Ritalin and Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder
Hi Eli,
Since we got together the other day and we talked about Ritalin & the possible adverse effects, you mentioned hearing a lot of bad things about it, including stopping growth of children. Well, there's a lot of mis-information about Ritalin circulating. Someone sent me the following article about it and I had an easy time rebutting it.
Immediately below is the original article without my comments so you can easily get the full flavor of it. Below that is a copy of that article with my 2-cents worth. Keep in mind that I have 4 kids that have been diagnosed as ADHD and I've been diagnosed positively, as well. Also keep in mind that here in Israel the number and quality of diagnostic tests to determine ADHD are far more than in the States. Here we take a much more careful view on these things. It isn't just a family doctor that determines whether a child gets Ritalin but a neurologist after a battery of tests.
If you're interested in contacting our neurologist she's Dr. Lubetsky in Bikur Cholim Hosp under Kupat Cholim Klalit. She's really good, she's warm & understanding and she's had a lot of experience with this.
If you want to read up on the subject I suggest the following books by Tom Hartman Ph.d., a researcher who himself is ADHD:
Hartman, ADD Success Stories: A guide to fulfilment to families with Attention Deficit Disorder,
ISBN 1-887424-03-2Hartman, Bwoman & Burgess Think Fast! The ADD Experience, ISBN 1-887424-08-3
Hartman, Attention Deficit Disorder: A Different Perception ISBN 1-887424-14-8
Hartman, Healing ADD: Simple Exercises That Will Change Your Life ISBN 1-887424-37-7
DaleP.S.: The following is the article on Ritalin that I found that is just riddled with misinformation. Please read it in full to get a good impression of what the author is pushing, Then read it with my rebuttal. My rebuttal is placed right under his article.
> Subject: WorldNetDaily: DOPING OUR KIDS
>
> Even as America wages a freedom-demolishing "War on Drugs,"
> there is underway one of the most massive doping campaigns
> in the history of the US. The doping of children in school
> with psychotropic drugs with the intent of making children
> more manageable. These mind-altering drugs posses a witch's
> brew of adverse/toxic side effects, including psychotic mania.
> The following WND article presents important & relevant facts:
>
> =========http://WorldNetDaily.com ===========
>
> http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_bresnahan/19990429_xex_doping_our_k. sht ml
>
> DOPING OUR KIDS
> Prescription drugs at root
> of violence, says expert
>
>
> By David M. Bresnahan
> (c) 1999 WorldNetDaily.com
>
> Mind altering drugs may be the cause
> of violence among school children,
> according to some doctors and other
> experts. Millions of children are
> legally taking drugs similar to
> cocaine in schools every day.
>
> The drugs are Ritalin, Prozac, and
> others.
>
> The claims that behavioral drugs
> cause violence in children came after
> news reports that Eric Harris, one of
> the shooters in the Columbine High
> School shooting, was reported to
> have been taking such medication.
> Harris was also rejected by the
> Marines for medical reasons. The
> Marines would only say that anyone
> who is currently being treated by a
> doctor would be rejected.
>
> Other shootings and violent acts at
> schools across the nation have been
> committed by children receiving
> psychiatric care, counseling, and
> drugs such as Ritalin, according to
> several groups.
>
> At least two organizations claim that
> over-use of Ritalin is to blame for
> the escalating incidents of children
> committing acts of violence on other
> children. They claim the problem has
> reached pandemic proportions and
> will get worse before it gets better.
> Other experts place the blame on
> inadequate parenting, while
> legislators propose new laws.
>
> A report issued in 1995 by the Drug
> Enforcement Agency warned that
> Ritalin "shares many of the
> pharmacological effects of ... cocaine."
>
> There are some experts who claim
> Ritalin can cause psychotic reactions
> resulting in violent behavior toward
> others and suicide. Defenders of the
> drug claim those reactions are
> symptoms of the condition, not the
> drug itself.
>
> Support for the claim that the use of
> Ritalin can cause psychotic reactions
> can be found in medical literature
> and studies. A simple search on the
> Internet revealed extensive volumes
> of medically credible documents
> listing a vast number of warnings and
> side effects to the drug, which is
> classified by the U.S. government in
> the same category as cocaine and
> heroin.
>
> One Internet site provides frequently
> asked medical questions with
> answers from doctors. Drug Infonet
> warns that there are "no studies in
> animals or humans" and that "risks
> are unknown currently." Among the
> side effects the doctors warn about
> are "psychotic thought processes."
>
> "The use of Ritalin on children has
> no purpose other than to slow them
> down, shut them up, and make it
> more difficult for them to move
> around," described Dennis H. Clarke,
> Chairman, Executive Advisory Board,
> Citizens Commission On Human
> Rights International. He believes that
> Ritalin is an easy way out for parents
> and teachers, rather than dealing
> directly with behavior problems in
> children.
>
> Clarke also points to the "Diagnostic
> and Statistical Manual of Mental
> Disorders, Third Revised Edition,"
> published by the American
> Psychiatric Association, as supporting
> his claims of the dangers of Ritalin in
> children. All the critical information
> about Ritalin has been removed in
> the more recent edition, which he
> says supports his claim that the
> industry is engaged in a cover up.
