By Dr. Mercola
Millions of US children are taking powerful mind-altering
drugs, often before they’re even old enough to attend school.
Oftentimes the side effects are far worse than the
conditions, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
(ADHD) for which they’re prescribed, and rival illegal street
drugs in terms of their dangerous risks to health.
In children, the long-term effects are often largely unknown,
while in the short term, we’ve seen shocking increases in
violent and aggressive acts committed by teens taking one or
more psychotropic drugs.
With the problem getting increasingly worse instead
of better, now is a perfect time to view Gary Null’s excellent
documentary, The Drugging of Our Children.
The number of prescriptions for psychotropic drugs for
children more than doubled between 1995 and 2000; the
documentary details the devastating consequences of this
excessive medicating of our children, with a focus on children
who have been diagnosed with ADHD.
Most Children Diagnosed with ADHD Are Given Drugs Even Though
Misdiagnosis Is Common
As the documentary points out, many of you reading this
probably don’t remember any kids in your class at school who
were taking mind-altering drugs. And that’s likely because the
vast majority were not.
In contrast, one in 10 US children is now claimed to have
ADHD, which is a 22 percent increase since 2003.1
About
two-thirds of the children diagnosed with ADHD are on some
form of prescription medication, which is unfortunate not only
because there are far better (and safer) treatment options but
also because many are misdiagnosed.
ADHD seems to have become more or less the catchall
designation for children who do not “behave well” -- and one
study determined that about 20 percent of children have likely
been misdiagnosed.2
That’s nearly 1 million children in the US alone.
The study found that many of the youngest children in any
given grade level are perceived as exhibiting “symptoms” of
ADHD, such as fidgeting and an inability to concentrate, simply
because they’re younger and being compared to their older, more
mature classmates.
The documentary, too, points out that an ADHD diagnosis is
often made, in part, on the highly subjective observations of
teachers or guardians, based on signs nearly every child will
display at some point (fidgeting, easily distracted, difficulty
waiting his or her turn, and so on), and with little regard for
other factors that could be aggravating a child’s behavior, such
as diet or home environment.
The outcome is, sadly, typically the same: another child
placed on powerful drugs, of which parents are often completely
unaware of the extreme side effects they carry.
We’re Talking Hard-Core ‘Class 2’ Narcotics
Drugs prescribed for ADHD are not "mild" by any means. These
are hard-core, "class 2" narcotics, regulated by the Drug
Enforcement Agency as a controlled substance because they can
lead to dependence. The majority of kids diagnosed with ADHD
will be prescribed these potentially dangerous drugs, the most
common being Ritalin.
By definition, Ritalin stimulates your central nervous system
and may certainly interfere with the delicate and complex
workings of your brain and personality. According to the US Food
and Drug Administration (FDA),3
side effects include:
Sudden death in people who have heart problems or heart
defects |
Stroke and heart attack |
Increased blood pressure |
New or worse behavior and thought problems |
New or worse bipolar illness |
New or worse aggressive behavior or hostility |
New psychotic symptoms (such as hearing voices,
believing things that are not true, are suspicious) |
New manic symptoms |
Increased heart rate |
Slowing of growth (height and weight) in children |
Seizures |
Eyesight changes or blurred vision |
There are reports of
children committing suicide while taking the drug, and the
long-term effects are unknown. Researchers have also revealed
that Ritalin appears to delay puberty, an effect that was
previously unknown, raising questions about what other effects
may have yet to be uncovered. Another common ADHD drug is
Adderall, which contains amphetamine (aka "speed") and
dextroamphetamine, and is used to reduce impulsiveness and
hyperactivity in patients with ADHD. Like Ritalin, Adderall can
cause potentially life-threatening side effects. Among them:
Aggressive behavior or hostility |
Bipolar illness |
Worse behavior or thought problems |
Psychotic symptoms (hearing voices, believing things
that are not true) or manic symptoms |
Sudden death in patients who have heart problems or
heart defects |
Stroke or heart attack |
Increased blood pressure and heart rate |
Seizures and eyesight changes |
Slowing of growth in children |
Kids Turned Into ‘Lifetime Paying Patients’
As Drugging of Our Children reveals, there is big
money to be made in prescribing medications to kids – especially
when those medications are intended to be taken for life,
as many psychotropic drugs are. What happens to kids once they
become medicated at a very young age, during some of his or her
key formative years?
