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ADD/ADHD/Violence/Drug Addiction & Psychotropic Drugs
- There are nearly 6 million children in the United States between the ages of 6 and 18
taking mind-altering drugs prescribed for alleged mental illnesses that increasing numbers
of mental-health professionals are questioning.
- Although the list of school-age children who have gone on violent rampages is growing at
a disturbing rate -- and the shooting at Columbine became a national wake-up call -- few
in the mental health community have been willing to talk about the possibility that the
heavily prescribed drugs and violence may be linked. The only consistency in the lives of
the young people who participated in the highly publicized shootings in the past two years
is that they were suffering from a mental illness and were being treated with psychotropic
drugs that for years have been known to cause serious adverse effects when given to
children.
- At the top of the list of so-called "mental illnesses" among children is
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, which is diagnosed when a child meets
six of the 18 criteria described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders, published by the American Psychiatric Association, or APA. By definition,
children with ADHD exhibit behaviors such as not paying attention in school, not listening
when spoken to directly, failing to follow directions, losing things, being easily
distracted and forgetful, fidgeting with hands or feet, talking excessively, blurting out
answers or having difficulty awaiting turn. The most common ADHD remedy among
pediatricians and representatives of the mental-health community is Ritalin.
- First approved by the FDA in 1955, Ritalin (methylphenidate) had become widely used for
behavioral control by the mid-1960s. It is produced by the Swiss pharmaceutical company
Novartis. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, or DEA, the United States buys
and uses 90 percent of the world's Ritalin. A U.N. agency known as the International
Narcotics Control Board, or INCB, reported in 1995 that "10 to 12 percent of all boys
between the ages of 6 and 14 in the U.S. have been diagnosed as having ADD & ADHD and
are being treated with methylphenidate."
- Some professionals are concerned about evidence they say confirms a close relationship
between use of prescribed psychotropic drugs and subsequent use of illegal drugs,
including cocaine and heroin. While the U.S. has spent more than $70 billion on the war on
drugs, says Bruce Wiseman, president of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, a
California-based organization that investigates violations of human rights by
mental-health practitioners, "if you think the Colombian drug cartel is the biggest
drug dealer in the world, think again. It's your neighborhood psychiatrist…putting
our kids on the highest level of addictive drugs."
- According to a report in the 1995 Archives of General Psychiatry, "Cocaine is one
of the most reinforcing and addicting of the abused drugs and has pharmacological actions
that are very similar to those of Ritalin." In the same year the DEA also made the
Ritalin/cocaine connection, saying, "It is clear that Ritalin substitutes for cocaine
and d-amphetamine in a number of behavioral paradigms," expressing concern that
"one in every 30 Americans between 5 and 19 years old has a prescription for the
drug."
- The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) reported that "methylphenidate
(Ritalin) can lead to tolerance and severe psychological dependence. Psychotic episodes
(and) violent and bizarre behavior have been reported." These are, in fact, some of
the same symptoms exhibited by Eric Harris, one of the teens responsible for the Columbine
shootings.
- Mike Faenza, president and chief executive officer of the National Mental Health
Association, the country's oldest and largest mental health group, notes that "there
is little known about how the drugs affect brain function." Faenza adds that "we
do know that a hell of a lot of kids commit suicide because they aren't getting the help
they need. It's irresponsible not to give them the help just because we don't know what
causes the mental illness."
Click here for reference materials used for this
article.
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