The ethical implications of using cognitive enhancing drugs will be discussed by Cambridge academic, Professor Barbara Sahakian at a public lecture on Tuesday, 13th October.

The lecture will be hosted by The Royal Society and is open to members of the public.

The talk aims to weigh up the benefits and subsequent risks of using cognitive enhancing drugs in a variety of sectors throughout society.

These drugs are used to improve motivation and cognition, including memory, intelligence, attention and concentration. More specifically, they are used for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Whilst used to improve the quality of life and wellbeing for patients and their families, there are a number of ethical issues associated with their use in healthy people, according to Professor Sahakian. Often these drugs are taken for prolonged periods of time, when little data about the long term effects is available.

Professor Sahakian will discuss the use of the drugs specifically in school children, young adults and academic staff at universities, whilst considering the potential harms and unknown effects.

Barbara Sahakian is Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology at the University of Cambridge. Her research is aimed at understanding the neural basis of the cognitive, emotional and behavioural dysfunction resulting from neuropsychiatric disorders and brain injury.

Doors open at 5.45pm and seats will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis; no tickets are required and admission is free.

The event will be broadcast live at: royalsociety.org/live and will be available to view on demand within 48 hours of delivery.

For more information on the public lecture please use the link, top right of this page.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence. If you use this content on your site please link back to this page.