ADD and ADHD: Over-diagnosed?

[Venetia]

According to a new report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 1.6 million elementary school-aged children have been diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). In a national survey, the parents of 7 percent of children 6-11 years of age reported ever being told by a doctor or health professional that their child had ADHD.

The report, "Prevalence of Attention Deficit Disorder and Learning Disability," based on 1997-98 data from CDCs National Health Interview Survey, shows that about one-half of children diagnosed with ADHD have also been identified as having a learning disability.

The report details many of the characteristics of children with ADHD, learning disability, and children with both conditions. Among children with a diagnosis of only ADHD, boys were nearly three times as likely as girls to have this diagnosis. White non-Hispanic children were more than twice as likely as Hispanic and black non-Hispanic children to report a diagnosis of ADHD.

"There has been concern in some circles that ADHD has been over-diagnosed among those with regular access to health care," said Fleming. "And there is equal concern that the problem may be under-diagnosed among those who have limited or no access to care. It’s clearly important to accurately identify children with ADHD and ensure that they have appropriate health care."

Dr. Russell Barkley has listed a number of statistics concerning ADHD:

* A classroom with 30 students will have between 1 and 3 children with ADHD.
* Boys are diagnosed with ADHD 3 times more often than girls.
* Emotional development in children with ADHD is 30% slower than in their non-ADD peers. This means that a child that is 10 years old will have the emotional development of a 7 year old, a 20 year old will have the emotional maturity of a 14 year old.
* One fourth of children with ADHD have serious learning disabilities such as: oral expression, listening skills, reading comprehension and/or math.
* 65% of children with ADHD exhibit problems in defiance or problems with authority figures. This can include verbal hostility and temper tantrums.
* 75% of boys diagnosed with ADD/ADHD have hyperactivity.
* 60% of girls diagnosed with ADD/ADHD have hyperactivity.
* 50% of children with ADHD experience sleep problems.
* Teenagers with ADHD have almost four times as many traffic citations as non-ADD/ADHD drivers. They have four times as many car accidents and are seven times more likely to have a second accident.
* 21% of teens with ADHD skip school on a regular basis, and 35% drop out of school before finishing high school.
* 45% of children with ADHD have been suspended from school at least once.
* 30% of children with ADHD have either repeated a year in school.

Overdiagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
doreka.com (a site dedicated to information on ADD & ADHD)

Attention deficit disorder (ADD) is a syndrome of disordered learning and disruptive behavior that is not caused by any serious underlying physical or mental disorder and that has several subtypes characterized primarily by inattentiveness, primarily by hyperactivity and impulsive behavior, or by the significant expression of both.

If the diagnosis of attention deficit disorder were as simple as saying that a child is bored and can not sit still, Einstein, Ted Turner, and Bill Gates could all have been considered to have had attention deficit disorder.

The fact is that ADD is overdiagnosed, and harmful medications used to treat the condition are overprescribed.

As a result, children who actually do have attention deficit disorder are left with the difficulty of getting the appropriate treatment and management they so desperately need.

One should remember that not every wiggle of a small child is a symptom of ADD.

Not only can other conditions mimic attention deficit disorder, but one could even say that some doctors are trying to medicate away what are essentially normal childhood behaviors.

One to two percent of adult men and women in the United States have been said to have attention deficit disorder, and three to ten percent of children are diagnosed with attention deficit disorder in the Untied States, with three quarters of them boys.

Teachers around the country routinely push pills on any students who are even a little inattentive or overactive.

Teachers are usually well meaning individuals who have the best interest of their students in mind. However, when they see students who are struggling to pay attention and concentrate, it is not their responsibility to diagnose the child. Instead, they should bring information to the parents' attention so that these can take appropriate action.

After the teacher provides sufficient information, the parents of the child need to have a full evaluation conducted outside the school.

There is evidence of widespread overdiagnosis and misdiagnosis of attention deficit disorder and widespread overprescription of medications by physicians.

Because patients do not feel euphoria or develop tolerance or craving, there is little danger of drug abuse or addiction.

However, there is a big danger in using medications such as methylphenidate, dextroamphetamine, and pemoline when treatment is not necessary.

Behavior therapy in a more formal sense may be useful to prevent a particular kind of aggressive or disruptive behavior that occurs in a few specific circumstances.

Providing more discipline along with other interventions can help improve the behavior of children with ADD.

For children who truly have attention deficit disorder, Ritalin and other medications have been very effective, but the drug is not at all effective for those who do not have the disorder. In fact, the drug only makes matters worse.



