We took my son out of school three years ago when they tried to put him on drugs. We now Home school him. As I sat in this meeting with the school officials before he left they all suggested medication to help him listen better. When I asked who held a medical PHD nobody responed.

There are new drug dealers in town The Public School systems!! You can’t have God, you can not think for yourself, and you can not have illegal drugs. Instead buy from them and let health care pay for it.

JL

There may be some children who have an imbalance. But the vast majority of children that are given narcotic drugs for hyperactivity suffer from bad diets, and very bad parenting – i.e. no discipline. People should stop trying to be “friends” with their children and be their mother and father and teach them to respect them and others. Teachers also should stop with the “friend” concept. Schools should go back to dress codes or uniforms and removing the children who mis-behave and not “dumbing down” everything for those that don’t behave.

When school teachers or officials are telling parents to put their children on drugs – they should be prosecuted for practicing medicine without a license.

When my daughter, then 13 yo, was living in WA with her father, she was taking 900 mg of Lithium, 600mg of Wellbutrin XR and Seroquel for supposed “mental issues”. When she came to visit with me a few summers ago, she literally was stoned out of her goard. She had no clue what was going on in the world.

I took her to a local shrink and he was appalled at the meds she was on. His exact quote was ” She is on enough anti -Psychotic meds to tranquilize a large horse.” She is now in my custody, 15 yo, bright and intelligent young lady. Is off all that medication. The shrink said that a lot of parents turn to pills to avoid raising they’re children, which i feel my ex did to my daughter. And to conclude, the Dr stated that parents are too afraid to bust their kids butts when they get out of line. If they did this more, and said NO to them, instead of coddling the kids, then there would not be such an over usage of unnecessary drug use.

Thanks, Michelle

“In both countries, the issue isn’t simply how many children are getting these drugs, said Dr. David Fassler, a University of Vermont psychiatry professor. “The more important question is whether or not the right kids are getting the most appropriate and effective treatment possible,” he said. Fassler wasn’t involved in the study.”

Bingo.

My daughter (now 25) has schizoaffective disorder. Getting her appropriate and effective help is impossible and has been since her illness started. She can get meds (and she needs the meds) easily enough. But other than med management, other treatment options or support for her illness are not available. Most therapists aren’t comfortable or experienced with working with severly mentally ill. They are only capable or have experience working with the worried well. Getting initial appointments may take months.

Parents are left scrambling in circles to get any help they can and often meds are the easiest treatment. I’m not discounting that meds are often needed but they should be part of the treatment not the only treatment.

A good belt-lashing is far more effective and leaves less long-term damage than Ritalin.

It’s no joke that American kids are medicated to the point of stupid. We overmedicate for EVERYTHING here. Antibiotics are given for no reason, antidepressants are handed out like candy, and kids are accused of being ADHD if they show the slightest tendency towards bored fidgeting in class. It’s all being used as an excuse, too.

“I can’t do that – my ADHD gets in the way”

“I can’t do that – I’m on antidepressants”

Stop medicating our children for everything! We’re creating a nation of children who cannot function without their “happy pills,” and that has got to STOP!

As the mother of four adopted children, I am appalled at the amount of psychotropic medications forced into children in the care of the state. Three of our four children were being medicated with FOUR psychotropic medications when we adopted them. Our youngest son was awake a mere FIVE hours a day, he was so overmedicated. Our oldest son already had bad liver tests… at EIGHT! And I had to fight like mad to get those amounts reduced! — Now in our home, they are all medication free and functioning in normal classrooms.

I am a school nurse, a substitute teacher, and a mother, who (under pressure from teachers) allowed my son to take Ritalin for several years for ADD. My professional and personal experience tells me that: 1) Children are easily distracted because they were not meant to sit at a desk for 8 hours a day (this comes from my son’s middle school principal), and 2) because they are not taught the simple rudiments of self-discipline at an early age. They come to school and they can’t even sit in a chair for 10 minutes at a time. They aren’t being taught that talking is a taking-turns process. They aren’t being taught to concentrate on a task. They watch too much TV, and so lose the ability to concentrate on anything outside the 5-7 minute intervals usual between commercials. They only respond to hype. 3) When lack of self-discipline progresses unchecked, it leads to “conduct disorders”, which leads to increase in out-of-control behavior, which leads to attrition and failure. What is needed in this country is not more drugs, but more discipline (emphasis on self-discipline, not punishment). In fact, if you have ever tried to do anything that requires group effort, you will agree that adults could use a dose or two of that as well. I would also suggest we take down all the stuff off of the walls in the classrooms (they are a distraction) and reduce the paperwork they do. Go back to individual chalkboards or dry erase boards for practice stuff. The kids love to use them and it saves paper.

The entire country is overmedicated! And you wonder why we have the health problems we do? The USA is the king of “pill popping”!! Hyperactivity in children is associated to lifestyle choices. Why would you choose to medicate?? It’s time to concider long term consequences rather than the “quick fix”of meds. Look at the advertising. We have a “pill” for everything! Chemicals are not natural. The medical industry needs to start thinking about what is “right” rather than what makes the biggest profit!! American kids are not the only segment of the country that is overmedicated, the ENTIRE country is hooked on medication!! Wake up!

My son was given an assortment of phrarmaceuticals from the age of 6 until 12 years old for what was thought for these years was ADD. Adderall, concerta, risperdal, zoloft, straterra. You name it, he was on it. The drugs helped during the waking time but just made him worse through the years….Finally when I reached a physician that would really listen to my sons problems right down to his sleeping patterns, his real problem was diagnosed. All medications were removed and my son went for a sleep study. It was discovered that he had sleep apnea. The apneas were occuring 17 times an hour. He was also tested for narcolepsy at that time and tested positive. The Sleep specialist physician recommened my son have his tonsils and adenoids removed and then have a repeat sleep study. After the recovery from the surgery, my son had the repeat study, just for the narcolepy (to see if this was a true condition or if it was induced from all the years of having severe sleep apnea and drugs (amphedimines) to keep him awake during the day. He showed progress in having less episodes toward narcolespy.

My child is like a new person. It is truely a miracle. No more drugs. He still is a 12 year old athletic, strong willed boy but he is no longer suffering on a daily basis from serve sleep deprivation that was over medicated with drugs. I do believe that American kids are overmedicated.

Yes, Way too many children are given drugs. A drug is a drug is a drug. Dopeing up our childern so we can “contol” them better will likely cause far more problems in the future than we can even imagine now. I would like to see a study that shows what precent of these children end up abusing street or precription drugs in the future.

In the Matt Lauer interview with Tom Cruise, Tom Cruise tried to raise this awarness of the USA over drugging kids with Anit-Psychotic drugs. He was demonized for speaking out about it. Hopefully America wakes up to this problem before we destroy the lives of a generation of kids. Shooting a well known high profile messenger is not helpful to solving the problem.

Sad that so many doctors use these drugs as a first line of treatment, especially since know one really knows how they work. There’s no question that some people benefit, but there’s also no question that therapists are over perscribing children (and adults) with mind-altering drugs and not only without an idea exactly how they work, but unaware of any long term affects. Its a shame.

I observe from my patient base that children are being prescribed these anti-psychotics without looking at their diets, exercise or sleep habits. All of these can lead to nutritional deficiencies that will exhibit as mood changes or hyperactivity.

My austistic patients usually have food allergies, digestive problems and or detoxification pathway problems in the liver that the drugs will only make worse. The hyperactive kids also have food sensitivities that exacerbate the problem.

Performing lab tests for amino acids which make up the body’s neurotransmitters is the way to go rather than the anti-psychotic drugs that create an side effects such as depleting the neurotransmitters in the long run causing them to go off the deep end.

I have noticed in the new media that almost each and every incident of school or university shootings that the students were on these anti-psychotic drugs. The news media is always stating that these school shooters had stopped taking their medications and that was the problem. I contest that the problem really started when these shooters STARTED taking these anti-psychotics as they will over time deplete the normal body reserves of an amino acid called tryptophan that converts to serotonin which calms one. Initially they cause the body to artifically increase the conversion of tryptophan to serotonin which eventually depletes the tryptophan reserves. At that point the person goes from extreme levels of the feel good neurotransmitter serotonin to an empty tank……..and disaster.

This may even happen faster if the person has flawed genes in the liver pathways that break down drugs as soon as they enter the body. If the detox gene is flawed the drugs have an even greater affect on the body and they may experience suscidial or homocidal feelings much quicker. Not long after we read about them on the news as having gone into a mall or a school and committed the most horrific murders.

I would stick with improving exercise, sleep patterns, diets, discovering what they are allergic to, lab tests to determine their amino acids and neurotransmitters and check to see if they have a history of anti-psychotics, because then one must restore the damage done by these drugs even faster before it is too late to prevent another school, mall or university shooting.