> Proponents of the use of the drug
> claim the change was simply made in
> error.
>
> Clarke claims that children who take
> Ritalin in elementary school are often
> switched to Prozac and other drugs
> as they grow older. The effects of
> Ritalin can cause problems long after
> the prescription is stopped, he added.
>
> "When they go through puberty, this
> becomes true speed," explained
> Clarke. "They get these flashbacks
> and their thinking goes out of
> control. They're now looking for
> downers. They want the
> anti-depressants. They want the
> tranquilizer."
>
> Clarke is not alone. Dr. Ann Blake
> Tracy, director of the International
> Coalition for Drug Awareness is
> equally concerned.
>
> "They are switching lots of these kids
> from Ritalin to Prozac -- the frying
> pan into the fire routine," she told
> WorldNetDaily. "Kip Kinkel in the
> Oregon shooting last summer was a
> perfect example of the effects. The
> chances the boy in Arkansas was on it
> are great."
>
> She also pointed out that adults who
> use such drugs also commit violent
> crimes at a higher rate. Dr. Tracy is
> from Utah where the use of Ritalin
> and Prozac are reported to be at a
> rate three times greater than the rest
> of the country per capita. She said
> Utah's rate of murders and suicides
> has also increased by a similar
> amount. Dr. Tracy confirmed news
> reports that Harris reportedly was
> taking the drug Luvox, a drug in the
> same classification as Prozac. She said
> many people who take that drug are
> confronted with compulsive sexual
> behavior, in addition to exhibiting
> violent behavior. The stories of
> violent children leave many shaking
> their heads in disbelief and shock.
> Texas law would not even permit the
> arrest of two boys who allegedly
> abducted, beat, and sexually abused a
> 3-year-old girl because they are too
> young -- seven and eight years old.
> An 11-year-old was arrested in the
> incident, but children under 10 may
> not be detained.
>
> There have been numerous incidents
> in which young children have
> brought various weapons to school.
> Young children have recently held
> students at bay with guns at schools
> in Utah and Idaho. Some have used
> them, and one incident in Arkansas
> brought international attention when
> four school children and one teacher
> were shot dead at a middle school.
> Even peaceful students who were
> saying prayers outside their school
> fell victim to a classmate who gunned
> them down.
>
> The high number of incidents
> involving violent children, as well as
> an increase in children who commit
> suicide, can be attributed to an
> ever-increasing number of children
> who are being given drugs to control
> their behavior, according to Clarke.
>
> He agreed that the evidence for his
> claim is hard to come by. Medical
> information about the children in
> these incidents is typically
> confidential and never made public.
> He said he comes by his information
> through comments and remarks
> made to the press and in court, even
> though the actual medical records are
> not available to him.
>
> "We do know, for example, that the
> 13-year-old in Jonesboro was being
> treated. Apparently they were saying
> he had been sexually abused as a
> child. They were saying he was now
> a sexual abuser. He had a
> hyperactivity type label put on him
> as well -- or 'attention deficit
> disorder.' So we had several different
> things working with him. There is no
> chance under the sun, moon, or stars
> that this kid was not on drugs,"
> described Clarke.
>
> Clarke went beyond his claims of
> psychotic side effects to the drug. He
> also claims that pharmaceutical
> companies go to great lengths and
> expense to cover up the problems
> that take place. When an incident of
> violence occurs, the pharmaceutical
> "crash teams" go to work to keep
> things quiet, according to Clarke.
>
> Teams of psychiatrists are sent to the
> places where incidents take place and
> quickly work to see that medical
> records are kept sealed, doctors are
> convinced to remain silent, and
> victims are given monetary payments
> to prevent them from ever going to
> court.
>
> "It's all being covered up, and it's
> deliberate. There are billions and
> billions of dollars at stake here,"
> explained Clarke. He compared the
> cover up to the tobacco companies
> and the deceptions which are now
> apparently coming to light.
>
> Pharmaceutical companies respond
> to claims by Clarke and others by
> saying there is no credible proof to
> substantiate the claims. Credible
> proof would require a double blind
> controlled study, which the scientific
> community could also duplicate, and
> that type of study would be illegal,
> according to Clarke.
>
> "You can't run an experiment to see if
> somebody is going to take an AK-47
> and shoot up everyone he knows.
> You can't run an experiment to find
> out if a child is going to kill himself,"
> explained Clarke.
>
> A thorough review of medical
> literature was also performed by
> Mary Eberstadt of the Heritage
> Foundation's Policy Review
> magazine, found in the April edition.
> She points out that the drug has
> doubled in use since 1990 and has
> become popular for abuse by teens
> who have ready access to it.
>
> "Ritalin works on children just like
> cocaine and other stimulants work on
> adults -- sharpening the short-term
> attention span when the drug kicks
> in and producing 'valleys' when the
> effect wears off," Eberstadt points
> out.
>
> Teachers, school administrators, and
> even doctors hold to the belief that if
> a child responds well to Ritalin, then
> it is safe to conclude that the child
> suffers from ADD. A study by the
> National Institute of Mental Health
> disputes that assumption. That study
> shows that all children and adults
> who are given Ritalin will display
> improved performance and attention
> span, regardless of whether they are
> diagnosed with ADD or not.