What is your take on ADD or ADHD, prescribed to children under the age of 18?
Do you think that the widespread prescribing of mind-altering drugs on minors is a good thing? Do you think it is a benefit to society and/or their growth, or is it a detriment? What would you do if your child were diagnosed with it? Were you?

 

[silver wind]

I have a problem with how the diagnose is done.. It costs way too much, at least in my country.
Therefore, the kids whose parents can afford it, get reliefs in exams, in university, etc-- it is VERY easy to cheat the test, so often they don't even need the reliefs-- while kids who really suffer from ADD but can't afford the test, don't get the reliefs, fail exams, get discouraged and drop out of school. I've seen it with my own eyes

 

[Incognitus]

Isn't a shame children aren't allowed to be excitable anymore?



It's also a pity considering most of the world's best artists, musicians and poets would have been diagnosed with ADHD - and "cured".

 

[Glitchfinder]

I was diagnosed with ADHD years ago, and showed all the hallmarks of the disorder. Not only was I hyperactive, inattentive, and easily angered by authority figures, but I was shown to have a nasty reaction to Ritalin. (It made me violently ill) I currently take other medications, and, if I forget to take them, I find it hard to sit still, both because I have too much energy and because I feel physically uncomfortable in nearly any position, if I am not moving. I will also find myself easily angered and less able to focus if I don't take my medication. In fact, if it weren't for my medications and some training and sessions with professionals, I would probably not have made it through high school, much less have the ability to keep a job and easily pass my classes in college. So, although I fear that many people are misdiagnosed, I'm simply glad that I was diagnosed, as it helped me a great deal.

 

[Ellie]

All I know is, real or not, the kid with ADHD in my classroom was definately extremely disruptive before meds and really calm after taking them. I'm talking setting fire to things and all sorts. I don't really know that much about it but I do know he was still taking meds until 18, and then they cut them because of school leaving, and now he's in a right state. He keeps going into fits and shaking violently, and muttering to himself randomly. I mean from what I've seen, pills do not solve the problem, they merely postpone it until they are taken away at which point the problem gets worse.

 

[gRaViJa]

My brother is a teacher. He said that about 50% of his pupils has either ADHD or ADD, but that most of them don't need any meds and they aren't more active then other pupils. It looks like whenever a child has a boost of energy doctors say it's because he has ADD. I'm pretty sure that ADD is overdiagnosed. (Here in belgium at least)

 

[Zelfouz]

When I was in the second grade of elementary school, my older brother had health problems and required a lot of attention. As a consequence, I got very little attention, and started being a hyperactive little asshole. I almost got put on ritalin, because my teacher was a whiny bitch and thought I had adhd.

I am convinced that in most cases there must be an underlying cause that parents and teachers are simply too lazy to deal with. Given that ritalin has long term effects on brain function, I think it's advisable to try properly raising your kids rather than prescribing drugs.

 

[Gen0cide_]

Yeah, people dont seem to realise how powerful ritalin is, its got the same active ingredient as cocaine, yet we feed it to 1.6million kids. Commodore Whynot put <i>really calm</i> in italics for a reason, I've seen he effects its had on kids and it really is too powerful. I 6 year old boy should not be so calm that he sits there staring at a cup for half his life and its alright for him to be a bit rebellious in school because you wouldn't want him to be a little pussy and not stand up for what he believes.

I wouldn't take Ritalin if Jessica Alba offered it to me on a silver spoon.

Oh and Comm, i suspect your friend is having problems now that are very similar to Cocaine withdrawal symptoms. Three guesses why.

 

[Glitchfinder]

Yeah, people dont seem to realise how powerful ritalin is, its got the same active ingredient as cocaine, yet we feed it to 1.6million kids. Commodore Whynot put <i>really calm</i> in italics for a reason, I've seen he effects its had on kids and it really is too powerful. I 6 year old boy should not be so calm that he sits there staring at a cup for half his life and its alright for him to be a bit rebellious in school because you wouldn't want him to be a little pussy and not stand up for what he believes.

I wouldn't take Ritalin if Jessica Alba offered it to me on a silver spoon.

Oh and Comm, i suspect your friend is having problems now that are very similar to Cocaine withdrawal symptoms. Three guesses why.

You don't even need three guesses. Pretty much any substance used for treatment of ADD and ADHD, if used for an extended period of time, then suddenly cut off, can produce withdrawal. A notable exception being some derivatives of Dexidrine. (Or however you spell that shit)

 

[Sir]

I have add/adhd and ocd(Obsessive compuslive disorder, however mine isn't like BAD like you won't notice it unless i point it out)

I'm not on medication any longer haven't been for a while, but the medication did work when i needed it, for say for ADHD i took dexemphetamine (first) and Ritalin later. Basically all they do is correctly balance a chemical in the brain.