Warm Regards,

Rene’ M. Reed, DC, NMD
Chiropractic Orthopedist
Nauturopathic Medical Doctor

Absolutely, I am shocked at how many parents bring plastic bags full of drugs that their children have to take to go to sleep, get up, sit still in school, and/or because some idiot MD has declared them with the latest psychiatric label! I am an attorney and ten years ago when I volunteered to be on a foster care review board I was outraged to find out how many drugs were being fed to foster care children (whose records were closed to the public and those privileged to view them were unable to complain to anyone except the Judge and had to do so gingerly or be reprimanded for disrespecting the Judge). I have been able to see first hand in many cases that feeding children drugs of what ever kind harms them because they grow up to continue to rely on drugs that addict them and make them rely on them daily, hourly and who pays for them? Drugs harms our education system because they have an excuse for why a child cannot learn and all they have to do is put them in a special education class which ruins there possibility for a normal educational and social life. I am not just talking about drugs for victimized children from poor families. Teachers and nurses are buying the advice of legal drug pushers to give their straight A children drugs. One of my daughters dearest friends who is a wonderful young woman who has had the biggest smile in her violin group lesson class who had no indication of any psychiatric problem in any group lesson or week long workshop was just recently diagnosed with early onset of bipolar disorder and came over with a bag of drugs to take before bedtime and when she rose. At a recent concert she had to sit down because her mother said she forgot to take her sleeping pill at a sleep over and she did not sleep at all the night before. The same wonderful 12 year old spent the night at my house two nights ago and did not take them again when I reminded her to take them and again had problems sleeping. We need to stop the drug companies from pushing.$$$$

The reason for the over medication is simple. Every time a school gets a spirited child they want to classify them as “Hyperactive”. I am the father of a six year old boy and yes small boys are very active but we deal with it. The schools dont want to deal with it so their answer is to drug them. I am also amazed at how many teachers in the state of Illinois are specialized in Special Education. The schools and the teachers get more money for these programs. Suddenly everbody needs SpecialEd.

US kids are not over medicated….the increase is due to the increasing knowledge that we have of autism and other learning disorders. If a child has autism it should be considered abuse if they are not medicated properly.

My child has adhd. Adhd is real and has recently been determined that it is physiological and not psychological. He is fully medicated and it really helps him to concentrate. The medication is a blessing. It is very easy for people to judge other people. People who have not had to deal with it hands on are quicker to judge others. The medicine helps him focus and control himself. He is able to put together adult puzzles and color beautiful pictures. He is able to hold still with his medicine. With out his medicine he is unable to hold still for more than 5 seconds. He is unable to focus on one thing. He is unable to control the volume of his voice and becomes very destructive. We are so thankful that he is able to be treated. They may be over medicating other children however some children are in dire need of these medications. There is nothing more infuriating than some person who does not have a special needs child telling me not to medicate my son. Please walk a mile in my shoes and my son’s then judge us

ITS THE TEACHERS HERE THAT TELL THE PARENTS THEY NEED TO PUT THEIR KIDS ON MEDICATION BECAUSE THEIR ENERGETIC OR THEY CANT CONCERNTRATE ON THEIR WORK,THEY EXPECT ALL KIDS TO BE THE SAME .

I feel that kids are over medicated in this country. When my Son was diaganosed with High – Functioning Autism in 1995, (he was Five years old), the Doctor immediately wanted to put him on Risperdal after only being with him for 20 minutes. There was never an aggression or irritabilty problems with him. When we went back to this same Doctor a couple months later, she again insisted that he be put on Risperdal. She was only with him for 10 minutes this time! I was very insulted that this Doctor push medications on my Son. At that time, Resperdal wasn’t even approved for Children under the age of 18. My Son today is doing great. Has no aggression problems and is thriving in school, WITHOUT medication!

In the USA medications are often prescribed to avoid malpractice suits.

In the UK although that isn’t the case, still they are subjected to the same media hysteria and may be prodded by the parents who believe all of this.

Do you ever wonder how can it be that all these kids suffer from autism but didn’t decades ago, what happened to “hypoglycemia” that was such a popular diagnosis 15 yrs. ago, what about “chronic fatigue syndrome” where did that go?

We often overdiagnose popular , trendy diseases and autism will be less talked about or diagnosed 10-20 yrs. from now.

Americans want to know what anti-psychotic drugs in America are being subscribed. It would seem that would be the most important info parents would want to know. It could be a long list, but you could name the top 10 and tell parents how they could find out if the drug their children take should be of concern.

Kids are over-medicated because they are under-paddled. Parents use these drugs because the kids can’t be controlled. They don’t receive discipline at home and run wild. Teachers can’t handle them, because its too late by the time they get to school age.

Americans, as a whole, are over-medicated. I am worried about any medicating for behavioral reasons unless there is a proven medical reason for it. I can see medicating bipolar disorder, for instance, but hyperactivity?! It’s ridiculous. How many of these kids will become addicts? What are the side effects of withdrawal? When I read about mom’s using anti-depressants and then drowning their kids, I get very upset. Will these kids do something similar? Will they go on mass murderous rampages at school? It all has such a Clockwork Orange feel about it.

Don’t worry, the drug companies have everything under control. The answer is obvious, sell more drugs to the UK. The disparity between US and UK drugging of the next generation will then disappear. More studies are needed to determine if other countries are under medicating their children. If these studies show that this is so, then just market and sell more drugs to these other countries. At the same time, continue to tell kids that drugs are bad for you (that is the ones that drug companies don’t peddle).

I think alot of autism and some cases of Add, or Adhd may be because of the processed food we eat and chemicals in all our products in general, but I also think there’s many cases of childhood depression and hyperactivity that are due to poor parenting skills, the breakdown of the family in general. In many families the parents act like the children, and childrens psychs are deeply affected by this because the message they hear is be decietful, selfish and dishonest with yourself. survival at any cost Heavy load for a cvhild to carry. It’s very sad. Lori

Hmmmm, maybe the increase of drugs has more to do with the fact that when American school age children are “diagnosed” with a “disability” and immediately given medication from our legal dope dealers; the States, in turn, get additional federal funding for the schools because of the child’s “special needs”. Not to mention, the continued kick backs the Dr.’s receive from the pharmaceutical companies. Follow the money, people, follow the money! It is NOT rocket science…

I’m surprised it is coming as a surprise to anyone that kids and adults in this country are over- medicated. It starts off with the vaccinations kids are given for everything starting from flu to chicken-pox. Nobody can put up with a little discomfort or pain in the body. Pop a pill and be rid of the pain. Absolutely nothing is left to nature. Everything has to be taken care off by some synthetic means. How is the body going to learn to sustain itself, if its being propped up artificially every step of the way? Instead all that happens is the body’s immune system gets confused and goes haywire, because it has no learning mechanism absolutely.
We need to learn from other cultures, how not to be so over-concerned about our bodies, that we end up harming it beyond repair. Not only are we effected but we pass on these messed-up body systems to our children. And the drugs that are flushed out of this substantial population of over-medicated people, end up contaminating the water of other people. How much worser can it get, before people realize and take steps to stop the pharmacutical and the medical industry from destroying them…??

One thing we don’t have in America that they have in Britain is the ultra-violent soccer fan. We also don’t have the kind of extreme binge drinking that goes on among British youth.

Maybe the problem isn’t only American kids being overmedicated. Maybe the kids in the UK their kids are also being undermedicated.

Seriously, we don’t see many football riots in America. But look at the violence of British fans! There must be some reason for the difference.

I have felt this to be a major problem for over 20 years and I attribute it to my son’s addiction problem. He was diagnosed when he was in 1st grade with hyperactivity. He was placed on Ritalin and Haldol. When he had horrible reactions to the Haldol, I told the Doctor I was taking him off the med along with the Ritalin. From that day on we could not get a psychiatrist to see him.. I was told they would not continue seeing my son without the meds. It was also difficult for his teachers and they were not much help either until we placed him in a private school that dealt with children with hyperactivity.

I felt his addiction to drugs during his teens and twenty’s was a direct result from these meds. He is now 38 and finally doing well but it took years of hard work.

PARENTS!!!! TAKE YOUR KIDS OFF ALL MEDS PRESCRIBED FOR HYPERACTIVITY. DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM…. DON’T MASK IT!!!!!

My daughter has bipolar disorder. How do we know it’s not the latest fad label? Because I have it, too. As does her father’s mother. She takes the atypical antipsychotic Abilify (same class as Risperdal) because it has less weight gain than risperdal and functions as a mood stabilizer. She takes Strattera for the accompanying ADHD symptoms–because it’s less likely to make her manic than ritalin. She takes topomax because it’s necessary to elevate her mood out of depression (not uncommon to need an add in like that along with a mood stabilizer).

Bipolar is genetic. An adult with bipolar disorder had all those genes from conception on up. It’s not surprising that early-onset kids with it need meds just as we adults do. Frequently, early-onset bipolar disorder is misdiagnosed as ADHD–they look a lot alike, it’s hard for even a good pediatric psychiatrist to tell the difference. Until recently, psychiatrists believed (wrongly) that kids simply couldn’t get bipolar disorder. There has been much more research and the disease is much better understood now.

The number of adults diagnosed with bipolar is about 2%. A recent study of 1,000 random Americans applied the diagnostic criteria for bipolar to all of them and 4% met the criteria.

ADHD, btw, also is turning out to have a substantial genetic component.

Many of these increases in how many kids are on meds isn’t because meds are overprescribed. It’s because the kids have been under-diagnosed. Frequently, when a divorced parent takes their kid off all meds and reports that their kid is “doing fine”, what they mean is the parent is doing fine; whether the kid is miserable or not learning as well as he could is immaterial to them, just as long as he’s “off all the drugs.” Particularly since it gives them one up on being “a better parent” than the ex.

As for people who think whacking a kid can cure genetic disorders, the mind boggles.

Although I am not a parent and have not yet married, I do believe that our Nation is lacking much discipline within the household. There is just way too much coddling, and way too many parents are afraid of their children despising them as being the tough parents. It seems that parents in the new generations are all trying to be the coolest parents on the block.
My sister’s family is a good example of parenting I believe. My 12 y/o niece and 14 y/o nephew cannot text or email anything that is incriminating enough to hide from their parents. just setting rules and regulations within the household pretty much sets a standard for how they are to behave outside the house also. But it does also help that that household is one of a Christian background with strong ties towards God and the family.