>
> Utah is reported to have the highest
> per capita use of Ritalin in the nation.
> A call to a local elementary school
> found a teacher who believes
> strongly in the use of the drug to
> control otherwise difficult children.
> She did not want her name
> published, but confirmed that she
> routinely makes recommendations
> for children in her classes to be given
> the drug. All the children she has
> recommended have ended up with
> the prescription, and their parents
> have expressed gratitude. She said 11
> of the 29 children in her first-grade
> class are now taking the drug in
> school each day.
>
> Clarke predicts the future will see an
> even greater number of violent
> children. Unless the correlation of the
> use of Ritalin with violent acts is
> openly established, Clarke says the
> general public, health officials, and
> parents will fail to recognize the true
> nature and the extent of a pandemic
> he says is already sweeping the
> nation.
>
> "Warning: sufficient data on the
> safety and efficacy (effectiveness) of
> long term use of Ritalin in children
> are not yet available," warns CIBA
> Pharmaceutical Company in a
> product information release. The
> warning is intended to serve as a
> protection from liability. The drug
> has been on the market for 50 years.
>
> "In other words, if you have a child
> on Ritalin, and leave the child on for
> a 'long term,' which is not defined
> but can be assumed to mean over
> three weeks, you are on your own as
> far as CIBA Pharmaceutical Company
> is concerned. They have warned
> you," described Clarke.
>
> "Ritalin only exists to slow down the
> fast kids and give us quieter and less
> active children. We now have at least
> 14 quieter less active children there in
> Colorado. This is the product that
> we're going to be seeing over and
> over again. These children are being
> devastated by the drugs," he warned.
>
> Herbert S. Okun, a member of the
> International Drug Control Board for
> the United Nations held a news
> conference recently to issue a
> warning. He said his board is very
> concerned that methylphenidate, or
> Ritalin, is greatly over-prescribed in
> the U.S. He said there are 330 million
> daily doses of Ritalin taken each day
> in the U.S., compared with just 65
> million for the rest of the world.
>
> Ritalin is prescribed for children
> diagnosed with ADD. The condition
> has never been fully proven to even
> exist, and the criteria for diagnosis
> are so general that virtually anyone
> would qualify for a prescription.
>
>
> David M. Bresnahan, a contributing
> editor for WorldNetDaily.com, is the
> author of "Cover Up: The Art and
> Science of Political Deception," and
> offers a monthly newsletter "Talk
> USA Investigative Reports." He may
> be reached through email and also
> maintains a website.
>
>
> http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_bresnahan/19990429_xex_doping_our_k.
> sht ml
>
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DOPING OUR KIDS -- A Widespread form of Mind Control?
>
> Even as America wages a freedom-demolishing "War on Drugs,"
> there is underway one of the most massive doping campaigns
> in the history of the US. The doping of children in school
> with psychotropic drugs with the intent of making children
> more manageable. These mind-altering drugs posses a witch's
> brew of adverse/toxic side effects, including psychotic mania.
> The following WND article presents important & relevant facts:
>
> ========http://WorldNetDaily.com ============
Now the following is my rebuttal to the article....
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_bresnahan/19990429_xex_doping_our_kids.html
>
>DOPING OUR KIDS
> Prescription drugs at root of violence, says expert
>
>
> By David M. Bresnahan
> (c) 1999 WorldNetDaily.com
>
> Mind altering drugs may be the cause
> of violence among school children,
> according to some doctors and other
> experts. Millions of children are
> legally taking drugs similar to
> cocaine in schools every day.
>
> The drugs are Ritalin, Prozac, and
> others.Refering to these as simply "mind altering drugs" is a highly value laden and emotionally evocative wording. And in this sense caffine is also a mind altering drug.
> The claims that behavioral drugs
> cause violence in children came after
> news reports that Eric Harris, one of
> the shooters in the Columbine High
> School shooting, was reported to
> have been taking such medication.Which medication? Prozac? Ritalin?
Those claims that these drugs cause violent behavior are just plain erroneous. Maybe he was taking it because he had a psychiatric disorder that brought on violent behavior and was being treated for it with the medication? This author claims that the reason for his violence was because of the drug. Faulty logic. With that reasoning one should blame headaches on the taking of aspirin or Tylenol. Besides, people who require psychogenic medications need their
dosages adjusted and changes in medication upon occasion. To blame the drug for these acts is just as intelligent as blaming the medication used to control psoriasis for a renewed outbreak of this dermatological condition.> Harris was also rejected by the
> Marines for medical reasons. The
> Marines would only say that anyone
> who is currently being treated by a
> doctor would be rejected.Rejected by the Marines? Heck, that's the norm rather than the exception! I wonder if the author of this article could pass a physical exam at the standards demanded by the Marines. The Marines are extremely picky. They only want "a few good men".
> Other shootings and violent acts at
> schools across the nation have been
> committed by children receiving
> psychiatric care, counseling, and
> drugs such as Ritalin, according to
> several groups.Not unusual for psychiatric patients to get violent occasionally and the medication that they take is designed to suppers the tendency toward being violent, but nothing is perfect and works all the time, yet he blames Ritalin on these acts. Faulty logic. The author failed to tell us which organizations were involved so we could check them out. Note that the author also mentioned that those kids who committed violent acts also received counseling. With his logic he could
just as easily make a case that the counseling caused the violent acts.> At least two organizations claim that
> over-use of Ritalin is to blame for
> the escalating incidents of children
> committing acts of violence on other
> children. They claim the problem has
> reached pandemic proportions and
> will get worse before it gets better.Why won't the author tell us which organizations are blaming Ritalin for this? I think it's because he's lying.
