negligible interactions with other neurotransmitters involved in the regulation of sleep/wake cycles including adenolyl cyclase, catechol-O-methyltransferase, glutamic acid decarboxylation, histamine-3, orexin, and phosphodiesterases II-VI.
Modafinil is a strong enzyme inducer, meaning it can increase the speed at which your body breaks down certain drugs. This includes hormones used to prevent pregnancy, such as those found in birth control pills. This interaction can reduce the effectiveness of hormonal contraceptives, such as combination pills and patches. Non-hormonal birth control methods, such as the Depo-Provera shot and intrauterine devices (IUDs), are generally considered safer options for women taking Modafinil.
However, one study of mothers with narcolepsy and their children found that women who took modafinil during pregnancy had a higher risk of fetal development problems, including congenital heart conditions and orofacial clefts. For this reason, women who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant should not take Modafinil.
Those who are not able to avoid it should use a non-hormonal backup method of birth control, such as the copper IUD or levonorgestrel implant. This is particularly important because a woman’s blood levels of certain birth control hormones are lower during the first trimester.