It is so easy to comment on something that many do not know a lot about. ADHD is a neurological disorder and is inherited from parents. I suppose it could be the same allergy the parent and child has, however it is very likely that this is not the case. ADHD medication is not effective in treating people who do not have ADHD unless they want to feel like they are on speed – it actually has an opposite effect. So if a teacher recommends medication to a student so they can focus and suggest ADHD medication and they do not have it, how effective is this to have 20 students in a classroom. Would you want to be in a closed room with 20 – 30 children who have just had a huge amount of caffeine? I wouldn’t unless they all had ADHD. There are more cases of ADHD and more medication prescribed to adults and children. ADHD is still under diagnosed. The key is diagnosis it correctly by someone who has the knowledge on ADHD – not just in the room with someone for 20 minutes and say, yeah you have ADHD – here try a stimulant. This is very wrong. There are through tests and interviews that should be done to evaluate someone. Then, as for medication, so many people say it made my child a zombie. This can happen if the incorrect medication is prescribed or the dosage is incorrect or even evaluated incorrectly – but mostly too much of a stimultent can have this effect. It takes a Dr. who knows the medication and how it works to make sure the proper medication and amount is prescribed. It is not new news that stimulants – if not prescribed correctly can cause heart issues. This is why people who are taking medications should be monitored. My daughter was diagnosed with ADHD/Anxiety a few years ago. Prior to diagnosis we had taken her to the Dr. many times as we as parents feared she had heart issues as she complained of chest pain occasionally. We found nothing. After her ADHD diagnosis and proper medications she has not had any chest pains since. She is healthier and happier. Almost flunking out of school and loosing her dreams of going to college, feeling as she is dumb and still struggles some to now applied for an honors English class – and again dreams of attending college. The key is finding an accurate diagnosis, a compassionate doctor who listens to his patients and knows how the ADHD medication works and what to look for (as this is the same for other medications)and becoming a knowledgeable parent on ADHD, and finding a counselor who is also has the correct ADHD knowledge to work with the children. Also note that unmediated ADHD teen’s accident rate good waaaay up and much more likely to take drugs and drink to self medicate. How safe is it to have a teenager on the road, not properly medicated instead self medicating with alcohol or other drugs and an accident occurs and this person run into to someone you know and love – and their life is gone or your child was the one who caused the accident and the pain they will endure the rest of their lives. And of course since it is mostly genetic, many of the parents are also untreated and again from experience it is not fun to live in a house with a teenager and adult with ADHD. It can be very explosive at times if the medication is not taken.

I’ve been saying this for years. You have to let kids be kids. They’re going to be hyper because that’s what they do. It’s unbelievable to me how many kids (and adults) are constantly popping pills for anything under the sun.

I’m 30 and don’t take any pills and I feel fine. I get sick a lot less than my pill popping buddies who think they’re doing themselves a favor by taking medicine all the time. I have a good feeling that in the next 20 or 30 years everybody in America will be diagnosed with some syndrome or disorder. But if people want to waste their money and drug up their kids it’s their choice I suppose. You won’t catch me doing that crap though.

In simply observing the food in grocery carts across the country, and the reading of school lunch menus, it is clear that children’s intake of simple sugars and other high glycemic foods is astonishingly high, and primarily responsible for the epidemic incidence of hyperactivity, and obesity, which is followed quickly by the onset of Diabetes.

These “foods” include such regular items like pizza and fried chicken (white flour), hot dogs and hamburgers (white flour buns), french fries (white potatoes) and soft drinks (16 teaspoons of white sugar-diet soft drinks contain saccharin or aspritame, neither of which are preferrable-nevermind the acids from which wreak havoc on the entire digestive system).

It is ALL ABOUT introducing and maintaining a PROPER LOW GLYCEMIC DIET for everyone, adults and children alike, with the APPROPRIATE level of protein and carbohydrates for the individual’s activity rate (athletes and more active people, naturally require more and less active people, obviously require less). For children this is important in both the school lunch programs, but critically importantly at home, where the real dietetic learning takes place and remains with the children into adulthood.

Let’s immediately and totally remove the comfortable “cloak” of political correctness, call it like it is, and correct this situation before it becomes large enough to bankrupt the entire health care delivery system, afterwhich the population would be left to grapple with the Darwinistic side of nature.

Yes, we use drugs too much. Blame our society and diet. I have a 7 and 8 year old. Last year, I took them off any corn syrup (high fructose) and MSG (monosodium glutamate). They are noticeable calmer, stay more focused on tasks and are doing better in school. Change their diet; DO NOT GIVE THEM DRUGS!

I believe that elementary schools in the US also pressure parents for unwarranted diagnoses of children who do not meet the mainstream standard. Our son, now 11, is a very energetic/active and until recently, not very concerned or attentive to his classwork or homework. He has attended the same elementary school since kindergarten. Every parent-teacher conference, the teachers tried to “diagnose” him as having ADHD and wanting us to test him. Those conferences were followed up with letters from the district. We live in an upper middle class town in Northern CA and many of our children’s friends are medicated and we have witnessed their issues and weighed the consequences. We specifically moved to this town 13 years ago for the schools and continue to believe that our children receive a good education for public elementary school. After enduring these parent-teacher conferences, combined with notes from the school and the overzelousness of the teachers and administrators to have our child “diagnosed” because as one teacher put it – “wouldn’t you want to know everything you could about your child to help him – if he had a broken arm you would treat him?” I did seek the advice of both our pediatrician of 18 years and a psychologist. The psychologist said “do not get a diagnosis.” His reasoning was that with the CA “no child left behind,” a child with a diagnosis such as ADHD or Obsessive/Compulsive or related conditions, can be excluded from a district’s metrics/performance standards. He also said that once there is a medical diagnosis, it will haunt him throughout his education. We have friends who have teenage children who had early diagnosis of ADHD and treated their children with medication. In those cases (4 different children)those children are having extremely difficult problems in high school, have dropped out, have had to seek an out-of-state “lock-down” high school and 2 of them have drug dependency issues (which I have heard is common in children during later years who take drugs to treat ADHD). In grade school, I know their parents were contacted constantly to pick their children up from school because their medications weren’t working. I honestly believe it is a cop-out for the schools and administration – if a child isn’t “normal,” then they don’t have to deal with them.

My husband and I were often at odds over this situation – mainly because we felt his education and learning would be affected. We chose to deal with this a little differently. When our son started 2nd grade, I quit my full-time job where I was earning $200K/year. We channeled our son’s energy into areas that most interested him and we used those as “rewards.” He’s very athletic – loves riding dirt bikes, moto-cross, skateboarding, roller-blading, swimming, baseball. We used them as his incentive – or “medication.” We focused on consistentcy of school work. Putting him in team sports let him see that outside of the classroom, there are rules and behavior standards/consequences). Most of his teachers agreed to help us in this effort – accommodating him in the classroom. They allowed him to stand at a desk in the back of the room (they actually say now that students who stand while they do their schoolwork are more focused). We developed very good communication with the teachers once we finally told them that we were very upset with everyone pressuring us for a diagnosis and that this was not going to happen so they needed to quit badgering us at every meeting. The principal always remained neutral and has been very supportive. We worked through a few very tough years. We did not put our son in therapy, we put ourselves in therapy and learned how to communicate and manage a child who has difficulty focusing in life. We also believe in old-fashioned principles which we see our parent-friends fall down on alot. We are consistent with punishment (restriction and with-holding privileges) related to behavior issues. While we are not at the end of our journey, our son is about to finish the 5th grade with a B average. While he can still be challenging at times, our job is to raise a child to be a productive member of society. I don’t know what the statistics are, but of those children we know who have had a diagnosis and medicated, they struggle in school and socially still. Ours was certainly not a medical/scientific study, but I urge parents, unless there are severe situations where your child would present a physical danger to other children, look at alternatives. Look at being a parent and focusing on that child’s needs before you let someone diagnose and medicate him to be “normal.” We have 2 other children in our home (18 and 7) and having lived through stages of a child’s development, there are times where things can be concerning and even overwhelming, but be patient. In the world we live in, I believe that we are producing the outcome and unless it’s a severe case of autism or a violent child, work through it. Be a parent first and do not give into the pressure of bystanders in your child’s life. You know your child better than anyone and you have the power to heal them in almost anything. We put in hours of work each day. We could have given him a pill that would take seconds out of our day, but it is not in the long-term best interest of our children to medicate them. We chose to bring them into this world and with that choice is a responsibility to nurture them all the way to the outcome of adulthood, not to give into the pressures of people who do not truly know our children. And, we are only starting to see the long-term affects/studies of children who take medication during childhood.

Oh, yeah, babe. Your son couldn’t possibly have become addicted to drugs because he had an untreated mental health problem. Your son couldn’t possibly have had trouble after you took him off all his meds instead of listening to what sounds like multiple doctors because he had an untreated illness and because they were right—-no, his having further problems was “proof” to you that the medication had caused them. If he got worse after you took him off his meds, it couldn’t possibly be because he was still in the onset phase of his illness and was getting worse anyway.

You couldn’t possibly have had to put him in a special school because he had an untreated mental health problem. It couldn’t possibly be the case that the meds actually do treat the problem and would have allowed your child to thrive in a regular classroom setting right along with his peers.

BTW, it’s not at all uncommon for adults with specific mental health problems to go through a more stable phase in middle age.