> Other experts place the blame on
> inadequate parenting, while
> legislators propose new laws.
>
> A report issued in 1995 by the Drug
> Enforcement Agency warned that
> Ritalin "shares many of the
> pharmacological effects of ... cocaine."Why didn't he give the location of his source so we could check this statement? Which pharmacological effects of cocaine is he referring to? What portion of the sentence did he omit and what did it say? The fact that he doesn't mention them is suspicious. It's called 'guilt by association'. He is associating Ritalin with Cocaine. With this tactic he didn't tell you which way these two substances share similarities. Cocaine is a stimulant, however the author appears unaware that for those of us who are ADHD it acts in the opposite way and generally relaxes us, rather than stimulates us. So for us ADHD'ers it, in fact, does not have a cocaine-like effect on us,
often the very opposite. In fact our eldest son, Gavriel, took it quite successfully for more than a year, then his metabolism changed at age 12 and it began to put him to sleep in school so he stopped taking it. It happens to be true that Ritalin shares many of the effects of cocaine, but in that sense so does caffeine, so both tea and coffee can be connected to Ritalin in this sense. This is a scare tactic by blurring the distinctions between Ritalin and cocaine.> There are some experts who claim
> Ritalin can cause psychotic reactions
> resulting in violent behavior toward
> others and suicide. Defenders of the
> drug claim those reactions are
> symptoms of the condition, not the
> drug itself.Above he uses a subtle propaganda ploy by comparing "experts" with "defenders". In the above his message is clear as he only claims that "experts" say Ritalin causes psychotic reactions (and BTW, the author is billed as an "expert" in the title of this article). "Defenders" (implying non-experts) object to it. Funny how he doesn't mention that there plenty of "experts" among the defenders. More than that, who are these "experts" who claim that Ritalin can cause psychotic reactions? A far fetched claim without any support whatsoever.
> Support for the claim that the use of
> Ritalin can cause psychotic reactions
> can be found in medical literature
> and studies.Specifically?
> A simple search on the
> Internet revealed extensive volumes
> of medically credible documentsMy simple search for "ritalin" on the Hotbot search engine came up with a lot of articles that went against his claims. Try it yourself.
> listing a vast number of warnings and
> side effects to the drug, which is
> classified by the U.S. government in
> the same category as cocaine and
> heroin.A "vast number of warnings"? Which agency of the U.S Government, and where was it written? If one wants an honest list of the side effects of Ritalin why not check the official & authoritative Physician's Desk Reference which lists the side effects of every drug it holds? It's available in every public library in the US. (BTW, get
a copy of this and also look up the side effects of Tylenol in order to get perspective on the kind of side effects a common over-the-counter medication can have.) Why didn't he give a reference that people could actually check on rather than a vague claim that the internet has extensive volumes? The reason is probably because he would be proven wrong if we could actually check his sources.> One Internet site provides frequently
> asked medical questions with
> answers from doctors. Drug Infonet
> warns that there are "no studies in
> animals or humans" and that "risks
> are unknown currently." Among the
> side effects the doctors warn about
> are "psychotic thought processes."I went to the site he is referring to here, it's at: http://www.druginfonet.com/faq/new/drug_faq/a.Ritalin.htm
The following are direct quotes from that site:Ritalin
Question: I need information about adverse reactions with Ritalin.
Answer: Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) is a central nervous system stimulant whose mode of action is not completely clear. It may cause insomnia, nervousness, allergic reactions (rash, hives, fever, arthritis) nausea, irregular heart beats and types of psychotic thought processes. Several cases of Tourette's Syndrome have been reported as well, but is a rare problem.Question: My son Dylan has been put on ritalin. Our doctor and teacher agree that it should help him in school, his
grades are good but he has to try real hard. He can not stay still or stay focused on what is going on. After reading all
the negative things about it. I still wonder if it was the right thing to do?
Answer: Ritalin is used in ADD ( attention deficit disorder) as well as treating the "hyperactive kid'. In the right population it can be very effective. Paradoxically, it tends to calm overactive children who have difficulty concentrating rather than the normal effect seen in adults of increasing agitation. There are many support groups concerning ritalin and I would discuss your concerns with other parents. Like many things they can give the best information. There are many people who think this is an over diagnosed problem and that we are harming a generation of children. It clearly is extremely effective in properly selected children....These comments are made for the purpose of discussion and should NOT be used as recommendations for or against
therapies or other treatments. An individual patient is always advised to consult their own physician.As far as the adverse effects of any medication (and so-called "natural remedies" as well) there are side effects that occur in a small percentage of cases. The smart thing to do is to watch for the side-effects and if they're problematic then one should discontinue taking the medication. It's that simple. If it works, use it, if it becomes a problem, stop taking it. As far as the possibility of "psychotic thought processes" go, simply talking to the person will reveal if such a thing is going on, and if so then the medication should be discontinued. OTOH, it would be smart to pick up a copy of
the Physician's Desk Reference and look up some common medications and see what sort of side effects are possible in
other drugs. Just looking at a list of side effects of one medication might be scary without some sort of general perspective on how other medications might also be problematic. It seems that Drug Infonet actually contradicts the author's claim that Ritalin is dangerous and is over prescribed in the US.> "The use of Ritalin on children has
> no purpose other than to slow them
> down, shut them up, and make it
> more difficult for them to move
> around," described Dennis H. Clarke,
> Chairman, Executive Advisory Board,
> Citizens Commission On Human
> Rights International.Nonsense! My kids on Ritalin are just as fast with as well as without, the only real difference is that they can concentrate a heck of a lot better.
