Ritalin Use Among Preschoolers On The Rise
First Lady Wants To Study Other Treatments For ADHD
The primary form of therapy for ADHD is Ritalin, a powerful amphetamine-like drug that actually helps kids calm down while increasing their attention span. The drug is believed to increase a child's alertness by stimulating the central nervous system.
But the number of children on Ritalin is staggering and it has increased dramatically over the past decade, according to a report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Hillary Rodham Clinton called attention Monday to this troubling matter.
"We are not here to bash the use of these medications," Clinton said. "But we do have to ask some serious questions about the use prescription drugs."
The first lady said the White House will initiate a new program that will issue guidelines for use of such drugs for children under 6.
She also proposed more clinical trials on the young, a fall conference on children's mental health, handbooks for parents and training for doctors who treat their children.
Clinton said toddlers are being medicated without adequate research into what works best for children still undergoing crucial brain development.
"Some of these young people have problems that are symptoms of nothing more than childhood or adolescence," Clinton said.
The JAMA reported that from 1991 to 1995, doctors' prescriptions for 2- to 4-year-olds jumped threefold for Ritalin, a common brand name for the stimulant methylphenidate.
The number of children on antidepressants such as Prozac, often used to control bedwetting, doubled in that time period.
Behavior therapy can be more helpful than drugs, said Deborah A. Ziegler, an expert on behavior disorders for the Council for Exceptional Children, a suburban Virginia-based advocacy group.
ADHD is diagnosed in school-age children based on interviews and observed behavior.
Symptoms include a restless inability to sit still to read, study or even watch television. Some mild forms of these symptoms are common in many children, leading experts to worry that ADHD is diagnosed too often.
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