ADHD Medication

“ADHD is one of the most common chronic behavioral disorders encountered by primary care physicians” (Ambalavanan and Holten 1). Many children across the world struggle with this disorder everyday, hoping for a sensible solution. ADHD develops to become most apparent in children during preschool and early elementary years (Ambalavanan and Holten 1). It is challenging for these children who posses this disorder to control the way they act or their ability to pay attention, especially for longer periods of time such as a school day. It begins to not only affect the child's physical and mental well being, but also the child’s ability to learn and complete their school work. It can also potentially hold a child back from being their best self, and living life to its fullest potential. This disorder often begins to

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a condition many children and young adult are diagnosed with today. ADHD is caused by the lack of focus, being overactive, or not being able to control certain behavior. There are many symptoms shown that can lead towards the diagnoses of ADHD, but there are no test that can be used to diagnose the disorder in children and young adults. As more people seem to develop the issue, the central question of, “Is the disorder even needed?”, comes to mind. One side of the argument sides with the many people that believe this deficiency can have a major impact on ones life, effecting their social and learning skills and medicine is highly advised. The other side believes that it is all psychology behind the diagnosis. This side believes that the medicine prescribed is being abused. Many say kids are taking these drugs such as adderall and vyvance to increase and help focus their behavior. It is believed that this is an issue because the kids that are taking these medications are kids that may not need them. Since there is technically no official test that leads to ADHD, it can basically be diagnosed towards anyone. Being a teenager in high school, the temptation to not abuse these kinds of drugs only increases throughout high school. If the government were to prevent society from being able to be prescribed this drug it would have a huge effect on American culture. It is important to grasp a good understanding of both sides of this

The legitimacy of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder has been a controversial topic since it’s recognition as a part of the DSM-III, although there is copious research proving how many children are affected by this disorder. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, ADHD may affect around 3-5 percent of children. Psychiatrist Sami Timimi and psychologist Nick Radcliffe believe that ADHD does not exist and that the rapid increase of children taking stimulant medication to control it since 1996 is astonishing. Timimi and Radcliffe assert that it is a disorder made up by Western culture in order to explain away normal behavior in adolescents. They claim that normal adolescent behavior is viewed as unacceptable in today’s self-indulgent society. There have been millions of dollars and countless hours spent funding research about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, how it affects children, and what is the cause of ADHD.

Attention Deficit hyperactive disorder is a prevalent and ever rising affliction in modern societies. “According to the American Psychiatric Association (2009), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common mental disorders in school-aged children(Saemi 179)”.While the initial response to handling the syndrome is to medicate it and continually medicate to stem the Simpsons. This is not a temporary instance to cure the disease just a never ending cycle. It is my belief that not only is the medication over prescribed, but the alternative methods are to quickly overlooked. To clarify, I do not argue that the medication is uncalled for and should be removed. Only that everyone who has the condition should be

“ADHD is the most extensively studied pediatric mental health disorder, yet controversy and public debate over the diagnosis and medication treatment of the disorder continue to exist.” (Connor D., P.1, 2011) Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is often a debated subject when the method of treatment is being discussed because it has become a trending issue to over medicate children with ADHD. A fitting label for the trend is the anesthetization of our youth, caused by government agency expansion and pharmaceutical allowances, and blame parents not advocating for their child better.

Over the past couple of decades there has been a huge increase in the diagnosis and prescriptions given out for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. According to a news report done by USA Today over the past five years use of ADHD medications have risen 40% totaling 39.5 million individual prescriptions ("New findings," 2009). When statistics like this are seen it is only normal for someone to ask questions. People are becoming curious about the legitimacy of the disorder, and whether or not the treatments being given to individuals are appropriate. The argument seems to be strong on both sides of the fence, but the extensive research done on ADHD leaves it hard for one to believe that it is a made up disorder.

The trending topic of ADHD and the medication provided has been widely criticized and reviewed for its long and short term affects. Most commonly the concerns are raised from parents struggling to decide whether or not to place their children diagnosed with ADHD on the available prescribed medication. The persistent controversy stems around the long- term effects of stimulant ADHD medication and the development of substance abuse within kids and adults (Zheng, Lichtenstein, Halldner, D’Onofrio, Serlachius, Fazel, Larsson, 2014). Many claims surround the condition is not adequately recognized, while others claim once diagnosed medication is pushed too hard on the parents without knowing the possible hidden dangers or complete understanding

A large percentage of Americans suffer from attention deficit disorder also known as ADHD. The news article I chose to write about is a U.S News article by Rachel Pomerance Berl titled Meds or No Meds? How to treat a child with ADHD. This article discusses ADHD and how many Americans are affected by this disorder but also when to treat or not treat a patient who claims to have ADHD. This disorder affects the way people focus, causes over activity and poor impulse control. ADHD can often begin to affect the individual’s life if the disorder is not properly treated.