> He believes that
> Ritalin is an easy way out for parents
> and teachers, rather than dealing
> directly with behavior problems in
> children. Clarke also points to the "Diagnostic
> and Statistical Manual of Mental
> Disorders, Third Revised Edition,"
> published by the American
> Psychiatric Association, as supporting
> his claims of the dangers of Ritalin in
> children. All the critical information
> about Ritalin has been removed in
> the more recent edition, which he
> says supports his claim that the
> industry is engaged in a cover up.
> Proponents of the use of the drug
> claim the change was simply made in
> error.Curiously, the DSM is not a pharmacological manual so warnings of this drug would be out of place there. I checked the DSM-III and it makes no reference to the supposed dangers of Ritalin as Clarke claims. He's lying. If there are these dangers as he claims you could easily find it in the Physician's Desk Reference in any public library, not in the DSM.
> Clarke claims that children who take
> Ritalin in elementary school are often
> switched to Prozac and other drugs
> as they grow older.Why? Prozac is an antidepressant. ADHD is a problem of over-stimulation. ADHD and depression are two very different conditions one would not necessarily lead to the other, so it would be absurd to go from on to the other.
> The effects of
> Ritalin can cause problems long after
> the prescription is stopped, he added.No it doesn't. It's not the least physically addictive. I know this for a fact for I often forget to take my Ritalin tablet and I'm only reminded when I attempt to concentrate on some task and I wonder why my mind bounces around like a Ping-Pong ball, only then do I realize that I forgot to take it. I have also gone the better part of a week without taking it and have felt no effects whatsoever, I don't crave the drug in the least. One problem I do have with it is that, due to my ADHD I keep forgetting to take it when I must concentrate on a project. In this sense coffee is far more problematic as caffeine is definitely physically addictive. Clark should rather write such articles about the insidious dangers of caffeine rather that a mild non-additctive stimulant like Ritalin.
> "When they go through puberty, this
> becomes true speed," explained
> Clarke. "They get these flashbacks
> and their thinking goes out of
> control. They're now looking for
> downers. They want the
> anti-depressants. They want the
> tranquilizer."If Ritalin takers feel this way when going into puberty it's not because of the medication. This is utter rot. Flashbacks and "uncontrolled thinking" are not among the side effects of Ritalin. There are no withdrawal symptoms when one stops taking it as it's not addictive to begin with. Check the PDR to confirm this.
> Clarke is not alone. Dr. Ann Blake
> Tracy, director of the International
> Coalition for Drug Awareness is
> equally concerned.References? Where do we find this information? How do we know that this Dr. Blake Tracey is a one woman organization that just adopted an official-sounding name? Propagandists do this frequently to make themselves sound official, look important and to give the illusion of broad public support.
> "They are switching lots of these kids
> from Ritalin to Prozac -- the frying
> pan into the fire routine," she told
> WorldNetDaily. "Kip Kinkel in the
> Oregon shooting last summer was a
> perfect example of the effects. The
> chances the boy in Arkansas was on it
> are great."If he was legitimately on Prozac he had problems other than ADHD. Besides, she first said that Kinkel "was the perfect example" of switching from one drug to another, yet she then wrote that "the chances he was on it were great". Whhaaa? She contradicted herself within two sentences.
> She also pointed out that adults who
> use such drugs also commit violent
> crimes at a higher rate.Those with ADHD are significantly fill jails and prisons even without taking Ritalin. The fact is that if ADHD can be controlled the individual's energies can be put to productive use rather than destructive ones. The statistics show that many with ADHD become successful businessmen and intellectuals with a great number also becoming criminals, with relatively few that fall in the middle range. Yes and those who take Tylenol and/or aspirin also have headaches at a much higher rate, too. So obviously the cure to headaches is to stop taking those nasty over-the-counter medications, like Tylenol, that have so many terrible side-effects that are all found listed in abundance in the Physician's Desk Reference.
> Dr. Tracy is
> from Utah where the use of Ritalin
> and Prozac are reported to be at a
> rate three times greater than the rest
> of the country per capita. She said
> Utah's rate of murders and suicides
> has also increased by a similar
> amount.
>
> Dr. Tracy confirmed news
> reports that Harris reportedly was
> taking the drug Luvox, a drug in the
> same classification as Prozac. She said
> many people who take that drug are
> confronted with compulsive sexual
> behavior, in addition to exhibiting
> violent behavior.What do the negative effects of Luvox, an anti-depressant, have to do with Ritalin, a stimulant?
