[lachry]

I'm interested in making quick bucks.

Questions:

where do I start?

any tales to share?

 

[Thalia]

You mean you want to be a subject? They aren't ethically allowed to give people very much money. Go to the nih website and I think they have a search engine. Make sure you understand all the risks and benefits. Ask questions, remember you can quit at any time.

 

[rabid_child]

I made $120 over the summer doing a research study on brain aging. First I sat in a room with some guy and a laptop and learned this computer program thing where two line drawing flashed on the screen, followed by one line drawings, and I had to push a button depending on whether I had seen it on the screen before. Then I had to do it all over again in an MRI machine for about a half an hour, then they did more MRI'ing for an hour. It was loud, and weird, but otherwise harmless. Then they bought me lunch and I had to do a bunch of other memory testing, then I went home. It was cool. Don't think I would have taken any sort of mystery drugs though.

 

[whisper]

I got invited to do a migraine study once. I was told though that if I got a really bad migraine I wouldn't be able to take any pain medication. So I decided not to do it.

I've thought about doing it since then but changed my mind after this. http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/...940.xml&coll=7

 

[jeneticallymodified]

something went very wrong with a drug trial in the uk last year, which kinda put me off:

(6 previously perfectly healthy people got very very sick in an anti-inflammatory drug trial and a few ended up in comas... one for almost 3 weeks, with swelling, multiple organ failure, pneumonia, septicaemia and dry gangrene.... had to have fingertips and all of his toes amputated,and the drug may have left him prone to infections and cancer.)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4914546.stm

studies are one thing, but i'd personally not be signing up to take drugs any time soon.

 

[IamJen]

I've done a couple of the non-invasive, psychological type tests. I did one to earn a few bucks. Later, a local University was doing a study on anxiety disorders. I have an acquaintance who suffers terribly from anxiety, so in this case, I was happy to help.

When I lived in DC, there were clinical trials ongoing all the time, advertised in the newspaper. They did (do) pay fairly well, but the majority are things of which I would not want to be a part (testing malaria vaccines, for example).

I'm not sure where you're located in the UK, but try checking with the local universities perhaps, for some less "scary" research participant opportunities. I see stuff posted all the time around Oxford for various research projects.

 

[catswym]

the biggest money makers seem to be sleep studies. but then you have to live at the place for about a month. if you can do it tho, you can usually make over $1000 (at least in the US). and those tend to be pretty non-invasive as well.

 

[murry]

in my doctor's office there was an ad for one of female teen athletes/dancers with absent/irregular periods. if only i wasn't lazy and played a sport!!

 

[Tweety]

My dad did a drug trial for an arthritis drug and made good money. I can't remember what it was. It was very controlled. He stayed in a facility for a week. Kind of like a hospital wing. There they were able to monitor what he ate, what he did, and take blood levels, and vital signs, side effects, etc. every day. I'm sure he made over $1000 for his time.

 

[Kiz]

I did one for ear muffs once. You just sat in a room with earmuffs on and pressed a button whenever you heard a tone. The tones were very faint so there was no risk to your hearing. It didn't take very long and you got about $50. Not a great deal but not bad for a few hours when you are very broke.

I also did one for contact lenses, too. You didn't get money but you got an irreplaceably good eye exam and a whole bunch of free contacts. The eye exam took hours, what with the sitting in myriad dark rooms with various drops in them it took nearly a whole day, and they examined my eyes with methods I never knew existed, with all sorts of shiny, hi-tech equipment, and tested for every disease and peculiarity that one could with eyes. I quizzed the lab techs and scientists endlessly about everything. They were really nice and seemed more than happy to tell me everything they could in regards to the scientific study of eyes. They actually seemed quite pleased that I was interested. It was cool, I learnt a heap about eyes that day.