The non-medical use of prescription medication for the pursuit of increasing cognitive and intellectual capacities (defined neuroenhancement) has received growing attention from the scientific community and policymakers alike. To date, limited qualitative data exist exploring the nature of the phenomenon, especially as a potentially emerging trend among university students in England. Existing American literature suggests that students believe that neuroenhancement helps the individual to maximize his/her time, consenting a suitable balance between work and leisure. Students’ motivation to experiment with neuroenhancement appears to be more in line with a need to regulate emotions surrounding study/work settings than to actually improve cognitive abilities beyond normal levels. This study aimed to qualitatively explore representations, motivations, beliefs, and consumption styles of a cohort of university student users residing in England. Through snowball sampling, 13 informants were contacted and interviewed regarding their experience with neuroenhancers. Narrations were analyzed and interpreted using qualitative analysis software and Grounded Theory methodology. Participants belonged to a broad variety of university courses and were predominantly habitual consumers of modafinil. Neuroenhancers were acquired either through friends or via the Internet. Motivations regarded the need to “catch up” and be on par with high achieving students. The entire cohort had previously experimented with other psychotropic substances. Synthetic compounds in particular were believed to be “gateway” drugs to using neuroenhancers. Experimentation with neuroenhancement can be seen as a self-governing strategy aimed at achieving continued focused productivity. Participants acknowledged sustainable benefits in neuroenhancement as it optimized work performance. The majority of the cohort also contemplated the possibility of using these drugs in the future once they entered the workforce. Neuroenhancing drug users expressed “situated morality,” differentiating between using these substances for assessments (exams) or during revisions, finding only the former as an immoral conduct. In the present scenario, it appears that neuroenhancement is practiced by small numbers of students. Nonetheless, the instrumental views of psychotropic substances held by many young adults and the globalization of these practices make the normalization of neuroenhancement a plausible possibility of the future.

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Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent amongst pregnant women and is linked to a range of adverse complications, including gestational diabetes. However, there is no consensus among researchers regarding the impact of vitamin D supplementation in alleviating adverse effects in gestational diabetes. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to determine whether supplementation of vitamin D given to women with gestational diabetes can promote glycaemic control. EMBASE and PubMed were searched up to November, 2018. The selection criteria included randomised controlled trials of the effect of vitamin D supplementation (1000–4762 IU/day) on pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus. Study data and outcome measures (fasting blood glucose, glycated haemoglobin and serum insulin) were extracted from included studies. Random-effects models were used for meta-analyses. Heterogeneity tests, and analysis of the risk of bias were conducted. Most of the studies were graded as having either low risk or moderate risk of bias although two studies had a high risk of bias in the areas of blinding of participants and personnel, and incomplete outcome data. On the other hand, the heterogeneity statistic (I2) ranged from 0–41% in the studies included. Five randomised controlled trials were selected for this review and meta-analysis (involving a total of 173 participants supplemented with vitamin D and 153 participants as control drawn from the studies). Vitamin D supplementation was associated with a decrease in fasting blood glucose by a mean of 0.46 mmol/L (−0.68, −0.25) (p < 0.001), glycated haemoglobin by a mean of 0.37% (−0.65, −0.08) (p < 0.01) and serum insulin concentration by mean of 4.10 µIU/mL (−5.50, −2.71) (p < 0.001) compared to controls. This review shows evidence that vitamin D supplementation has the potential to promote glycaemic control in women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM). However, due to the limited number of studies in the meta-analysis, the conclusion should be interpreted with caution. Further studies are needed to fully understand the exact mechanism by which vitamin D influences glucose metabolism.

For the first time, this study offers a rich detail of attitudes toward 2,4-DNP use by giving a collective voice to users. The element of control over every aspect of the users' life appears to be a significant contributor to the successful risk-management of 2,4-DNP use. In the absence of an established safe upper limit and effective regulatory control, education is critical to harm minimisation.

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