> The stories of
> violent children leave many shaking
> their heads in disbelief and shock.
> Texas law would not even permit the
> arrest of two boys who allegedly
> abducted, beat, and sexually abused a
> 3-year-old girl because they are too
> young -- seven and eight years old.
> An 11-year-old was arrested in the
> incident, but children under 10 may
> not be detained.Where did it say that these kids were on Ritalin or on any other medication?
> There have been numerous incidents
> in which young children have
> brought various weapons to school.
> Young children have recently held
> students at bay with guns at schools
> in Utah and Idaho. Some have used
> them, and one incident in Arkansas
> brought international attention when
> four school children and one teacher
> were shot dead at a middle school.
> Even peaceful students who were
> saying prayers outside their school
> fell victim to a classmate who gunned
> them down.Which medications were they on?
> The high number of incidents
> involving violent children, as well as
> an increase in children who commit
> suicide, can be attributed to an
> ever-increasing number of children
> who are being given drugs to control
> their behavior, according to Clarke."...can be attributed to.."?? This means that he has no evidence whatsoever that those children who displayed very violent behavior were on any medication. He's using these examples to shock and show guilt by association, even though they had nothing to do with being medicated.
> He agreed that the evidence for his
> claim is hard to come by. Medical
> information about the children in
> these incidents is typically
> confidential and never made public.
> He said he comes by his information
> through comments and remarks
> made to the press and in court, even
> though the actual medical records are
> not available to him.So he explains the lack of evidence to support his claim is due to "cover-ups” which is often a convenient refuge for
those who have nothing whatsoever to support their claims.> "We do know, for example, that the
> 13-year-old in Jonesboro was being
> treated. Apparently they were saying
> he had been sexually abused as a
> child. They were saying he was now
> a sexual abuser. He had a
> hyperactivity type label put on him
> as well -- or 'attention deficit
> disorder.' So we had several different
> things working with him. There is no
> chance under the sun, moon, or stars
> that this kid was not on drugs,"
> described Clarke.Clarke assumes an awful lot when he has no evidence. And claiming that: "There is no chance under the sun, moon, or stars that this kid was not on drugs" is an enormous assumption that he used to support his case when he has no evidence for it.
> Clarke went beyond his claims of
> psychotic side effects to the drug. He
> also claims that pharmaceutical
> companies go to great lengths and
> expense to cover up the problems
> that take place. When an incident of
> violence occurs, the pharmaceutical
> "crash teams" go to work to keep
> things quiet, according to Clarke.
>
> Teams of psychiatrists are sent to the
> places where incidents take place and
> quickly work to see that medical
> records are kept sealed, doctors are
> convinced to remain silent, and
> victims are given monetary payments
> to prevent them from ever going to
> court.Patient confidentiality is required by law and doctors don't need "teams of psychiatrists" to tell them that. If they needed to be reminded those drug companies supposedly involved in a cover up they would have sent one lawyer instead!
> "It's all being covered up, and it's
> deliberate. There are billions and
> billions of dollars at stake here,"
> explained Clarke. He compared the
> cover up to the tobacco companies
> and the deceptions which are now
> apparently coming to light.It's actually Clarke who is covering up the real truth that Ritalin is a very mild sedative that, used in carefully selected cases, is capable of changing the lives of children as well as adults for the better. I am living proof of that and can debate this issue as an adult, with adult awareness and logic, something no child would be able to do. I have reached the age of 48 and am on Ritalin. I also have had 4 kids on Ritalin at one time or another and have seen the positive changes in their lives without them having become violent or behavior problems.
> Pharmaceutical companies respond
> to claims by Clarke and others by
> saying there is no credible proof to
> substantiate the claims. Credible
> proof would require a double blind
> controlled study, which the scientific
> community could also duplicate, and
> that type of study would be illegal,
> according to Clarke.
>
> "You can't run an experiment to see if
> somebody is going to take an AK-47
> and shoot up everyone he knows.
> You can't run an experiment to find
> out if a child is going to kill himself,"
> explained Clarke.That's not entirely true. We have lots of kids and now adults that are taking it with no anti-social behavior associated with it it's becomes pretty clear that Ritalin and other psychogenic drugs are not the cause of violent acts. Neither Ritalin nor any other psychotropic drug will correct all behavior problems, good parenting is essential. No medication is a substitute for good parenting, but these medications, wisely used, can make good parenting either possible or much easier.
> A thorough review of medical
> literature was also performed by
> Mary Eberstadt of the Heritage
> Foundation's Policy Review
> magazine, found in the April edition.
> She points out that the drug has
> doubled in use since 1990 and has
> become popular for abuse by teens
> who have ready access to it.This article has now mixed issues of substance abuse. To claim that a drug should not be available to those who legitimately need it because others abuse is downright inane. Apply this standard to any other drug that is abused and see the results. Antibiotics have been severely abused and over-prescribed, so with that logic should we refuse them to everyone just to avoid abuse by some?
> "Ritalin works on children just like
> cocaine and other stimulants work on
> adultsThat's highly oversimplified to the point of being inaccurate. What typically happens is that one gets the drug on a trial basis and if it works well, the individual starts a program. And if it doesn't work at all, and there are many like this, or the disadvantages are greater than the advantages then one stops taking it.