Do these children grow up never knowing who they really are?
What passions they may have had if not under the drug's
influence? And will they be able to quit when they are older, or
will they be turned into life-long addicts? The answers to these
questions are unknown.
Further, a prescription for one medication has a tendency to
snowball into more prescriptions. If a child isn’t responding to
a medication, for instance, or is displaying side effects from
the drug, additional mind-altering drugs like antidepressants
(which are linked to suicide in kids and teens), sleeping pills
or anxiety medications may be prescribed.
The Diagnosis of Mental Illness in Kids Is Often Subjective
Remember, what makes this all the more appalling is that the
diagnosis of mental illness in children is far from an exact
science. Modern psychiatry has expanded its reach to the point
that even the most normal of emotions and mental states now fall
under one labeled "disorder" or another. They have been able to
cleverly redefine mental illness with the use of the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).
This book is created by members of the American Psychiatric
Association.
You would think that diseases are put in this book after
evaluating carefully executed scientific trials, but nothing
could be further from the truth. Additions and changes to this
manual are determined by votes by its members. This
categorization is NOT based on science at all!
It is well documented that psychiatric drugs in general and
atypical antipsychotics specifically, are misused across the
board. Children as young as 18 months are now receiving
antipsychotic drugs, despite the fact that the diseases they're
designed to treat rarely develop before adolescence. So why are
toddlers receiving these potent drugs? Sadly, one of
the key reasons these drugs are used is because of their
sedative effect. They're typically prescribed to control
"disruptive" behavior – not to treat severe mental illness.
It’s also come to light recently that the Harvard
psychiatrists who invented the pediatric bipolar diagnosis were
disciplined for conflicts of interest4
after it was revealed they'd all received millions of dollars in
undeclared drug company monies.
Parents Jailed for Not Wanting Their Kids on Drugs?
Perhaps one of the most disturbing trends covered in the
documentary are parents being treated like criminals, and in
some cases sent to prison, for making a conscious decision to
keep their kids off drugs.
While certain US states have already enacted legislation to
protect against this very issue, and prevent schools and child
protection officials from forcing parents to give their children
drugs, it still happens
more often than you might think. More and more, we're seeing
courts siding with misguided government officials in closed
family-court proceedings. Parents are increasingly cut out of
the decision-making process about what's in their child's best
interest with regard to their health.
And it’s not only an issue in the US, either. Australia's
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) issued
controversial draft guidelines last year that imply a child
could be taken into protective custody if a
parent refuses to give their child ADHD drugs. In the case
of Australia's NHMRC, the committee's guidelines were already
mired with controversy, as its original chairman, Daryl Effron,
reportedly resigned because he was affiliated with drug
companies that produce ADHD drugs!
Seek Effective Alternatives Before Resorting to Drugs
As a parent, you must be your child’s advocate and fight
against allowing the profit of powerful corporations to come
before your children's health. If your child is suffering from
an emotional or mental challenge, please seek help, but do so
from someone who does not regard psychotropic drugs as a first
line of defense. Please understand that behavioral problems in
children – including what might appear to be serious
mental disorders – are very frequently related to improper diet,
emotional upset and exposure to toxins.
Increasingly, scientific evidence shows that nourishing your
gut flora with the beneficial bacteria found in traditionally
fermented foods (or a probiotic supplement) is extremely
important for proper brain function, and that includes
psychological well-being and mood control.
Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride has successfully demonstrated
the power and effectiveness of this theory. In her Cambridge,
England clinic, she successfully treats children and adults with
a wide range of conditions, including autism, ADD/ADHD,
neurological disorders, psychiatric disorders, immune disorders,
and digestive problems using the GAPS (Gut and Psychology
Syndrome) Nutritional Program, which she developed.