When on ritalin, however i am calm and calculated. Without it i find it hard to
concentrate for long periods of time.

Basically OCD, Mine isn't bad, but if i told you what to look out for you'll see it. Basically i'll have to be doing something with my body like tapping my fingers or moving my leg or something, it doesn't have to be huge but i have to be doing something i can't sit still.

It's not much information as i don't know much more then that (wierd) but yeah that's pretty much what i see


EDIT: no, not cocaine, ritalin is speed based, like most adhd drugs

 

[Brewmeister]

When I was in grade school, there was no such thing as ADD/ADHD. If you couldn't pay attention, you got smacked with a yardstick until you learned to pay attention. I don't recall this non-pharmaceutical treatment ever not working.

All kids have chemical imbalances, it's goes along with a rapidly developing body & mind.

My son's kindergarten teacher told us he was ADD & needed meds. I had the principal move him to a class with a teacher who kept him busy, and he excelled.

I think, in most cases, that giving a kid a drug teaches them that "It's not their fault", and gives them no reason to learn self-control / self-discipline, or to be accountable for their own actions.

In extreme cases medication may be a solution, but the goal should not be to medicate the kid back to 'normal'. It should be to get the kid to the point where they can learn to control themselves.

 

[Kuahewa huki 'ino]

When on ritalin, however i am calm and calculated. Without it i find it hard to
concentrate for long periods of time.

Isn't this kind of indicative of dependency, dearie?

I am eternally thankful to my parents for this. Growing up, I had a somewhat... hippy-ish teacher who thought I was a bit overactive. I was recommended for The Pills, but having skeptical values my parents pretty much laughed her right out of the confrence room. I grew up to be entirely fine. I grew up to have quite the knack for writing fun characterizations that editors and publishers took a shine to. I hate to think of what alternative adult life would've been waiting for me if I'd been put on them.

I've had a few friends who grew up on Ritalin et al, but I saw little difference between them on or off--since we were already in boarding school, they had their own free reign of their pill schedules and seemed to not want to take them, saving them for times when it would be "fun" to get whatever high they got from them.

Long story short, I believe the same thing I was raised to believe--ADD is a laughing matter, the pills are nothing to scoff at and are pretty much absolutely horrible, and anyone who thinks it's real is so full of shit that they may as well take advice from the daytime TV interpersonal specialist of their choice (and they probably already do).

 

[Glitchfinder]

Long story short, I believe the same thing I was raised to believe--ADD is a laughing matter, the pills are nothing to scoff at and are pretty much absolutely horrible, and anyone who thinks it's real is so full of shit that they may as well take advice from the daytime TV interpersonal specialist of their choice (and they probably already do).

This really does depend on who you ask. ADD and ADHD are officially recognized psychological disorders. I know this because they are literally in the book. What book, you may ask? The one and only book used through much of the western world for diagnosis and treatment of psychological, the DSM-IV. (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) Now, although this isn't necessarily a guarantee that it exists, the manual did mention that due to the unusually wide variety of symptoms and situations, it was entirely possible that both ADD and ADHD are actually several disorders that appear to be very similar, yet have very different sources.

Also, think about this: correlation never implies causation. You are implying that, just because some people are fine without meds, everyone is fine without meds. This is similar to how many parents believe that a specific vaccination recommended in early childhood causes autism, simply because the syndrome normally develops at roughly the same time. The reason this belief remains, despite numerous studies proving that there is no correlation between the two (Autism develops in the same ratio of children, with or without the vaccine), people are more inclined to believe anecdotal evidence over hard fact. In both cases, a logical fallacy is being made, and both cases have no evidence that really disproves them.

Incidentally, ADHD and ADD are classified as "Childhood disorders", meaning that they have a tendency to develop in childhood and fade as a person ages, often with the help of therapy and training. So yes, you knew these people while they had prescriptions for medication, and weren't taking the pills. But, that does not mean that they weren't developing beyond the point where ADD and ADHD would be noticeable in them, by that time.

 

[Sir]

When on ritalin, however i am calm and calculated. Without it i find it hard to
concentrate for long periods of time.

Isn't this kind of indicative of dependency, dearie?