> -- sharpening the short-term>
> attention span when the drug kicks
> in and producing 'valleys' when the
> effect wears off," Eberstadt points
> out.I've never experienced this personally nor have any of my kids. In fact I'm personally not even aware when Ritalin has worn off, as it seems to happen very slowly and without one noticing it. For those who are ADHD Ritalin is not an "upper" as is suggested here.
> Teachers, school administrators, and
> even doctors hold to the belief that if
> a child responds well to Ritalin, then
> it is safe to conclude that the child
> suffers from ADD. A study by the
> National Institute of Mental Health
> disputes that assumption.Reasonable. But this has nothing to do with the issue of whether Ritalin causes violent behavior.
> That study
> shows that all children and adults
> who are given Ritalin will display
> improved performance and attention
> span, regardless of whether they are
> diagnosed with ADD or not.Not true. My daughter Avigail was given a trial period on Ritalin and it had no effect on her whatsoever. The reason was, first she is not ADHD. Secondly, the dose she got was too low for it to affect a normal person. The fact is that the dosage required for it to have a positive effect on those who are ADHD is extremely low, far lower that a normal individual would need to even notice it's effects. So one of the facts that this article is keeping from you is that for
Ritalin to be effective for a child requires a dose so low that the average person would probably not feel any effects from it.> Utah is reported to have the highest
> per capita use of Ritalin in the nation.
> A call to a local elementary school
> found a teacher who believes
> strongly in the use of the drug to
> control otherwise difficult children.
> She did not want her name
> published, but confirmed that she
> routinely makes recommendations
> for children in her classes to be given
> the drug. All the children she has
> recommended have ended up with
> the prescription, and their parents
> have expressed gratitude. She said 11
> of the 29 children in her first-grade
> class are now taking the drug in
> school each day.Notice that the drug worked for these kids despite the claim that it causes violent behavior. This contradicts the basic claims of the author.
The above article mentioned Utah having the highest per capita use of Ritalin in the US. Is that supposed to be shocking? I don't think it's at all shocking, in fact it makes sense. ADHD is a condition that is a survival mechanism for those out in the wilds, such as those who are hunters, soldiers & pioneers. IOW, those in a position who have to be highly aware of everything going on around them. Hunters & soldiers with ADHD are at a tremendous advantage as they are far more aware of what's going on around them and will react quickly and impulsively and automatically to a threat. Hunters & soldiers with ADHD will survive far better than those without this "disorder". ADHD is not a disorder but rather a highly adaptive feature in one's makeup in such circumstances. So it makes sense that there are so
many with ADHD in Utah because that's the kind of people, pioneers that would have attracted to such conditions and survived 100 years ago in the wilderness of Utah & Nevada. The forebears of those kids would have had a higher proportion of ADHD to survive. Those who were a ttracted to difficult conditions that the early settlers would have put ADHD to good use in surviving in that hostile area in the early days. So the decedents of the early settlers who survived by hunting, trapping & Indian fighting and have passed this trait genetically on to their kids & grand kids. Yet the kids and grand kids that are naturally impulsive, perhaps due to this factor, are now expected to sit quietly in classrooms and be calm, thoughtful & quiet. Ritalin will help them cope with a more conventional environment such as a classroom where thinking is demanded of them rather than impulsively striking out at perceived danger. And this guy wants to take Ritalin away from these kids, the very medication that will allow them to control their impulses? Crazy!> Clarke predicts the future will see an
> even greater number of violent
> children. Unless the correlation of the
> use of Ritalin with violent acts is
> openly established, Clarke says the
> general public, health officials, and
> parents will fail to recognize the true
> nature and the extent of a pandemic
> he says is already sweeping the
> nation.Impossible to do as there are so many kids on this that are not violent. He can predict anything he wants but predictions based on faith in a position is useless.
> "Warning: sufficient data on the
> safety and efficacy (effectiveness) of
> long term use of Ritalin in children
> are not yet available," warns CIBA
> Pharmaceutical Company in a
> product information release. The
> warning is intended to serve as a
> protection from liability. The drug
> has been on the market for 50 years.And here's the reason they have this because it's "intended to serve as a protection from liability". CIBA is covering their posterior, and that's all and pharmaceutical companies do this all the time and on the most innocuous of medications as well. Despite the fact that the author mentioned the real reason for the warning he uses this as an
argument against taking Ritalin. This is propaganda intended to sway the non critical reader.> "In other words, if you have a child
> on Ritalin, and leave the child on for
> a 'long term,' which is not defined
> but can be assumed to mean over
> three weeks, you are on your own as
> far as CIBA Pharmaceutical Company
> is concerned. They have warned
> you," described Clarke.
