Aspartame has now been on the market for many years and most people seemingly haven’t had adverse reactions. Or have they? Russell L. Blaylock, M.D. warns that many people don’t notice of the serious symptoms because “they’re more resistant to the obvious toxic effects, but they’re still getting very subtle toxic effects that over many years is going to produce obvious disease in those persons.” However, some people have had more direct, severe reactions. For example, FDA officials have estimated that only 1% of toxic reactions are likely to get reported and the agency received reports of 7,000 toxic reactions with aspartame from 1982 until 1995. In fact, there were likely more official reports of toxicity, but we can’t be sure to the extent. After all, Congress found out in 1987 that the FDA had been transferring aspartame toxicity calls to the AIDS Hotline. Americans are generally unaware that some of the most frequently prescribed drugs are nearly identical to illegal street drugs. For instance, Ritalin, or methylphenidate, is prescribed for Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD). Ritalin, like Adderall, is a stimulant that produces virtually the same effects as amphetamines. Now, Americans consume approximately 90% of the world’s Ritalin. Certainly, there are children that seem to benefit from these drugs, but there’s clearly a profit motive that results in unnecessary prescriptions. Some studies estimate that as many as 1,000,000 American children are
Aspartame is extremely poisonous, and here is why. One of the toxic ingredients of Aspartame is wood alcohol. When the temperature of Aspartame exceeds 86 degrees F, the wood alcohol in the Aspartame is converted to formaldehyde, and then to formic acid, which in turn causes metabolic acidosis. Formaldehyde is grouped in the same class of poisons as Cyanide and Arsenic – which are very deadly toxins. The only difference is… Formaldehyde kills quietly, and it takes a little longer. And, in the process of killing people, it causes all kinds of neurological problems.” (Harder, 2016)
Annually, the US spends $300 billion dollars on pharmaceutical drugs. This is due to the over-diagnosing of certain conditions. Everyday, Americans are exposed to an enormous amount of advertisements for medications of all kinds. For example, 1 in 10 Americans are taking
Stolz explains that college students across the U.S. are taking advantage of the black market from the stimulate and using it as a study drug (2012). With easy access, students have no issue finding a source, whether it’s illegally from someone willing to sell their own prescription for quick cash, or getting it wrongly prescribed from a clinic (Stolz, 2012). Health clinics in colleges are a convenient source of medical care, but they are also providing an effortless opportunity for any student to obtain a prescription through misdiagnosis. Stolz (2012), discloses that students in college are able to simply walk in without an appointment, mention a few key symptoms such as trouble focusing and conveniently acquire a prescription for Adderall. The on-campus clinics eliminate the need for appointments and advanced prolonged testing with psychiatrists allowing the students to receive an ADHD diagnosis easily (Stolz
We in America tend to take medications for almost any problem we have, from headaches to gastrointestinal pain, to more serious chronic disorders such as depression and attention deficit disorder. While many of the uses of such medications may be necessary and legitimate, many are not, and due to this fact, many people become dependent on medications, mentally, and or physically. This problem is not simply the fault of the individual; in fact, the blame can also be placed upon the medical community, and the pharmaceutical companies who produce the drugs. How often can one turn on the television to see advertisements for Claritin, Aspirin, Pepto-Bismol, or even Zoloft or Ritalin? The pharmaceutical industry is motivated by monetary
There are many reasons people misuse or abuse prescription drugs like for instance they think it’s a safer way than to use illegal drugs, they are “not addictive”, or they are easier to acquire than illegal drugs. Approximately 40% of adolescents reported that they thought prescription drugs are much safer to use than illegal drugs, even if they are not prescribed by a doctor (Bukstein and Nquyen). The accessibility to prescription drugs is at a high. People acquire the drugs through diversion which is the most common means of obtaining prescriptions for unintended purposes (Elliott). Diversion is the channeling of prescription drugs from legal use to illegal use (Ford and Watkins). Getting drugs from siblings,
to unnecessarily overprescribe medications to their pediatric patients. Of these prescription drugs, opioid pain killers, antibiotics, and psychiatric medications are the most commonly overprescribed in child care. For example, opioid prescriptions have increased 300 percent in the past seventeen years (Boerner 20), over 50 million unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions are written each year (Murray 266), and 6.4 million psychiatric prescriptions are given to children between the ages of four and seventeen each year (Johnson 19). The overprescribing of these medications leads to children experiencing unnecessary side effects, increases the chances of addictions, and encourages drug resistance. In this essay, I will be proposing that there should be a (i) government enforced set of extensive regulations and checklists that each patient must fulfill before receiving a prescription and (ii) governmental laws prohibiting careless prescribing by doctors and hold doctors more accountable for the prescriptions they write.
