A Drug-Less Alternative for ADHD

In 1990, 900,000 American kids were on Ritalin. Today some estimate the total number of children on Ritalin has increased to 4 - 5 million or more per year America now uses 90% of the world's Ritalin - more than five times the rest of the world combined. Emergency room visits by children ages 10-14 involving Ritalin intoxication have now reached the same level as those for cocaine which indicates escalating abuse of this highly addictive drug. 80% of children on Ritalin are boys.

Q) What is Ritalin?

A) Ritalin (methylphenidate) is a central nervous system stimulant, similar to amphetamines in the nature and duration of its effects. It is believed that it works by activating the brain stem arousal system and cortex. Pharmacologically, it works on the neurotransmitter dopamine, and in that respect resembles the stimulant characteristics of cocaine. When taken in accordance with usual prescription instructions, it would be classified as having mild to moderate stimulant properties, but when snorted or injected it has a strong stimulant effect. Ritalin is manufactured by CIBA-Geigy Corporation, and is supplied in 5 mg., 10 mg., and 20 mg. tablets, and in a sustained release form, Ritalin SR as 20 mg. tablets. It is readily water soluble and is intended for oral use. It is a Schedule II Controlled Substance under both the federal and Indiana Controlled Substances Acts. Since Ritalin is a Schedule II Controlled Substance, the federal government strictly regulates the amount that may be manufactured, through a system of rigid manufacturing quotas.

Q) How is Ritalin used?

A) When abused, Ritalin tablets are taken orally, crushed and then snorted, or dissolved in water and "cooked" for intravenous injection.

There are numerous reports in medical journals about permanent and irreversible lung tissue damage related to injection of crushed Ritalin tablets.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary refers to a "symptom" as "something that indicates the existence of something else." When we see blood, we look for the wound and treat it - we don't just keep wiping up the blood dripping on the floor! When we see an active child, it is criminal negligence to issue a label and force them to take drugs. If we look at the whole picture, we will usually find that the child's essential emotional needs for love, security, discovery, and freedom are not being met.

The false diagnosis of ADHD is presently damaging six million children in the US, and is now being taken by the medical establishment and the drug companies to Europe, South America, and Asia. There are millions of dollars to be made - and millions of children in danger of abuse.

At Aspire Chiropractic, your local Maximized Living Health Center, we focus on your child’s nervous system which is responsible for controlling all function in the body; including brain chemistry. Many children who visit Aspire Chiropractic have had less visits to their pediatrician as reported by their parents because of the specific adjustments made to the child’s nervous system. Thus getting the body to start functioning and healing at its 100%!

Quotations:

“In fact, there is no medical, neurological or psychiatric justification for the ADHD diagnosis. The key 'symptoms' include such behavior as 'often fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat,' 'often leaves seat in classroom or in other situations in which remaining seated is expected' and 'often has difficulty awaiting turn.'

Many factors could lead a child to behave in this manner, including a spirited, creative nature that defies conformity, inconsistent discipline or lack of unconditional love, boring and oversized classrooms, an overstressed teacher, lack of teacher attention to individual educational needs, anxiety due to abuse or neglect at home or elsewhere, conflict and communication problems in the family and misguided educational and behavioral expectations for the child.

In my own clinical experience, many such children are energetic, creative and independent youngsters struggling within the constraints of an inattentive, conflicted or stressed adult environment. Thus we end up drugging our best and our brightest.” Attention deficit disorder does not reflect children's attention deficits but our lack of attention to their needs.

Peter R. Breggin, M.D.
Director, Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology
Bethesda, Maryland

The psychiatrist does not do any testing. The psychiatrist listens to the history and then prescribes a drug.

Let me clear this up right now. ADHD is not like diabetes and [Ritalin] is not like insulin. Diabetes is a real medical condition that can be objectively diagnosed. ADHD is an invented label with no objective, valid means of identification. Insulin is a natural hormone produced by the body and it is essential for life. [Ritalin] is a chemically derived amphetamine-like drug that is not necessary for life. Diabetes is an insulin deficiency. Attention and behavioral problems are not a [Ritalin] deficiency.

Dr. Mary Ann Block
author of No More ADHD

We have used drugs as 'chemical restraints' on some unruly boys in order to secure a quick-fix to the larger problems of our society and our schools. I do not believe it is an accident that [ADHD and] Ritalin became the answer for disorderly school children at the same time as the schools were being barred from using corporal punishment. As one tool for social control was taken away, Ritalin was offered up as another.