Am I saying you’re wrong? Actually, no. I’m saying everything you’re presenting as evidence you’re right is more likely to be evidence that you’re wrong. I’m also saying that if multiple licensed, specialist, medical doctors were saying you were wrong, they just might–might, mind you–have been right.

Hello,

I have 4 step-children. Let me tell you about them.

Kristina is 17 and a freshman in high school. Her mother had her started on Thorazine at the age of two because she couldn’t control her. No one else had any problems controlling her. I’ve seen family videos of Mom’s interactions with Kristina at a very young age, 2 – 4, and Mom is constantly telling Kristina she is bad and pushing Kristina away from her. Anyway, Kristina was off and on medications since then. Since 2003 she has been on medications constantly. Currently she is diagonsed with ADHD, Bi-Polar Disorder and Depression. She takes Wellbutrin, Iron (for behavior, not deficiency), Clonidine (for sleep, not high blood pressure) and Seroquel. She also has to take Zantac for her stomach because of all the medication. She is also on Claritin for allergies.

Amber is 14 and in the 7th grade in middle school in special behavioral classes. Been on medications since 2003. She is diagnosed as Personality Disorder with Psychotic Tendencies, ADHD, Bi-Polar Disorder and Depression. She takes Concerta, Lamictal, Seroquel and Clonidine (for sleep, not high blood pressure) and also Claritin for allergies.

Jayson is 12 and in the 6th grade in middle school in special behavioral classes. He has been on medications since 2001. He is diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder, ADHD, Bi-Polar, Depression and Major Mood Disorder. He also has some learning disabilities, but no one in this town has exactly figured out what. He is on Wellbutrin, Tenex (for behavior, not high blood pressure), Focalin, Risperdal and Lamictal. He also takes Claritin.

Jeremy is 6 and in Kindergarten. He recently was put on Risperdal. He also takes Claritin. He is diagnosed as Oppositional Defiant Disorder and possible ADHD.

These kids are great kids. We are in the middle of a custody battle for them. They have all spent several weeks at “facilities” because mom can’t control them and has them taken there. We have no problems or behavior issues out of these kids. In fact, I wish sometimes they would act more like kids – there should be running through the house sometimes, jumping up and down, you know what I mean. There is never any of that. They just don’t act like kids – we believe they are too medicated.

Jeremy, the 6 year old, just spent 4 1/2 days at a behavior facility and was put on Risperdal because he kept having fits with mom. The times he’s had these fits we show up and offer him a snack and he eats and calms down. He’s said he is hungry and that’s why he gets mad – “mommy won’t give me a snack”. He does get very upset when he’s hungry. He gets very grouchy. We would like to have him tested for any sugar problems – but can’t do that until we get custody. Mom simply cannot control Jeremy – we have no problems whatsoever out of him.

We just don’t have the behavior problems at our house that Mom does. Even when we’ve had the kids for weeks and weeks at a time.

I believe these kids absolutely do not need to be on all these medications. The only one I can see that may need SOME medication is Jayson. I think the reason for their problems is mainly environmental.

And I wanna know how a facility is gonna diagnose 4 children in the same family as all this when Mom keeps bringing them in and then never look at Mom and say, “Hey, 4 kids all the same, maybe it’s mom not doing her job”. I’ve been witness to Mom’s complete lack of ability to parent or discipline. Unless it’s grounding – all the kids are always grounded at mom’s. They are NEVER allowed to go anywhere or see any friends outside of school or join any clubs or groups or activities (we’ve offered to pay) because they are “so bad and don’t deserve it”.

Kristina simply can’t go to sleep without her medications because she’s been on these sleep medications for so long. Amber acts “stoned” sometimes. Jayson talks about his chest, heart, stomach hurting him. And since they’ve started Jeremy on this stuff he’s not Jeremy – too subdued and sleepy, no energy what so ever.

What happens when these kids are out of the system? What happens when they are 18 and can’t get the medications anymore? What do you think they will turn to to make them feel like they do on the medications? We are raising a bunch of addicts here.

I’m sure medications are needed in some instances, but it is being grossly missused. We, in our lazy, selfishness are teaching our children to be dependant on pills to make it through the day. Aren’t you glad your children will grow up knowing all these psychological terms and doses for certain medications and what they do, as well as all the things they “can’t” do because of their “problems” – but they will have no idea how to make their own children mind, they will have no idea that it’s okay if you’re having a bad day and life does suck every now and again, but sure is worth it in the long run for all it’s beauty – they will be too drugged up to have every noticed life and what it’s really about.

Of course they are, people want to take the easy way instead of actually being a parent. Besides, this way when their child does something like get a DUE or shoot someone they can blame the drug instead of having their child actually being responsible for their actions. Being accountable for your actions is no longer seen in America, instead its who can we blame. Many parents invite this into their childrens life, they drug them and give them video games/cable TV and expect these kids to interact with others instantly when they get older. Everything you do can be explained by a lawyer by some type of rage; road-rage, poor-rage, drug-rage, drunk-rage – whatever. Until individuals are once again held accountable for their actions, it will only get worse. Parents now think children are cute with friends, but when alone they realize how much work is involved and seek prescription drugs to fix what they failed to do – actually be a parent! Their children cut into their social time and social events and there is little time left to devote to these children. You think these type of parents will actually put in the effort needed to correctly raise a child? Please, its easier to whip out the checkbook and get more drugs.

I agree with the first poster 100% it starts in the schools. If your child is not a A1 student they look to medication for the children but the real fact is government grants for the schools. Its all about money. I asked that question and got a shock look from them all as if how did i know that. Even the doctors get grants from the government if a child is on ADHD medications. I asked the doctor when they was going to check my child’s heart because of the medications causing enlarge hearts and his response was that’s not medically needed. OK so my child’s heath is not important. Then i asked for a brain scan to get me information of what is going on with my daughter and again i hit a brick wall. The tests that are done to determine ADHD is nothing more then a paper tests and that is not good enough. The schools don’t care because every child they get on the medicine in there school they get kick back from the government. And that’s what it’s all about. And one thing comes to mind is if there was a cure for the common cold do you think that they would put it out? NO! Why? Because everyone would lose billions of dollars! Again all about money not about ones heath!

If the FDA was doing there jobs half of these medications would not be in the doctor’s arsenals as a quick fix to a problem that has no science behind it but a paper test.
I was on fentol patch after my back surgery and the first question I asked was will heat increase the dosage. NO it’s safe. So I told them I did not want this medication and long and behold a few mouths later people are dying from overdose because of the heat of the sun or from taking a shower. So 90% of the doctors have no clue about the medications they prescribe.

All I can say is “No DUH!” U.S. Youth are being over medicated. Please note that the rest of this is oriented for the overmedicated, not those cases that are rightfully subscribed.

Here’s something I am missing seeing on this: What can we do about it that is positive and won’t hurt anyone?

I’m seeing a few people saying that a paddling wouldn’t hurt. However, in this day and age, paddling is out of the question because someone is going to take that as child abuse.

So what can we do about this?

If you want a good solution, enroll your kids in a good after school program that actually does something. Some very good examples would be sports, the scouting movement, theater, and (if of appropriate age) a job. It gets them to spend energy outside of the house. It makes them concentrate on different things than a screen longer. It forces them to interact with other people outside the family. It makes them learn how to cope and improve.

How did we ever get by in human history for thousands of years without all these drugs? How was anyone ever able to successfully raise their children in the past without all these medications?

Its time to WAKE UP America!

Let’s go back to square one, medications are not a substitute for disciplining children. Children do not come into this world with wisdom. It is our parental responsibility to teach them and discipline is part of that process.

The answer is easy, at least as far as the United States goes. Once family services started backing teachers to pressure parents into putting their children on ritalin and similar products, any time a child acted out or showed any difficulty at all staying focused on mind-numbingly boring curricula, the teachers blamed the students failures on “apparent ADD” and demanded parents put them on drugs.

What teachers have failed to see though is that they’re being duped. There is a population of children that have learned to mimick the symptoms of ADD for no other reason than getting a prescription of ritalin. Mom and Dad end up paying the bill for keeping Billy and his friends high on speeders. By teachers orders…

Think it isn’t so?

Ask the kids.

ADHD is very real. My daughter just got her first prescription today as a matter of fact. I use to be one of those people who would frown upon parents giving there children medicine..thinking it was just bad parenting. My daughter is very hyper and impulsive to the point where it is dangerous. We had an initial meeting with the doctor and two with a counselor, they didn’t just throw a prescrition at us and say so long. If they did, i would have gone elsewhere. They are being very cautious and getting different opinions….it’s taken months. I do discipline her by the way. I can spank her all day long and scream until my throat bleeds but she just can’t control herself and it does no good. It’s very difficult to go anywhere with her, people make excuses if i ask them to watch her…. i only want to be able to enjoy her and see her grow up to be happy. Do not judge us parents that try everything else only to turn to medication as a last resort.

I can’t believe it actually took an official study to bring this to most people’s attention. The vast majority of people have become so close minded, that they do not realize what is going on in their own neighborhood’s anymore.

Parents are taking there children to the doctor’s office for everything. “My kid isn’t doing as good as everybody else in school, he must have ADHD!” “My kid is actually outside playing instead of in front of a television, he must have ADHD!” “My kid is 7 years old, and won’t sit still, he must have ADHD!”

It’s getting out of hand. Everybody wants to blame these doctors that are handing out pills like candy, but most of the blame should be put on the parents. Parents look for any excuse they can possibly find that is wrong with there kids, besides the way they are raising them. And to tell you the truth, most people do not need to be, or know how to be a parent. The big boom in the late 80’s and the early 90′ of teen pregnancy came along, and what do you know, in the mid 90’s prescription drugs started being handed out like lolipops. Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to put the two together.

