could just as easily been tylenol...in fact...more kids od on tylenol than
psych drugs...as tylenol is likely in many more..if not all home
"news.chi.sbcglobal.net" <kureforcrohns@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:jAT3k.11465$Ri.5865@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Should be required reading for every Physician. The situation has
> become one of the doctor is working for the pharmaceutical company
> foremost and then the child or person if he/she can conform the
treatment
> to the pharmaceutical dictation.
> Gail
>
> "Ilena Rose" <BIA@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
> news:n27r445sscmtgk966kr144t1qpvjc3r1ge@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> News from Health Lover, Ilena Rosenthal:
>> http://ilenarose.blogspot.com
>>
>>
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-w-whitehead/no-child-left-undrugged_b_106032.html
>>
>> No Child Left Undrugged
>>
>> According to autopsy re****ts, 4-year-old Rebecca Riley died from an
>> overdose of psychiatric drugs. At age 2, Rebecca was diagnosed with
>> attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). At 3, she was
>> diagnosed with bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression. By
>> the time she died on Dec. 13, 2006, little Rebecca was taking
>> Clonidine, as well as the anti-convulsant Depakote and the
>> anti-psychotic Seroquel.
>>
>> What were some of the symptoms that prompted such treatment plans? As
>> her mother described it, Rebecca was "constantly getting into things,
>> running around, not being able to settle down."
>>
>> Rebecca's diagnosis was not a medical aberration. Her 10-year-old
>> brother and 4-year-old sister were already being treated for manic
>> depression. Indeed, nearly one million children are re****tedly
>> diagnosed as bipolar, making it more common than autism and diabetes
>> combined. From 1994 to 2003, the number of children treated for
>> bipolar disorder increased 40 percent, a jump that many experts
>> attribute to more doctors aggressively applying the diagnosis.
>>
>> An increasing number of medical officials are voicing the concern that
>> children are being misdiagnosed. Dr. John McClellan, who runs a
>> children's psychiatric hospital in the state of Wa****ngton, suggested
>> that the bipolar diagnosis has become a catch-all for aggressive and
>> troubled children.
>>
>> Likewise, child psychiatrist John Holttum believes that the definition
>> of bipolar disorder is expanding. Whereas children who were seen as
>> troubled or irritable 10 or 15 years ago might have been treated with
>> counseling, parental training for their caregivers or other social
>> interventions, children with similar symptoms today are being
>> diagnosed as bipolar and treated with medication. Unfortunately, for
>> many families, therapy is not even an option. According to Dr. Michael
>> Brody, a child psychiatrist at the University of Maryland, since
>> insurance companies often do not sup****t therapy, most parents opt for
>> medication.
>>
>> Not surprisingly, the pharmaceutical companies are reaping the
>> rewards, aided by the medical community and the media. Bipolar
>> disorder medication is typically three to five times more expensive
>> than medications prescribed for other disorders, such as depression or
>> anxiety. As the News Tribune of Tacoma, Wash., points out, "Furthering
>> the trend is extensive marketing of atypical anti-psychotics by the
>> companies that make them, and media coverage of bipolar disorder as a
>> childhood disease."
>>
>> Yet many of the anti-psychotic drugs being prescribed for children
>> have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use on
>> them. Of the two that have been approved for children, Risperdahl and
>> Abilify, they've only been approved for short-term use. Nevertheless,
>> as the News Tribune points out, because these drugs have been approved
>> for adults, "doctors are free to prescribe drugs to anyone and in any
>> way they see fit once they have been approved for some purpose."
>>
>> What this means is that in addition to being misdiagnosed, there is an
>> increased likelihood that children are also being overdrugged. Concern
>> about this scenario has prompted Dr. Jeffrey Thompson, chief medical
>> officer for the Wa****ngton state Medicaid program, to provide more
>> stringent guidelines to ensure that anti-psychotic drugs are
>> prescribed to Medicaid children only when truly needed and at proper
>> dosages.
>>
>> While Thompson's actions signal a move in the right direction, at
>> least for minor-aged Medicaid recipients in his state, it will do
>> little to help children in private care and in other states.
>>
>> When confronted with the numbers of children being diagnosed with
>> bipolar disorder -- about 800,000 in 2003, and likely much higher now
>> -- it is hard to know how to respond. Could that many young people
>> truly be suffering from this disorder? It is tempting to lay the blame
>> on an over-zealous medical community or a greedy pharmaceutical
>> industry. There is no doubt that they have benefited financially from
>> the sharp rise in bipolar cases among young people.
>>
>> Is it more a case of kids just being kids -- noisy, rambunctious,
>> hyperactive, disorderly? Or is there something else going on here?
>> Curiously, one study released in 2007 indicated that among children
>> diagnosed with bipolar disorder, two-thirds of them were boys.
>>
>> While there are undeniably cases where children are actually suffering
>> and are helped by diagnosis and medication, I have to wonder about the
>> majority. Little is said in the studies I have read about the impact
>> that family life and the environment may have on the behavior of
>> children diagnosed as bipolar, or even ADHD, yet they can't be ruled
>> out.
>>
>> Society as a whole has become irresponsible in its duty to young
>> people. Obsessed with materialism, we have handed over our young
>> people to marketing mavens and cor****ations eager to make a quick
>> buck. Distracted by entertainment, we have relinquished our children
>> to television babysitters, allowing them to become turned on by and
>> tuned into mindless television programs, video games and advertising
>> that promote violence and premarital ***, among other unhealthy
>> behaviors. Children need human touch and love. All too often, parents
>> give them over to others for care. They also leave them floating in
>> the non-real world of virtual reality.
>>
>> Thus, it is little wonder that so many children are out of control,
>> disorderly and unable to settle down. But they shouldn't be victimized
>> and punished for our neglect. Nor should they be drugged into
>> compliance. Our children are screaming for help, but we're not
>> listening to what they're saying. Instead, many parents are just
>> hoping to shut them up -- whether with drugs or entertainment -- and
>> get a little peace and quiet. But that's not the answer.
>>
>> A solution will not be found by passing another law. Rather, it must
>> start at home and in the community. When the family breaks down,
>> everything breaks down. We need to start by re-building families.
>> Parents need to be parents and stop over-scheduling their children.
>> They need to start spending time with them.
>>
>> Finally, parents need to say no to drugs for their children. They need
>> to control what their children watch and listen to. And they need to
>> take off the headphones, turn off the cell phones and try
>> communicating with their children.
>
>
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