Her GAPS theory – which is fully explained in her excellent
book, Gut
and Psychology Syndrome – is an elegant description of
how such conditions can develop as a direct result of
gastrointestinal toxicity. Another helpful tool is my three-part
interview with renowned children's health expert, the late Dr.
Lendon Smith, on
Non-Drug Treatment of ADD/ADHD. Here are a few additional
guidelines to help you address underlying toxins in your child,
without, or at least BEFORE, you agree to any kind of drug
therapy:
- Severely limit or eliminate fructose from your child's
diet as
sugar/fructose has been linked to mental health problems
such as depression and schizophrenia.
- Avoid giving your child ANY processed foods, especially
those containing artificial colors, flavors, and
preservatives. This includes lunchmeats and hot dogs, which
are common food staples in many households.
- Replace soft drinks, fruit juices, and pasteurized milk
with pure water. This is HUGE since high fructose corn syrup
is a primary source of calories in children.
- Make sure your child is getting large regular doses of
healthy bacteria, either with high-quality fermented organic
foods and/or high-quality probiotic supplements.
- Give your child plenty of high-quality, animal-based
omega-3 fats like krill oil. Also, make sure to balance your
child's intake of omega-3 and omega-6 fats, by
simultaneously limiting their intake of vegetable oils.
- Include as many whole organic foods as possible in your
child's diet, both to reduce chemical exposure and increase
nutrient content of each meal. See my
nutrition plan for a comprehensive guide to healthful
eating.
- Also reduce or eliminate grains from your child's diet,
especially wheat. Beyond the fact that even healthy organic
whole grains can cause problems as they too break down into
sugars, gluten-containing grains have pharmacologically
active peptides that can contribute to cognitive and
behavioral issues in susceptible children.
Additionally, whole and even sprouted wheat contains
physiologically significant amounts of
wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), which can have adverse
effects on mental health due to its neurotoxic actions.
Wheat can also interfere with the production of serotonin,
the largest concentration of which can, again, be found in
your intestines, not your brain. Try eliminating all
gluten-containing grains first for 1-2 weeks and see if you
don't notice a significant improvement in your child's
behavior.
- Avoid artificial sweeteners and colors of all kinds.
- Make sure your child gets plenty of exercise and outdoor
playtime, remembering that midday sunlight provides the UVB
wavelengths necessary to produce vitamin D3.
- Get them out into the sun to help maintain
optimal vitamin D levels. Scientists are now beginning
to realize vitamin D is involved in maintaining the health
of your brain, as they've recently discovered vitamin D
receptors in the brain, spinal cord, and central nervous
system. There's even evidence indicating vitamin D improves
your
brain's detoxification process. For children and
pregnant women, getting enough vitamin D is especially
crucial, as it may play a major role in protecting infants
from autism.
If natural sun exposure is not feasible, for whatever
reason, you can use either a safe tanning bed or an oral
vitamin D3 supplement.
- Give your child a way to address his or her emotion
health. Even children can benefit from the
Emotional Freedom
Technique (EFT), which you or an
EFT practitioner can teach them to use.
- Be sure you are also providing positive praise to your
child. Dr. Smith believed parents should be able to
say nice things to their child twice as often as they give
commands or ask questions. If you are shouting and
scolding more than you are complimenting and rewarding your
child, it could be contributing to psychiatric problems.
- Prevent exposure to toxic metals and chemicals by
replacing personal care products, detergents and household
cleaners with all natural varieties. Metals like aluminum,
cadmium, lead and mercury are commonly found in thousands of
different food products, household products, personal
products and untold numbers of industrial products and
chemicals. Also be aware of exposure to metals from
vaccinations and dental fillings. The presence of
toxic metals in your child's body is highly significant,
as they are capable of causing serious health problems by
interfering with normal biological functioning. The health
effects range from minor physical ailments to chronic
diseases, and altered mood and behavior.
© Copyright 1997-2013 Dr. Joseph Mercola. All Rights Reserved.