I am eternally thankful to my parents for this. Growing up, I had a somewhat... hippy-ish teacher who thought I was a bit overactive. I was recommended for The Pills, but having skeptical values my parents pretty much laughed her right out of the confrence room. I grew up to be entirely fine. I grew up to have quite the knack for writing fun characterizations that editors and publishers took a shine to. I hate to think of what alternative adult life would've been waiting for me if I'd been put on them.

I've had a few friends who grew up on Ritalin et al, but I saw little difference between them on or off--since we were already in boarding school, they had their own free reign of their pill schedules and seemed to not want to take them, saving them for times when it would be "fun" to get whatever high they got from them.

Long story short, I believe the same thing I was raised to believe--ADD is a laughing matter, the pills are nothing to scoff at and are pretty much absolutely horrible, and anyone who thinks it's real is so full of shit that they may as well take advice from the daytime TV interpersonal specialist of their choice (and they probably already do).

I believe, that your belief is wrong.

Firstly, because i have a chemical imbalance in my head, i can't get high off of ritalin, i have seen what it does to people without it, and it doesn't even do half of what it does to them, to me. All it does is allow me to concentrate longer.

Yes it's true, ADD and what not is getting thrown around alot, but that doesn't mean that it isn't real.

I don't take medication anymore not because it doesn't work or because i don't think it works. I decided not to take it, because i'd rather not be thought of as a retard, i try and act like i'm normal, but infact i'm not.

And indicative, i find it hard to understand that word, yet i know what it means i just can't place how you meant it.

Besides that, just because i have ADD doesn't mean i can't notice what i act like when i am on or off medication.

But basically, ADD is real, and it does affect concentration, moods, and hyperactivity.

 

[Ellie]

Stephen Fry said: ADHD has always existed and always will - nowadays they give pills and people still have problems. In his day they used to whack you into place and he can't remember a single one it didn't work on. :box:

 

[Sir]

That's total bull, i used to get bashed by me mum when i was younger, i've been in foster care for the past 4 years and about 3 years when i was younger.

Whacking it out doesn't do crap. except now i can take a hit or two :P

 

[High Hopes]

I'd like to point out that the reason most ADD and ADHD sufferers have trouble sleeping is because Ritalin and Adderall, the two most commonly used drugs to treat these conditions, are psychostimulants. I take Adderall for ADD, and it's the main malefactor(probably not the correct usage of the term, but whatever) of my sleepless nights.

I have been diagnosed with ADD as well. Without Adderall, I have do not have the ability to concentrate on something boring for more than fifteen seconds. The cause of this, I feel, is the sheer amount of thoughts going through my head at once. Adderall gives me the ability to filter out the unimportant thoughts like "Oh god Nigel McGuiness is going back to TNA", and focus on the most important thoughts like my homework or whatever project I happen to be working on at the time. Your experience with ADD seems to be centered around what drug you happen to take for it. I'm on Adderall and I experience minimal withdrawal effects(some nausea), minimal side effects, and massive boosts to my concentration ability and tolerance(I can ignore hunger for ages while on it).


If there's anything that's unclear, I'll try to clear it up. I know I probably screwed something up.

 

[Sir]

Yeah, just read another post, i always take responsibility for my actions, not once do i blame it on add, because yes ADD is there, and it does affect me, BUT all in all it doesn't control me, i still control what i do, it's just how like Tommy says, how long your attention span is without it haha XD

 

[nikki]

Theres a diagnosis for every annoying habit or personality that a human being can have. Everybody gets bored, restless or depressed sometimes. Using meds to cover up these very human feelings only prevents people from dealing with the root cause of their problems. But thats all been said before.

Is ADD real? I dont know...but I think if I was still a child today, someone would want to diagose me with some bullshit "disorder" because I was different than the other kids. Clearly, add is very much over diagnosed, but the real problem is:

People simply cannot accept personal responsiblity anymore. Its ALWAYS someone else's fault. My parents abused me, I grew up poor, my daddy didnt love me, the white man hates me, blah blah blah. If humanity was always this weak and self absorbed then we would have never left the caves and built a civilization.

Its fun to play the victim, it sure does make life a lot easier when people lower their expectations of you. Used to be, most people were too proud to pretend just so they can get pity and an easy ride through life. Nowadays, "pride" is considered a personality flaw.

 

[Glitchfinder]

"Pride" has been one of the seven deadly sins for centuries. The phrase "Pride comes before a fall" is ancient, and has been translated to many different languages. As for ADD and ADHD, it has been shown that the medication they are given behaves differently in children who have the disorder, when compared to children without it. It has also been shown that these disorders often include a very real chemical imbalance in the brain, which affects behavior.