>
> "Ritalin only exists to slow down the
> fast kids and give us quieter and less
> active children. We now have at least
> 14 quieter less active children there in
> Colorado. This is the product that
> we're going to be seeing over and
> over again. These children are being
> devastated by the drugs," he warned.This is baloney. Kids on Ritalin are not less active. They basically have the same need for activity with or without it. The difference is that with Ritalin they have much more of a choice of when to express it, and their need for activity need not conflict with how they direct their attention. The school that our son, Gavriel, goes to is one designed for ADHD kids in mind. Nearly all of his class is on it and their school day is designed with recesses nearly every hour so
they can run around and burn off energy. Now that I'm on Ritalin I still have the urge for intense physical activity and I make sure I get it during the day. Now that I take Ritalin I'm just not jumping up and down when I must focus my concentration on my work.> Herbert S. Okun, a member of the
> International Drug Control Board for
> the United Nations held a news
> conference recently to issue a
> warning. He said his board is very
> concerned that methylphenidate, or
> Ritalin, is greatly over-prescribed in
> the U.S. He said there are 330 million
> daily doses of Ritalin taken each day
> in the U.S., compared with just 65
> million for the rest of the world.Some cultures simply have a higher incidence of ADHD. Japan, for example, is a culture where ADHD is very rare so obviously they wouldn't need Ritalin like in the US. Just because the US takes so much of it is not an indication that it is over-prescribed. It may mean that there is a much greater need for it.
> Ritalin is prescribed for children
> diagnosed with ADD. The condition
> has never been fully proven to even
> exist, and the criteria for diagnosis
> are so general that virtually anyone
> would qualify for a prescription.Where on earth does he get this notion of not having been "fully proven to exist"? He doesn't support this nor does he define what he means by "fully proven". He's not being above board about his own criteria and his writing here is heavily laden with personal value judgments. His use of the term "virtually anyone would qualify" is misleading and inaccurate.
> David M. Bresnahan, a contributing
> editor for WorldNetDaily.com, is the
> author of "Cover Up: The Art and
> Science of Political Deception," and
> offers a monthly newsletter "Talk
> USA Investigative Reports." He may
> be reached through email and also
> maintains a website.One thing I notice from this article is the author's attempt to regard everyone as the same and that if Ritalin would cause violent behavior in some he implies that it would cause violent behavior in all. Sadly, there are many people in this world who think that everyone are exactly the same inside and what's good for one is good for all, and what's bad for one is bad for all. Yea, I say unto you, truly! WE ARE AS DIFFERENT ON THE INSIDE AS WE ARE ON THE OUTSIDE! There are many who feel so wonderful after switching to a vegitarian diet they are convinced that everyone should become vegetarians. Sadly, they are misinformed as to the nature of our bodies. Fact is, our survival as a species in harsh situations is dependent on people having different needs and reactions to the environment. I have
friends whose family are almost totally lactic acid intolerant and can not eat dairy without massive intestinal upheaval. I, on the other hand, could exist on dairy wonderfully, yet my other neighbor needs meat and suffers without it. I can do without meat, however I need legumes and suffer without them (strange but true!) and would do fine if I would have to stick with dairy & legumes and never see meat again. So in harsh situations some will survive nicely while
others will be wiped out. Variability promotes overall survival for any species. Viva la Difference! So too, when it comes to adverse reactions to any substance, be it "natural" or "chemical" there are a few people who have problems with medications and just using good ol' common sense is essential. If a medication causes a problem it can be seen developing so stop taking it. Than goes with all medications.I think the author above mentioned how the DSM-IV doesn't describe this condition as accurately as he would like. Well, if that's the case then he's not alone. Sharon & I attended a conference on ADHD in J'lem last summer and one of the speakers is a world authority on the condition, Tom Hartman. He's the one who wrote the original entry for ADHD in the DSM-IV and is presently is revising a new entry for it. After a few years of intensive study he has seriously revised his description of this condition and is preparing major revisions in the next version. He said publicly that he and other researchers have learned so much that one should not take the present description in the DSM "too seriously." That's the nature of research, that the descriptions of these illnesses will, as a matter of course, be revised as more information is found.
In the end, I think the author of this has written cheap propaganda laced with lots of lies & half-truths against psychotropic medications. He displayed no knowledge about people with neurological or psychiatric disorders and how such medications affect one, either positively or negatively. Having a degree in social work and having worked with psychiatric patients privately and in conjunction with a psychiatric hospital I've witnessed the good that these medications do and the kind of people who need them. For the author to make a blanket generalization that such medications are just bad bad bad and they cause violent behavior is patently false. The plain fact is that many of these medications prevent violent behavior, either in the form of lashing out at others or, in the case of Prozac, keep those in a depression from sinking so low that suicide is their only perceived option.
For anyone to claim that these medications are over-prescribed and given to people who don't need them might be true but is probably unlikely, if only because medications like Prozac and Luvox are extremely expensive, and if it doesn't work on the individual no one in their right mind would consider continuing to buy them, and no doctor would continue the prescription. Ritalin is relatively cheap compared to Prozac but still, if the medication doesn't work, and it
would be obvious within the first time one attempts to take it. If a child gets Ritalin and the parent doesn't make the effort to determine if it works and continues to give it to their child, then the problem is not that of the medication but negligence on the part of the parent. In administering medications to children good parenting is essential. If the kid is lacking a good parent then their problems are much more basic and no medication will solve their problems. If the problem in the US is that there are so many negligent parents then the author was wasting his time writing this, he should have devoted himself to writing one that went to the core of the problem rather than the periphery.Personally, my gut feeling about this is that the author wanted to write a scary article that would give him a lot of attention by the uncritical and naive.
Dale