As the pressure on students to perform well in school becomes more apparent, students in response have started to abuse ADHD medication not prescribed to them as a way to focus in on their studies. Over 6% of high school seniors abuse these types of drugs, and this number is projected to increase as the number of ADHD (diagnoses’ ???) cases rise in the United States. My county specifically has seen a sharp rise in this type of drug misuse. This summer, I was given the opportunity to work in conjunction with the United Way of Forsyth County as an intern. I was assigned to the youth drug council awareness team with the goal of finding solutions to reduce teen ADHD drug usage in my county.
America is at war. We have been battling drug mishandle for very nearly a century. Four Presidents have by and by battled against medications. Sadly, it is a war that we are losing. Tranquilize abusers keep on filling our courts, healing centers, and detainment facilities. The medication exchange causes rough wrongdoing that assaults our neighborhoods. Offspring of medication abusers are ignored, manhandled, and even surrendered. The main recipients of this war are sorted out wrongdoing individuals and street pharmacists.
There are a variety of stakeholders that have influence over the abuse and exploitation of controlled prescription medication, some are supporters and some are opponents. All levels of government are aware of this epidemic and have a role to play in supporting the reduction of controlled substance abuse. According to the latest numbers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 1999 to 2009 the number of deaths from narcotic pills almost quadrupled to 15,597, more than the combined number of deaths of heroin and cocaine abuse. “A renewed focus on drug prevention is a major component of the Obama Administration's effort to implement a public health approach to reducing drug abuse and its consequences. Research shows that preventing drug use before it begins is a cost-effective, common-sense approach to promoting safe and healthy communities.” (Community-based prevention, 2012) The government can play a critical role
The earliest human records attest to the fact that human beings have been using addictive narcotics since we were hunter-gatherers. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, physicians prescribed drugs like opium, morphine, cocaine and even heroin in the United States. (Crocq 355) Currently, these substances are either highly regulated or they are outright illegal. The irony here is that the the largest pharmaceutical companies or Big Pharma as they are better known, are selling the general public narcotics that are just as addictive and harmful as what the many gangs in the United States are selling to their customer base. The last statement may sound extreme, however, the third leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer are prescription drugs both in the United States and in Europe. (Gotzche 628) Unfortunately, these pharmaceutical companies are not satisfied with just making us addicts, they are also bankrupting the American consumer and our health care system. The statistics of deaths and the criminal practices of these pharmaceutical companies are distressing, however, it is not surprising since their main objective is to maximize profits. First, let us take a look at some of the offenders.
Medicine has been around for thousands of years and has diversified and given us many options to treat illness or pain. Some are available as over-the-counter drugs that can be purchased almost anywhere and others require you to get a prescription from your doctor in order to get it. Some of these drugs that require a prescription often help people who deal with chronic pain, those who are at the end of their life, or cancer patients. Unfortunately these drugs, although helpful to those who need them, are being abused by millions of Americans every year. With doctors prescribing ludicrous amounts of prescription drug, sometimes when it is not even necessary, and our lack of knowledge on the subject, prescription drug abuse has become a big
One of the fastest growing epidemics in the United States is prescription drug abuse as reported by the DEA (Partnership for Drug Free Kids, 2013). All ages are guilty of abuse of medications, however, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (2016) reports young adults abuse these prescription drugs at the highest rates compared to all other age groups. The NIDA reports misuse and abuse is highest among opioid pain relievers, ADHD stimulants, and anti-anxiety drugs (NIDA, 2016). The use of these prescription drugs to treat a variety of physical and mental health issues is quickly becoming a top conservative treatment option. While pharmaceutical companies make extreme amounts of profit off of these physical and mental issues, young adults are increasingly taking on the consequences of addiction and overdose.
Everyday there are children receiving some kind of prescribed drug for psychological problems such as ADHD,anxiety disorder,autism,and many other disorders.However, children that are given prescribed drugs are usually given to them for convenience rather than necessity.Providing a child prescribed drugs at such a young age can lead to problems with their health in the future as well as other harming side effects,also nutrition is often overlooked and drugs prescribed may be doing more harm than good.Further more, children that are diagnosed with a psychological disorder and receive public assistance are more likely to receive off label medication which can be more dangerous. Therefore, children are not capable of sustaining the effects of prescribed medication because some children may be overdiagnosed and drugged for “parent convenience” ,there are dangerous long term side effects to some of
We as people often take medications for any problem we may have, from headaches to conditions that are more serious. While most prescribed medication is necessary, some of it is not. Many children are being given medication when they don’t need it. According to a statistics report done by the National Institute of Mental Health, there has been a 21% increase in the number of children on psychiatric drugs from 1988-1994 to 2007-2010. These children are given drugs for emotional and/or behavioral problems. While some children do have conditions that require medication, many do not. The most common disorder for children in America is ADHD, according the CCHR, a report done by IMS Health, which is
Since 2000, the drug use rate in America has risen to the highest it’s ever been. In a survey done in 2009, 8.7 percent of people age 12 and up said that they used illegal substances within a month of taking the survey, a 9 percent increase since 2008 (Abuse, National Institute on Drug, 2010). This statistic alone is very concerning due to