Imagine if your child’s check up with the doctor resulted in your child being diagnosed with ADHD. You begin to ask yourself questions. Why? Did I ever notice it before? Could the doctor be wrong? Is it something I could have prevented? Will my child live a normal life? Now imagine over 5 million parents sitting in their child’s doctor’s office asking these same questions. Children across America continue to be over diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder also known as ADHD and rates continued to rise within the ongoing years.

They also claim that the full side effects of ADHD medication are still not known and could have harmful long- lasting side effects on the children taking the medications. The principle of beneficence must be applied by balancing the benefits the medication provides to those with ADHD along with the risks of possible side effects and that people, particularly children, that are not diagnosed with this disorder will be taking the medication. ADHD, or Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is one of the most common childhood disorders and can continue through adolescence and adulthood. Ritalin is currently prescribed to approximately six million people in the US. Of those six million, 75% of these are children for ADHD (nimh.nih.gov). Ritalin is a drug that stimulates the central nervous system. It interacts with chemicals in the brain and nerves that give way to hyperactivity and impulse control. There is another drug that given just as Ritalin, and it is called Adderall. Adderall is almost the exact same as Ritalin except it actually enters the cell and helps it produce more

Parents and teachers have given up on these children and they have been the ones who drop out of school or end up in prison. It is thought that by diagnosing ADHD early and treating it properly, children who might not have had a chance to succeed can now be successful. The advocates for diagnosis of ADHD also point out that the treatment of ADHD with prescription drugs is actually very small and only one out of every three children diagnosed with ADHD is actually treated with prescription drugs (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, para. 45).

Various surveys report that 8% to 35% of college students say they gave used stimulant pills to help them in school (Connor, 2011, p. 14-18). One problem with such stimulant drugs is that they can be addictive. The feeling a person gets on these stimulants is that similar to a seven hour long caffeine rush. The individual becomes addicted to this feeling and wants it all the time. This can result in the abuse of these medicines. Another problem is that they are easy to obtain. Doctors are quick to give a patient who shows symptoms of ADHD one of these stimulants without realizing the potential downfalls of them. Stimulants such as Adderall and Vyvanse can cause a wide range of side effects including, insomnia, aggression, worsened anxiety, mood and behavior changes, twitching, and shaking (Connor, 2011, p. 14-18). Side effects can be more serious in some, causing a sudden increase in blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, seizures, and in the worst cases, death (Connor, 2011, p. 14-18). Drugs this dangerous should not be prescribed as easily as they are. Patients should have to go through a full physical and mental examination before taking a drug that can be this harmful.

To add to that, the research that has been conducted on the disorder has led to a variety of effective treatments. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (2014) the most widely used medication is a stimulant. There is a wide variety of stimulants available for ADHD subjects. Although, with these stimulants come side effects including sleep problems, decreased appetite, anxiety and other diverse uncommon side effects (NIMH, 2014). Stimulants tend to calm children with ADHD. However, these medications can be detrimental to the patient in many ways. Certain medications have been subject to abuse, including Adderall and Ritalin. These medications are in some cases abused by patients who are over diagnosed. Since these patients do not have the disorder they can feel the side effects and use the drug to achieve a certain kind of high. When using these drugs for non-medical purposes they can seem to replicate the effects of cocaine

The purpose of this research was to describe and understand Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and the most effective treatment options that are available today. ADHD is a mental health disorder that affects 3-9% of the population in ways that, if left untreated, can wreak havoc on the mind of the sufferer. It makes concentration difficult, large tasks seem insurmountable, and causes impulsive and hyperactive tendencies. Fortunately, research and experiments have led to new and effective treatments to help those who suffer from this disorder (Dupaul 8). This research examined journal articles and internet sources on the topic to help unlock the complexities of the disorder through scientific research. It also was a way to

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder also most commonly known as ADHD is one of the most common disorders among children and young adults. It is not only the most common but is on the rise in the United States over the past decade. Many people turn to the internet to find answers on such a disorder as ADHD. However, one has to be careful in what they read, because some websites are not accurate and have lots of bias towards one thing or another dealing with the subject of ADHD. Everyday Health’s webpage on ADHD is a very informative source and well put together by using authority, coverage and objectivity.