If you all excuse me, here is what I think; Although I do agree with a medical examination on any kids that may need it: Concerning the “Hyperactivity” situation on a kid, this has been my experience, if you control the sweets and sugar ingestion very careful, the results are wonderful; that will prevent having to drug the kids at sutch early age and having them adictive to the drug by the time they are on their teens.
I’m not a “Medical Doctor” but in my opinion, all they are doing is creating another adicted person and securing the money coming in.

Think what you want but that is my personal opinion.

Ok, so everyone agrees there are too many medications. So, why are they still being prescribed? Why are our children forced to be robots and sit hours on end in a classroom? America, doctors, you’re being ridiculous. What is your problem? Parents, learn to be a parent. Teachers, learn to teach and plan exciting and different activities for kids. Let’s give these kids a break and let them be kids. I turned out great and was never on drugs, ditto for everyone I know.

As a person who was correctly diagnosed at the ripe old age of 35 with ADHD, I can give you people a perspective kids can’t, and parents can’t either.My world changed the day I was diagnosed. I had an eppiphany at work the day the Ritalin took effect (exactly 30 days after I started them). I realized that every decision I had made for myself was not one I made beacuse of what I wanted, it was made to pick the best route around the ADHD. My life started that day. Parents who poo-poo the idea of meds without competant diagnosis are the equivalent to abusers. You have no right to subject you children to the type of life I had when it can be alleviated.I do, however, think that 3 independant doctors diagnosis at a minimum is in order. If three totally independant specialists come to the same diagnosis, it is what it is.Whacking me, teaching me, watching my diet, it was all done to no avail.We now realize mom had it bigtime, and I have a niece who also has it. We would all wonder why Mom never sat still. She had no choice. I happened to luck it out and found a job that was tailored to adhd, one whose chores needed to be done fast, but not neccessarily correctly, and i did it for 25 years. When I realized I could now do more, I did. I am now 54 and a kitchen designer for 11 years who spends days at the computer. Something that was not possible at 35.

Yikes! Welcome to “Brave New World” Let’s all line up to get our dose of “soma”. I agree that getting out of the public school system is the best short term answer.

It’s not just the kids that are over-medicated, but the adults as well. Personal responsibility has taken a back seat to litigation and pharmaceuticals; nobody ever accepts the blame for their own health issues anymore. Teach your kids some respect and discipline at an early age, and there will be far fewer “needs” for medication at all stages of life.

My son was in kindergarten and was told that he was hyperactive. The teacher brought in an assessment lady who suggested that we put him on Ritalin. I responded with outrage that we medicate our children at 5 years old. Of course he is bouncing out of his chair he is a five year old boy. The Lady went on with how her daughter was ADHD or some name that we label our kids, and that her daughter is 24 now and still has to take medication and is not functioning. I thought to myself this is an isidious plot by the schools to take normal kids and turn them into something they are not. To wrap up, my son is 10 years old now, has never had to repeat a grade and gets C’s and B’s. Normal child.

There is an evil in the drug companies, medical establishments and the school systems. Beware to u unsuspecting Americans gullible enough to take the advice of someone in authority as gospel.

Dean

I teach at a school for troubled kids in Indiana. Almost 100% of my students take one form of anti-psychotic drug or another. They also take a combination of A.D.D. and A.D.H.D meds. Talking with my students, i’ve learned that for most of them, they have been on these drugs since they were little, and therefore they don’t know what life would be like without them long term. These kids come to school in a state of such lathargy, that it’s hard to get them motivated. On the flip side, when they forget to take their medicines, they immediately come in and say they can’t focus. Like any other drug, when you use these medicines long term, you go through some painful withdraws when you don’t take them which just makes them more desireable. I’ve had several students who have weened themselves off of their drugs and now are more productive than ever. I feel that the majority of these kid’s parents are using these drugs to make up for their lack of discipline and presence in the home.

There are far too many children who are put on medications simply because their parents lack the skills needed to raise them. Before or at least concurrently with medicating the child the parents need to take some parenting skills classes

I believe it! I see this everyday in my private practice. Weekly I am working to get these kids OFF of meds. So why are so many kids on prescription anti this and anti that? Parents have stopped parenting. It is really an epidemic that is clearly out of control. This new current “Teen Culture” is a tough one, I agree. BUT a word to parents, “You do not have a choice here. You must learn about their culture and step up–no matter the cost…or we can just continue to over-medicate our children and lose an entire generation. YES it is difficult–you are raising children for gosh sakes!” Cop-Out parents=Cop-out kids–on meds.

i think our children are not being over medicated, one of my children was just diagnosed with aspergers and it now on a mood stabilizer, but this took being hospitalized twice, dealing with 3 therapysts, and dr’s and physciatrist, she also has ADD, which is common for children with aspergers, i think more of our children are being correctly diagnosed. I am grateful that our dr’s and phyciatrist, learn more about autism, and aspergers and all the other things that can be and often are associated with these, disorders.

I see too many ‘nice’ parents who do not discipline or punish unruly children. Kids are crazy, unfocused, hormonally imbalanced growing beings that bounce off walls & ideals. Parents need to rear them in, taking responsibility and fight the good fight. Too many give up, are too busy, pass their kids on to someone else. The goal of any ‘expert’ or institution is to grow, to expand its importance, thusly, making it seem they know what is best, they are the ones needed, and their medications & surly statistics & research is more important than good ole parenting.

Kids go through a lot of tough stuff, and need to come out of it, non-medicated, fed right, disciplined, talked to, exercised, pushed, encouraged, punished, and on and on without experts, institutions, or chemicals tightly cooked into a small dry pellet.

My child could not even focus on her homework infront of my eyes while I explained it to her. Her eyes & mind wandered as I talked to her, yelled at her, and grabbed her. I literally went through boot camp with her for 3 weeks of 2-3 hour grueling homework, at 1st grade!; yelling, screaming, crying, and I broke her! Now she’s highly gifted, focused, and works hard & plays hard! NO MEDICATION, NO EXPERTS, NO WAY!

The grandkids of the druggies of the 60s. Interesting…..

Well, I guess I’m not with the majority here…but what the heck. My daughter was diagnosed ADHD about two years ago. I wasn’t thrilled…nor am I a “bad Parent” or a parent who doesn’t know what’s best for their own kid. I’m tired of people who’ve never interacted with a child with severe ADHD saying…just spank them or discipline your child.

Well, I don’t believe in spanking…but I do believe in discipline. My daughter sees a child Psychiatrist (who does dispense us her medications so she can function better and learn easier) and a child Psychologist (who sees all of us as a family therapy situation-ADHD affects the whole family!).

We are blessed with a child who is extremely gifted and smart. However, she needs help concentrating and help with relaxing and help with interacting with peers. Many ADHD kids have a really difficult time developing social relationships.

I am BLESSED to have my daughter in my life. I have become a stay at home mom to help deal with her special needs-at the expense of our lifestyle. My husband and I promote a loving, healthy, educated home.

I wish each of you would “walk a mile in my shoes” however, I wouldn’t want my daughter raised by any of you who think that a spanking will work. Shame on you…are your children perfect?

I do remember the bible saying something about casting the first stone….maybe you all need an update reading!

The study is only addressing one issue, how many pills are given to children. It is missing the mark of a fundamental flaw in the social causes of these illnesses.

It is fairly clear that womens liberation has caused severe peaks in aggression in both genders. Children are also confused by favortisum, resulting in critical damage to social parts of the brain at an early age.

Our societys answer find ways to make money off it.

Super sad.

Ten years ago, we moved to Alabama, (have since left the state) and my oldest son was in fourth grade. He was bright, lively and, like many children that age, had trouble sitting still.
Within two weeks the teacher called and told me he was hyper/ADD/ADHD, you name it he had it, and should be immediately put on Ritalin. I refused. In response, the school labeled my son a ‘bad student’ and put him in the lowest levels for his grade. This for a boy who had been in the highest levels in his previous school and getting all As. Needless to say, this pummeled his self-confidence and it took him years and a move to California (schools not necessarily much better as the teachers there also wanted him on drugs) before he found his footing.
My son is about to graduate from high school. He is an excellent soccer player, picked up tennis 20 months ago and made the school team his junior and senior years, and is about to test for his brown belt. He is strong physically, mentally and emotionally. He has matured into a young man I am extremely proud to call my son. I don’t even want to think about what the drugs might have done to his mind.

I know that these drugs are vital for some who truly need them. But I think my son’s story shows how drugs are too often used as a cop-out and crutch for parents, teachers, and doctors.
How about we stop paying attention to the almighty dollar by working 70 hour weeks and paying attention to the children we gave birth to instead?

I’m sure some children do require medication. Everyone’s situation is different. However, I firmly believe TOO many children as well as adults are being medicated. In today’s world that seems to always be the first option. WHY? Just because a doctor pulls out his prescription pad doesn’t mean you have to take it without first asking questions. Do your own research! Not all medications are right for everyone. There are so many side effects.

I have a child under 5. He is very energetic and bright however sometimes has moments where is is not the most focused. Sometimes he can’t keep his bottom in the chair at the dinner table to save his life. He is a child. I’m sure that a child of his age should not already have to have that mastered. It’s a work progress. So should I run out and put him on medication just so it’s easier on Mom and Dad? Not a chance!! As parents, it is our job as well as teachers to take the time to pull our children back in and help them to become better. Too many choose not to COPE and teach and in return are teaching our children not to cope and learn.

