Illegal ADHD drug ads tout ‘smart pills’ ahead of Suneung

The number of online advertisements illegally selling ADHD medication ahead of Korea's College Scholastic Ability Test, better known as Suneung, surged by more than 2,000 percent between 2022 and 2024, data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety showed Monday.

According to the data, the number of illegal advertisements detected by the ministry ahead of the exam jumped from 33 in 2022 to 711 in 2024. In 2025, the ministry detected 728 cases in just five days, from Oct. 20-24.

Many of the advertisements promoted the medication as a “concentration supplement,” claiming it improves focus and helps students prepare for the college entrance exam. Some even touted the drug as a “smart pill.”

The ministry said the illegal distribution of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder medication remained widespread despite laws prohibiting the purchase and sale of the drugs without a prescription.

Experts say there is no proven causal relationship between improved concentration and taking ADHD medication without a proper diagnosis, warning that the drugs may instead increase heart rate and negatively affect concentration.

“People need to understand that taking ADHD medication does not improve academic performance and may in fact do more harm than good,” psychiatrist Ha Ju-won told local media.

The use of ADHD medication as a concentration booster dates back to the early 2000s.

Among students preparing for state exams at the time, the drugs were widely believed to improve concentration. In the early 2020s, their use spread among teenagers in Daechi-dong, a hagwon district in Seoul, under nicknames such as “study drug” and “smart pill.”

A report by the National Youth Policy Institute released Monday found that ADHD medication was the narcotic-type substance most commonly encountered by adolescents for nonmedical use.

Separate data also showed a rise in prescriptions among adolescents.

Food Ministry data released last year showed that 113,263 male patients aged 19 or younger were prescribed methylphenidate, an ingredient in ADHD medication, between January and September.

Among female patients in the same age group, the number stood at 49,209. Prescriptions for both genders rose by more than 20 percent compared to 2023.

Medical professionals say it is difficult for doctors to screen out those seeking prescriptions for misuse.

“There is no clear way for doctors to reliably screen out people whose symptoms are not severe but who still claim to have ADHD,” Ha added.

ADHD medication prescriptions were also concentrated in areas known for intense private education competition.

In 2024, Seoul’s Gangnam-gu, which includes Daechi-dong, recorded the highest number of methylphenidate prescriptions among teenagers at 37,809.

It was followed by Songpa-gu in Seoul, Bundang-gu in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Suseong-gu in Daegu and Seocho-gu in Seoul — affluent areas known for intensely competitive private education.

An analysis of methylphenidate prescriptions from 2007 to 2024 also found that prescriptions were highest among teenagers in the highest income quintile.