Ritalin Usages Increases in Small Children
In the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) is an article that
reports on the increased usage of psychotropic medications (Ritalin, etc.) on
preschool children. On average the study quoted in JAMA shows a three fold
increase in the usage of these medications on children from the ages of 2 - 4
years old.
Probably the most alarming part of these statistics is that these medications
were not tested for children this young. As the study concluded, "Conclusions
in all 3 data sources, psychotropic medications prescribed for preschoolers
increased dramatically between 1991 and 1995. The predominance of medications
with off-label (unlabeled) indications calls for prospective community-based,
multidimensional outcome studies." In case the wording appeared vague,
the term "off label" means that these medications are being used in a
way that they were not intended for and not tested for.
A related story comes from the Associated Press speaking about how the long term
use of Ritalin caused the death of a 14 year old Michigan boy. An Oakland County
medical examiner said that the young boy, who collapsed at his home on March
21st, died of a heart attack, the likely cause of which was 10 years of taking
Ritalin. This means the child was started on the medication at the age of
4.
This disturbing trend has not gone unnoticed as CNN reported that, "Hillary
Rodham Clinton announced a new federal program that cautions parents about
giving preschool children Ritalin and other psychiatric drugs meant to treat
attention-deficit disorders." Mrs. Clinton said that from 1991
to 1995, use of Ritalin among U.S. preschoolers increased 150 percent and
antidepressants like Prozac went up more than 200 percent. She commented, "Some
of these young people have problems that are symptoms of nothing more than
childhood or adolescence."
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