puritan

Stimulants: The Long View

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When the ADHD literature speaks of scattered attention, it uses terms with historical resonance. Ever since the Puritans, reformers have attached high importance to the regulation of attention. But the standard treatment of ADHD is designed for immediate, not eventual, benefits. It conflicts with its own rationale.

Antipsychotics for Childhood “Behavioral Problems” Skyrocket

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Researchers from Columbia University and other New York institutions found a dramatically increasing use of antipsychotics to treat ADHD and other behavioral problems in...

Stimulant Medication Use Linked to Sharp Increase in BMI by Eighth Grade

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New evidence suggests that children on ADHD medication may have stunted growth initially but more rapid increases in body mass over time.

Enough is Enough Series, #5 – The ADHD Fiction is Exposed. The French Have...

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The time has come that the fictitious ADHD qualifies for my ‘Enough is Enough’ series. It’s time to stop addressing pharmaceutical psychiatry on its own terms: its fraudulent and corrupt 'science,' its spurious 'evidence base,' and its imaginary psychiatric ‘diseases.’ I’m done with this. The evidence is in. Let’s get real. Psychiatry has become a profession of drug pushers. As a psychiatrist I am beyond troubled. Let’s get real.

Antidepressants and Pregnancy:  Who Says They Are Safe? 

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Depression during pregnancy is an important issue. Depression should not be ignored and depressed pregnant women deserve good treatment and care. Part of that good care, though, is providing them with full and correct information. I care for pregnant women taking antidepressants on a daily basis and too often they tell me that the only counseling they received about the medication was, “my doctor told me it’s safe in pregnancy.” This post will review the evidence in this area and address the counterarguments.

Amphetamines Have Long-Term Effects on Adolescent Brain, Study Finds

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A new study published in the journal Neuroscience finds that rats given regular doses of amphetamines during adolescence have brain and behavioral changes in adulthood....

Researchers Question the “Adequacy and Legitimacy” of ADHD Diagnosis

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A new article, just published online in the journal Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, presents research suggesting that the diagnosis of ADHD is philosophically inadequate.

Growing Evidence for the Link Between ADHD Diagnosis and Age at School Admission

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Researchers detect a striking relationship between the month of school enrollment relative to peers and patterns of ADHD diagnoses in a large sample of elementary school students throughout the US.

Researchers Question the Utility of an ADHD Diagnosis

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A new article examines the usefulness of the ADHD diagnosis and suggests alternatives

Children Taking ADHD Drugs More Likely to Take Antidepressants as Teens

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Adhering to a commonly prescribed medication for ADHD in children is associated with higher chances of being prescribed antidepressants in adolescence.
boy jumping

“ADHD: A Return to Psychology” Video Series

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Most people believe that children diagnosed with ADHD misbehave because they possess an inferior inhibitory system that renders them less able to suppress unacceptable actions. However, this belief has numerous shortcomings. This series of videos challenges these assumptions and offers alternative explanations for why a child may exhibit ADHD behaviors.

7 Tips to Help a Distracted Child

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Simple changes such as keeping a calm home environment, limiting media distractions and enrolling your child in sports will help a child who is inattentive or having problems focusing on his or her school work. They are also useful for any child and can even prevent inattentiveness in an ever-more-distracting world.

Majority of Youth Prescribed Antipsychotics Have No Psychiatric Diagnosis

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The majority of children, adolescents and young adults prescribed antipsychotic medications have not been diagnosed with a mental disorder, according to a recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry.

New Study Challenges “Late-Onset ADHD”

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Researchers found that 95% of adolescents and adults who screened positive for late-onset ADHD did not merit the actual diagnosis.

ADHD in France and America

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We now have 40 plus years of diagnosing and medicating children for ADHD in the US, and at a population level there’s no evidence that US kids are mentally or cognitively ‘healthier’ than kids in other societies.

What If We Are All Wrong About Mental Illness?

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From Thoughtful Living: The biomedical model of psychiatry, along with the DSM, is deeply flawed and can often be misleading. To improve, mental health services...

Despite the Evidence, Overprescription of Stimulants Continues

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A new study finds that stimulant prescribing rates to children continue to rise despite the well-established evidence documenting overdiagnosis of ADHD and overprescription of stimulants.

Rates of ADHD Diagnosis and Prescription of Stimulants Continue to Rise

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Two new articles find that rates of ADHD diagnosis and stimulant prescription continue to rise all over the world.

Take the ADHD “Test”: An Inside Look at ADHD’s Diagnosis

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Just so we are clear, on page 61 of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), the "creators" of the diagnosis for ADHD admit there is no test sensitive or specific enough to actually diagnose ADHD. Given that the Drug Company-funded "experts" in charge of writing the ADHD diagnosis for the APA admit there is no test capable of diagnosing ADHD, nor are there any biological markers or brain scans capable of serving as a diagnostic, how can they diagnose 6.5 million kids with ADHD?

Kids Diagnosed with Autism More Likely to Get Psychotropic Drugs

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Children diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are much more likely to be prescribed a psychotropic medication.

Ritalin Used to be “Grandma’s Little Helper”

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Eugene Raikhel reveals ads from 1966 where Ritalin, now prescribed largely for ADHD, was marketed as a “kind of mind antidepressant for housewives.”  “I...

Poor Evidence and Substantial Bias in Ritalin Studies

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The authors of a large scale well-conducted systematic review of methylphenidate, also known as Ritalin, conclude that there is a lack of quality evidence for the drug’s effectiveness. Their research also revealed that Ritalin can cause sleep problems and decreased appetite in children.

More Children Receiving ‘Off-Label’ Antipsychotics for ‘ADHD’

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Over the past twenty years, the number of prescriptions for atypical antipsychotics written to children and young adults between four and eighteen has increased...

Stimulant Drugs Have Adverse Effects on Cognitive Functioning in Healthy Students

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Study of students without an ADHD diagnosis finds that stimulants (Adderall) have little impact on cognitive performance.

Methylphenidate: How to Avoid Importing the American Disaster?

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Even though it is extremely unlikely that in France we would reach the kinds of percentages we see in the USA, where in some states nearly 10% of children are treated with methylphenidate or other psychostimulants not used in France, overprescription is highly probable. Why?