Yep! It’s hardwork! That’s what we signed up for as parents. Sometimes you have to dig really really deep to work through some tough moments. Our son is worth every bit of our time and effort. When you automatically turn to medication because you don’t want to put in the time, you are failing your child and yourself as a parent. Again, everyone’s situation is different and require help with some medications but you must do your homework.

I have a parent that has suffered from mental illness since being a young adult. It’s been very challenging. Back then, as a 12 yo. child, I was faced with placing my mother in a mental health facility to keep her safe and get her well. That was extremely painful! The most important in saving her life, was to never give up on her or walk away as so many just look away. I could never do that. She is my Mother and everything is owed to her. I believe much of the illness she encountered was from her life experiences and the environment in which she lived. Once taken from all of that, her life changed. It has taken a lot of time and effort to find out what works, what does not and how much is too much. Through the many years of her mental illness she was put on an unbelieveable amount of medications. There have been so many times that doctors have overmedicated her and never for a moment taking notice or should I say CARE. She deserves better than that. People who suffer from any type of mental illness require someone important in their life to be an their advocate … to protect them … because no one else will. Doctors are just writing prescriptions and saying, “NEXT!”. My Mother has been well for many years and today is doing wonderful BUT has paid the price as medication has altered the person she could of been. There are so many side affects to every medication you agree to take.

In protecting your child, if there are other options and there are, … hard work and patience … let that be your first option. Most medications cause more harm than good. As when considering to placing your child on medication you must think years ahead as to when they will become an adult. Taking medication or putting your child on medication should not be a simple choice!

I find it very interesting and surprising how many children are being medicated today. I don’t think the question is whether the US over medicates or the UK under medicates, but “why on earth are so many children being medicated in the first place?”. Could it be that lack of discipline, too much TV/computer time, and high calorie/low nutrition diets coupled together have anything to do with it? I have little question that there are SOME legitimate cases in which the best treatment for children may be medication, but I strongly believe this to be the exception, not the rule. As a mother of two young children, one of which is high energy and strong willed, I understand parenthood is challenging. However, if many parents who medicate their children would, instead, spend time with them, set and enforce healthy boundries (NO is not a dirty word), limit media time, and take care that their children were fed diets high in good fats, whole grains, and proteins (rather than lowfat, processed, white flour/sugar products), we might see a drastic decrease in those numbers.

WAKE UP AMERICA. It is insane to think that drugging people with antipsychotics is what they need.
ADHD, ADD and all the rest of the dis-eases, or disability that may be assigned to a child or individual is nothing more than an insult to all of humanity. To any parent out there who has been or will be told that their child has issues take control for your childs sake. Do not let the drug companies ruin your childs life.

You also need to take into account the amount of free time these kids have to process the world around them. Who gets more exercise, sleep, play time, better food, less stress? I was diagnosed at the age of 28 so I know it’s real and I see it in my 6 year old, but if he had more time outside would it naturally improve? What about fresh food in his cafeteria at school? Smaller classes, less testing and more doing? You have to look at other ways to deal with behavior and see who has to reach for the meds first.

Are you kidding? Isn’t this story a little late in coming? Welcome to the United States of STEPFORD!!!

It’s not just children who are being treated with the drugs, it’s anyone who says they’re depressed, or hyper.

There is no guidance given to those whose innate sense of fear, depression, etc., to get out of the situation that they are in and grow from the experience……… they are just given a drug.

On top of that……… they aren’t even tested to see if the body can ‘handle’ the drug without killing them.

What did James Carville say a few years back? Oh yeah, “It’s the Economy Stupid”. I get….. Why don’t so many other parents get it???

Pharmacuetical companies, Pharmacies, Physicians, Schools etc. make big bucks from screwing up people’s mental and physical life.

I just can’t believe that this would be sifting into the media after all these years later.
Remember Valium in the 50’s; it used to be called the “Mommy Drug”. No difference, it’s only that Valium went generic and ……….. companies can’t make money on it anymore. It’s back…… in a new improved name.

Have any of you seen a kid commit suicide while on this garbage? I did.

Parents who want and/or allow their children to be medicated with these “anti-psychotic” drugs should not be parents. They should have their children taken away from them and should be sterilized so they can’t have more children. It’s clear by their desire to medicate their children that they don’t want to be parents and that they don’t know how to parent. Kids need discipline, structure, and firm love from parents. Parents too weak and stupid that they don’t provide these things are the problem. Drugging the kids just hides the problem. Parents who don’t care properly for their own children degrade the entire education system. They leave the schools no choice but to dumb down the whole system for their own dumb, misbehaving children because they are irresponsible parents who expect the schools to raise their kids. Medication is not the answer. Medicating children in this manner should be a crime. Doctors prescribing these drugs should be jailed. Educators advocating the medication of children are the worst enemies of these children. If educators want to help, they must take a stand as a group, even if it means risking their jobs. They must refuse to accept poorly raised children in their classes. They must refuse to dumb down their classrooms for poorly raised children. The problem is parents coupled with idiot psychiatrists and psychologists who want to shift the burden of bad kids to someone and something else. The solution is to place the problem squarely back in the laps of parents. Parents who cannot present educable and reasonably well-behaved children to the school system and society in general, should be dealt with in our criminal justice system, first mildly, and then in an increasingly harsh manner. Psychologists and psychiatrists should be jailed. They are the new drug dealers destroying our society. They are nothing more than criminals.

I am a public school teacher. While meds are needed, at times, I believe the American parent is afraid, or too tired, etc., to consistently discipline their child. As the child grows older, and acts out, the parent thinks, “there must be something organically wrong with my child” and turn to drugs. We are in a crisis….

The alarming rate in the increase of Autism in the US would surely explain the increase in the US. My son is Autistic, high functioning, and is on a very small dose of Risperdall. I’m not happy about the weight gain, and we are considering going holistic to detoxifying him, but we are afraid as well of how he will become off of the drugs. He is in a special school, and is succeeding by leaps and bounds, and he’s not a zombie. Just my 2cents

Oh boy, I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen such collective ignorance on a subject.

Does anyone here understand the nature of these brain disorders–and the need for treatment?

Does anyone care to investigate the real reasons for these disorders–instead of falling back to superstition and myth and denying their very existence? Do you all really hate suffering children that much–and the parents who suffer with them?

Unsubstantiated and simplistic opinions far outweigh the facts here.

Oh but wait..this is Fox News, isn’t it? Why am I surprised…..

THis is what I love, everyone wants to debate what they think is right and what they think is wrong. One mom on here said , don’t judge me or my son until you walk a mile in our shoes. I agree with her whole heartley. I have a son who will be 11 and has been diagnosed with ADHD,OCD, Depression and I would LOVE to see someone care for him on a daily basis when he is not able to focus and is everywhere. I am the first one to say that yes I don’t like the meds that my son is on , but if it is what he needs to have a “normal” life then so be it. People are often quick to judge when they don’t know all of the facts and are quick to give answers when they think that they are right. There are children in this world , reguardless of what the next person thinks have mental disabilites. Alot of these children become productive adults and work in normal enviorments. Please don’t be quick to judge that just because are kids are hyber and not behaved that we don’t discapline our children. My son is treated just like his sister who has no mental health issues, it just takes longer to get the point across to him.

Dear Sirs:

After reading this published article regarding the over medication of children around the world, I felt it extremely relevent to our own situation. My wife and I have taken some measures in our lives and the lives of our twin boy’s, to prevent such a thing from happening to us. Our son’s, now eighteen years of age, were struggling with poor grades in high school. They had entered the nineth grade in high school with a population approaching 3,500. Our son’s have always done well in school. Always demonstrating an A – B average. Something happened upon entering high school that led Cameron to repeat ninth grade and Brantley to come close. We tried all the remedies. Meeting with teachers and counselors… Setting up and paying for outside aid for courses in reading and math that offer to tutor struggling students… Meeting with Doctor’s and Psychologists for evaluation… We were involved and did our best to help our children overcome this troubling, developing time in their lives. Our greatest concern was that they would begin not caring and lose intrerest in school all together, therefore leading to misbehavior and bad choices. After all, who are we as parents to compete with 3,500 of their peers who convince our son’s not to listen to parents. SCHOOLS ARE TOO BIG AND TEACHERS CAN’T ENFORCE FOR FEAR OF RETRIBUTION. My message is SIMPLE. have faith. Have faith in your ability to get results.

After meeting with Psychologists ourselves, they recommended medication and for a fee of $5M, they would design a curriculum that should help them achieve. We pursued a different course of action and did not believe that medication was our only solution. After careful study and discussion with many private institutions, a friend had recommended a Military Academy. A private school for boy’s only that allow the type of punishment we should all practice. If you don’t do what is expected, you don’t deserve some of the rewards. No sports, no television, no cell phones, no computers. Why try to compete with driving, dating, cell phones (text message) and “My Space”. We are delighted with the results. Trust your gut and don’t let the so called experts, convince you otherwise. The only real expert is yourself. We live with our children everyday. We know their behavior and we certainly recognize when it changes. Our boy’s will be attending The Citadel (The Military College of South Carolina) in the fall. A school similar in structure to the Military Academy for high school. Why change what works? Who needs medication? I’ll take a good old fashioned upbringing, any day.

Wish us luck!

Tracy

In reponse to the following:

Julie, it does appear that there is something wrong with you, but that doesn’t mean that everyone has a mental illness.

I have noticed that the public schools (not all) target lower income, single parents. If the child is diagnosed with ADHD (or ADD or whatever they are calling it now), the school gets extra money and the parents get SSD for the child because the child is then considered “disabled”.

I fall into the lower income, single parent range. I had a parent-teacher conference at my daughters elementary school (which had an “ADD program”). That meeting turned out to be a parent-group of teachers and administrators conference. They insisted that my daughter needed to be on Ritalin. This “diagnosis” by the elementary school made me furious. After that meeting, I went less than one mile away, rented an apartment in a different school district and enrolled my daughter there. It was quite a miracle! She must have been cured. The new school didn’t have a “program” for ADD so apparently she didn’t need medication after all. She did fine all through school, is 19 years old now, working and starting college in September.

How can we be so blind and let this happen? It is only being proliferated by the profiteers: medicos, Big Pharma, and Psychiatrists!

Everyone else is suffering or dying! Just because it gets some people high and makes them “feel good” for a while doesn’t make it beneficial. It is like aspirin. It only covers up the problem, never resolving it at the core. Even these people eventually succumb to higher dosages or a multitude of different different drugs that are suppose to accomplish the same thing.

We are not a bunch of chemicals to add or take away here or there! We are living beings with minds and not just brains!

Anyone like a psychiatrist tells you, you or your kids need to be on drugs, tell them to hit the road and you run like hell for the door. Here are two good websites that will tell you what is happening to people and especially kids in this country. http://www.benzo.org/uk and http://www.breggin.com

Wow. Talk about a lot of people being suckered and led around by their eyeballs. What on earth makes everyone think that a study showing a huge increase in prescription rates equals the improper use of medications? There could be a LOT of reasons for the increase, not just over-prescribing or incorrect diagnoses, but that’s the conclusion the author wants people to make so that’s the conclusion we’re seeing made here. Try thinking about some of the other possible causes for the study results. Here’s some I thought of:

1. These medications are relatively new and so are the diagnoses – when a new disease/disorder is first identified and medication is made available, there’s going to be a dramatic increase in usage of the medication for awhile as doctors and the general public become aware of it and begin to take advantage of the new information. Conditions like diabetes and cancer are concrete with clinical tests to prove the diagnosis is correct…mental health disorders have no such test so diagnosis with such a disorder is suspect.

2. Diet, lifestyle, and exposure to a variety of pollutants and chemicals is dramatically different now than just a few generations ago. Cause and effect…there has been a significant change in what goes into our bodies, so there’s going to be a significant change in our bodies. It’s just a matter of figuring out what the changes are.

3. More individuals with mental health disorders are surviving to reproduce – It used to be that an individual who was a little bit “off” was known to be so by the entire village and probably wouldn’t find a partner for having children. Society is much more mobile now, and individuals have more freedom to choose their own partners rather then having to go along with a parental choice. When choosing a partner, there’s less background to work with – it used to be the norm to look at someone’s family to know if they would be a good choice, but now we look at people as individuals and often don’t even meet their family until after having already made the decision to be with someone. Also, historically those with mental health disorders had a difficult time “making ends meet.” Now we have welfare programs and a wider variety of occupations, some of which are easier for those with mental health disorders to manage. As an example, Goodwill thrift stores exist for the purpose of providing employment and training for those who have mental disabilities. People who are able to pay rent and buy groceries are able to reproduce, and our society makes it easier for people with mental health problems to do just that. Society in general, though it still has a long way to go, is much more tolerant of those with mental health problems. Those with mental health disorders aren’t being killed because someone thinks they’re possessed or in league with the devil.

My best guess: Every reason mentioned on this site (and probably some that aren’t mentioned) is partly responsible for the study results. “Bad parenting,” over-marketing medications, “fad” diagnoses, impact of education regarding a relatively new diagnosis and medication, poor diet and lifestyle, environmental pollution, and social changes. Pick any one of them and you have only a piece of the puzzle.

I did not get medication until I turned 30 and am now 48, and I stuggled with depression since I was a child and it never became as unbearable until I was put on the medication. I never had trouble with sleep and once on the anti-depressants, my abiltiy to sleep has been one nightmare after another. The quack I used to have put me on Ambien, Ativan, Remeron, then Zyprexa, just to get me to sleep maybe 4 hours a night. I finally found a psychiatrist who weened me off of almost all of the anti-depressants and completely off the Zyprexa (which I did not need) and because of the low dosage of current anti-depressants, I finally sleep through the night. He is still currently working with me to get off of more of these horrible drugs, I have put it on hold because even though I was “weaned” from them, withdrawl sypmtons are hard to hide. Because of this experience, I refused to put my son who is 16 on Ritlan, etc to the advice of the “experts”, and he is now doing great! He has settled down, due to maturity and he is so thankful I never put him on that after the problems that have been caused to his peers. I am thankful too, because I almost gave in. I think it is immoral to do this to kids unless behavior is extremely abnormal (voices,etc). Never just quit the drugs because the withdrawl is much more severe and it feels like you really are a pshycho. Unfortunately, the doctor I currently see and who is weaning me off these drugs, are extremely rare in our society and we need more like him.

Thank You

These drugs wouldn’t be so overprescribed if doctors weren’t getting kickbacks from the drug companies for prescribing them. How else do you think MDs can afford those BMWs, palatial homes and fancy vacations? This is what the health care system in America has turned into. And people say we don’t need universal health care (and people wonder why our kids go on killing sprees like there was no tomorrow).

Are American Children being overmedicated? In My opinion based upon what I have seen,They definately are!
I used to help out with the bus ministry at my church.One Boy around nine years old got to know My Children, and would spend some time at our home. He was a perfectly normal nine year old,with alot of healthy energy. I moved to a different state and came back to visit around two years later. I saw a friend and I asked about how this Child was doing. My Friend told me that He was now on riddlin.This upset Me very much because I also got to know this Boys Mother, and I also knew alot about His home situation.His Mother has an alcohol problem,was on Her third shack up boyfriend,and the entire home situation was a damn mess.So to help out this Boy Mommy dear decided that He just needed to be pumped up with drugs.Who wins? the drug companies, and the Doctors. Who loses? these children that have no say about what is going into their bodies.Wake up America before it,s too late.

It’s awfully easy for those that don’t live with this illness to cast judgement. Some are missing the point that ADHD is a medical condition just like any other. I medicate my child for his benefit, not for my own. Before you form an opinion on the subject, imagine putting headphones on, put the frequency on a talk station that doesn’t quite come in all the way, but goes incredibly fast. Walk around all day long with it on.. Now imagine living that way.

As a 19 year old college student, I found myself slipping back into a attention pattern i dealt with in middle school that was direct result of sever depression. I was initially given a placebo, the effect of it was short lived. Maybe a week of thinking i felt better. At that point my doctor prescribed Zoloft. I was on it for 9 months. During that period I got back to the point where I could function as a student and as a person and was able to come to terms with the things that caused my depression.

However I was also suffering at that point from severe concentration issues. My doctor prescribed low does Adderall XR. I occasionally dealt with the Dry mouth and the uncontrollable laughter side effects.

After 2 sleep studies, several visits to a dietitian, and a vigorous exercise regime, and repeatedly being asked if i plan on selling it. He has prescribed me Adderall XR once again. I have seen marked improvements in my ability to focus and concentrate on things both important and unimportant, aswell as things both fun and thankless.

The assumption that these meds are bad is not the best one. The key to making these medications work is a doctor who doesn’t want to use them first.

I find the ignorance and bigoted comments horrific! Until you’ve had a child with a disability you can’t say anything! My son went 3 years without meds after the initial suspition of ADHD and trust me, I am not a softy nor worried about being my child’s friend! Discipline is NOT an issue. At the time I incorperated all decent forms of discipline (including grounding, notty spots, priviledge removal AND spanking) and none of it gave me the results I wanted. So lack of discipline or wanting to be my child’s “friend” is not even an issue like some people are saying.

My son has a condition called ADHD. He’s bright, friendly and happy as all get out BUT he can’t focus and has impulse issues. He finds it hard to sit still… MORE than the normal child. Discipline at school is not an issue either…

I went THREE YEARS trying everything I could think of. Finally I tried medication. I have my son back! He’s not a zombie (I requested we start with the lowest possible dose to prevent that) he’s social, finally has friends because he’s not doing impulsive things that he regrets two seconds later. He’s able to concentrate in school and his grades match his ability.

So it angers and hurts those of us who have to live with this very real disorder to have people who have no clue NO CLUE about what we live with every day. What our children have to endure every day! You, on your high horse, who’d rather beat our children and call them names and remove any shred of dignity and self esteem by berating them for something they can’t control. You should be ashamed of yourselves. How would you feel if your boss told you to do 15 things all due at the same time and you weren’t allowed any help from anyone. You’d be frantic, confused and angry… Imagine that times 100 and that’s what the brain of a person with ADHD has. It’s a REAL BIOLOGICAL issue… not an moral one.

Get educated before you spout off.

I think 1 posters summed it up by saying how did we get by so many years without these drugs? And now the drugs are being used there has been a crime wave in schools across the country. These so called drugs are class 2 narcotics. I know my daughter is on them because of the school and a paper test. These kids need to be diagnosed better then a paper test. And there are plenty of people who posted on here who have walked in the shoes of the parents me being one. And i have battled with the Doctors about these drugs. And all i seem to get is a brick wall. I asked for a simple brain scan and was told that they can’t do that because of the risk of cancer in the future. Give me a break he thought i was born yesterday. These drugs are doing bad things to are kids now. And if they did a brain scan they would have to treat the real problem and not ADHD! It’s all about money. And for the parents on here who say that the drugs are doing wonders you know why they are because your child is so doped up know from the drug. We tried to slowly take my daughter of the drug but she keep having bad withdraws and that’s a shame! And i did some research and found that these ADHD drugs cause kids heart to enlarge as many parents went through hell after losing there children. As i asked my doctor and everyone i have seen for my daughter i here the same story that there is no evidence that these drugs cause enlarge hearts in children. I told them all the better go back to Med school because they are not keeping up wants going on in the world of Medicine.

I went to my doctor because i thought i broke my toe. I was charged $123.00 for 2 minutes of nothing. All that was done was looked at my toe and said it nothing that could be done. That’s it. 2 Minutes $123.00. No X-Ray no nothing. They want to lower the heath care start with the doctors who over charge! Its all a money game!

And i know this is off topic but everyone forgets about the injured worker whose life is destroyed by laws that protect the employer. I was injured in 2003 after failing from the top of a machine and landing on a skid and rupting 2 disks. Went to the Workers Clinic was treated with sprained back for about a month. Then had an MRI done and that’s when it showed the ruptured disks. I did not want to do surgery but was pressured into it by the owner so i did even used his doctor. The surgery failed now i need a 3 level 360o fusion. NO WAY! The doctor says it’s a 30% chance i could make me better. I said no way its too risky with those odds. And then even if they do i got to worry about the other disks failing because of the fusion. So any ways the Insurance company wants me to do the surgery because she says a 30% chance is better then nothing. No way. They don’t care about me i am just a case number. As they stopped my checks and played there games to get me to settle and through away my rights. It’s not going to happen. Even the judge at the end of the hearing said this on the court record that i was too young to be disabled. That there told me he already made his mind up before even looking at the medical records that say from both sides i was disabled. Never knew there was a age you had to be to be disabled. Only in the workers compensation laws. I went to get SSDI and was able to get it without a lawyer my first try because the medical records show i am disabled. I have had 7 MRI’S and been proped and poked for the last 5 going on 6 years of hell from this. The laws need to be changed. I know there are people out there who fake injuries but what about us the real injured workers who’s families are destroyed and marriages destroyed because of this. I did everything my company asked and even more. Won Certificates for outstanding Mechanic for helping others and making the company better and this is how i am treat a case number!

We need to expose these Insurance Companies And Lawyers to the media and show the dirty games they play on injured workers. Maybe fox News can look into these issues and will be surprised what’s going on under the Radar.

This just proves how strong the drug companies and medical profession has become, when what these kids need is better nutrition and a swift swat on the butt.

Too many kids are given drugs when what they really need is better nutrition and a swat on the butt.

Too many drugs are given to our kids, when what they need is better nutrition and a swat on the butt.

Wow, what a bunch of ignorant judgemental folks read Fox News reports! I am stunned. perhaps this explains why so many people, teachers included, think that kids with ADHD need to just “try harder” or be “disciplined” more at home.

How do these well meaning folks see what goes on in my home (and everyone else’s)?? Are they flies on the wall or something?

My high school son told me once that he wishes I had not bought into all that “ADHD is a myth and your kids should not take meds” propagnda when he was younger, so he wouldn’t have had such a hard time adjusting to the ADHD diagnosis in 8th grade.

He was considered smart, even gifted, by many when he was homeschooled. He is well-read and very verbal, with many original ideas. however, disorganization and inability to memorize well has hindered him greatly in public school. I do think the system is flawed. however, in order to survive there he really must take meds.

The first semester of ninth grade he took meds and every teacher thought he was very intelligent and well-behaved. By NOv., he was freaking out about it and didn’t want the meds anymore. The second semester he had new teachers and very soon had a new reputation–as a struggling student who “refuses to work, refuses to pay attention, gets out of seat too often, blows up at other students for bothering him” etc.

So should I let him struggle on as the latter student, or encourage him to take meds and have a productive and happy high school career?

He has chosen to take meds again. We are working with the side effects and the blown reputation. It isn’t easy. But we are not unintelligent hopeless parents. Some of these posters have no clue!

My son is adhd and I’m not ashamed to admit it. My son has been very hyper since he was about 2. I have 3 children, one older and one younger. They are not. So don’t tell me its my parenting. That is bogus. I can’t speak for everyone, but my children have all 3 always been disciplined. He wasn’t medicated until he was almost 6 and he literally couldn’t function in school. Before that I just dealt with him my own way. Keeping him away from sugar, red dye etc. It didn’t help. He literally couldn’t sit down for 1 second, when he started school, he couldn’t sit still, he couldn’t walk, he couldn’t finish a thought. Nothing. He completely had to relearn everything including his abc’s. Since being on meds, he has learned all of his alphabet, writing them from memory, counting to 100, and reading etc. He has done amazing. I don’t regret one second of my son being on medication. What I think is sad is these insurance companies putting restrictions on what medications they will cover. Especially if a child truly needs it. Yet they don’t care.

So please if you have never raised a true adhd or autistic child, please don’t judge those of us who have or are. I also had a 4 yr old nephew who was autistic.

I personally am sick and tired of hearing all this that adhd is just parents don’t discipline or a child just needs more belts across the behind. That’s one thing I DON’T DO. I don’t beat my children. There are other ways to discipline a child without violence or anger. In that case I could say that if you hit your child, you are only teaching your child to hit…. So be careful, cause your child will be the next one on a drug to control his/her anger/temper that you taught them.

Good luck with that one and keep your opinions to yourself, unless you have walked in someones shoes who has or is going through this.

Hello,

Since 1973, I have been researching the cause and cure. Collectively, I have taught at least 1,ooo children on the spectrum. It was upsetting for me to hear Barbara Walters say “autistic children”. In ethics class (USF) Sarasota, Fl. I was taught that any individual be labled a person first and then their disorder. The politically correct way to put it…is an individual with…. or a child on the spectrum!!!

As far as my comment on this article… I have a sister 47 years old that is reluctant to immunize her one year old twin girls. She is very concerned. She is a doctor. I plan to read your article ASAP, and give you my opinion. It sincerely has been my life’s work. I currently work in privitization for the Florida Center here in Sunny Sarasota Today I did some fun, interesting amazing work.

As for the vaccine debate…Time magazine ( a year ago)disclaims this theory. However,
Autism is our country’s favorite flavor. Nobody says…”what artistic”..”you teach art! anymore.
Thank goodness. I need to get some rest but lastly would like to add that, while driving to work recently… Tampa Bay’s 98 Rock made the crack..” Rock Out Like An Autistic Child”…How offensive that people are so @#$%n ignorant. Thanks for listening. And trust me I will read the article, take it to work, inform my little sister and get back to you again ASAP. Namaste,
Kate Hurrelbrinck ….paintinholland@hotmail.com

P.S. I agree with the above comments. Currently working on a book on Autism
yeah, I fought the ADD diagnosis for my oldest child and my bipolar diagnosis( after 10 years of being drugged by lithium and 10 other drugs. Let’s all get a “thing” going against autism turning into American Hype. What would george bush say? artistic? or is he in on this too! I don’t even want to know what miss hillary would say!! Can’t wait to read this first thing tomorrow.

Oh my god!!! After 35 years in the field this turns my stomach.
I’ll write more ASAP as it is 1:30 a.m….I worked with clients with autism all day today.
The comment I just spent 1 hour on was accidentally deleted.
What a bummer…peace…let’s quit exploiting our country’s new favorite flavor.
Autism!!

I believe that kid’s are being over medicated. These days if a child is energetic than they are ADHD and perscribed them aterol, If a child is a dreamer than they have a attention disorder sooo give them ridilin. I believe with my entire self that 99% of our children do not need drugs all we are teaching them that it is okay to take controlled subtances for something as small as a cold or sneeze.

I myself have felt for years that children are being overmedicated. When I think back to when I was a child, according to the criteria today for ADHD, I would have been on medication. I feel I was just a normal child with curiosity and energy that children naturally have. When I watch my own children today I wish I could discover a way to bottle their energy for myself. When I worked with many children at a daycare, I renamed the problem with children diagnosed with ADHD. I called it LOD (Lack of Displinine). Many of these children were allowed to talk back to their parents and blatently allowed to be disrespectful to any adult. They actually responded well to my more consistant and stricter displine guidelines and I was able to handle the more diffucult children better than the teachers that tip-toed around them because of their ADHD. There was one extremely difficult child that I would have to take aside separately from the rest of the class, and even though I was stern with him, his mom told me that he “just loves you”. I feel that many of the children today need a parent, not a friend, and really want to be instructed on the proper way to act. It has worked with my children. I get rave reviews from parents on my children’s behavior, a teenager included, and my house is the one that the neiborhood kids come to for a safe, fun environment. So I agree, feed you children healthy food and snacks, stay away from sugary foods and drinks, and by all means be a parent to your child, not their best friend. They may try to rebel against some of your tactics, but stick you what you know is right for them and it will pay off.

It’s a sad day in America when we have to medicate our kids in order to control them. I’ve read several of the comments posted before mines, and practically everyone agreed – our country is overmedicated. The doctors are being paid by the pharmaceutical companies to prescribe their medications to patients. They receive all kinds of kickbacks for doing this. Every commercial advertises medicine. Why on earth would a medication be an advertisement? Can you think back 10-15 years when there were close to none being advertised? The government wants you to spend money on pills to get your bodies addicted instead of sending you down the road less traveled…the one that requires you to work at fixing the problems. Just like dieting…pills and surgery, no excercise. WOW! God bless America!!