Keith Hoeller, Ph.D.,
Special to The Seattle Times
Wednesday, March 8, 2000

A Few Simple Truths About ADHD and Stimulant Drugs

Responses to Common Professional Statements Made to Parents About Their Children.

Doctors, mental health professionals, and educators often say things about "Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder" (ADHD) that are unproven. These same professionals often say things about drugs that are supposed to treat "ADHD" that are not true. This article reveals and responds to six common lies or misleading statements you might be told.

1. "ADHD" is a brain-based biological disorder, caused by a chemical imbalance in your child's brain. The simple fact is that there is absolutely no reliable test that accurately distinguishes between children that are supposed to have "ADHD" and those that are not. The simplest way to counter this statement is to ask for a medical test to prove that your child has "ADHD." Many physicians will respond to your request by saying that the test is too expensive. You must persevere and ask that your insurance company pay for those tests. You can also ask any professional to show you the article or articles in the scientific literature that proves the existence of a confirmatory physical or chemical abnormality that validates the existence of ADHD as a medical disease. The plain truth is that no such article exists. If someone gives you an article, please share and discuss it with someone who can critically analyze it.

2. The symptoms are clearly printed in a book called the DSM-IV (which stands for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association, Fourth Edition). Yes, the "symptoms" are printed there, but as described in point 1, these alleged "symptoms" in no way prove that ADHD is a disease. Furthermore, these "symptoms" are actually nothing more than someone's observations of your child's behavior, and the truth is they are not even reliable as behavioral observations. To be reliable, people must agree that your child has "ADHD." An article in the prestigious Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, printed in September 2000, says that the diagnosis is very unreliable. Many children who are supposed to be "ADHD" are not identified, and many children who are identified as not having ADHD are identified as having it. This means that research done to support the identification and treatment of ADHD that uses the DSM-IV definition totally lacks support. It also means that no medical person correctly diagnoses ADHD. ADD and ADHD are politically manufactured concepts, created by committees of the American Psychiatric Association. ADD was created in 1980, ADHD in 1987. The plain truth is that they are not real diseases in any legitimate scientific meaning of the term disease. To declare otherwise is not medicine; it is fraud.

3. Medication (such as Ritalin) corrects the chemical imbalance. Remember first there is no demonstrated chemical imbalance (see point 1). The brain does have chemicals that help cells "talk" to each other that are called neurotransmitters. However, when a professional says that one of these chemicals, usually a variety of something called Dopamine, needs some kind of correction, and that they have just the right kind of medicine to do this, you are being misled. This idea assumes that nerves only "talk" to nerves that use the same chemicals. That is absolutely positively false. It is a lie at worst, a gross oversimplification at best. It is unethical for a medical professional to state or imply otherwise.

4. The medication (e.g., Ritalin) is a mild stimulant with few or no side effects. "Side effect" is a euphemism; all drugs (alleged medications) have a variety of effects. It is vitally important that you personally research the effects of any drug you might consider for your child. Go to the Physicians Desk Reference (PDR), ask your neighborhood pharmacist to print you a list of side effects, and/or get the references listed at the end of this brochure. You need to find out about all possible effects -- those considered common (such as nervousness, insomnia, and loss of appetite, and those considered rare (such as toxic psychosis and death). The lie that Ritalin is a mild stimulant is even more difficult to maintain since a recently concluded study at the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, not only confirmed the similarities of cocaine and Ritalin, but found that Ritalin is more potent than cocaine in its effect on the dopamine system in the brain. Referring to Ritalin as "kiddy cocaine" is not a joke.

It is important to know that the use of stimulant medication can mask the symptoms of potentially fatal disorders that could be causing your child's problems with inattention or activity. It is also important to know that if your child really is having problems with attention and concentration, this could be caused by problems within the class environment (no work breaks, poor environmental temperature regulation, poor acoustics, poor lighting, poor teaching, etc.) or within other areas of your child's life (nutrition, TV and video overstimulation, family stress and conflict, etc.).

5. If your child had diabetes, you would give him insulin, wouldn't you? This is one of the most common, and heinous statements that doctors and other professionals make to parents. It is a heavy guilt trip telling parents they are negligent and irresponsible if they don't go along with the pressure to drug their children. Remember clearly, as described in point 1 above, that ADHD is in no way a real disease; to imply otherwise is a lie. The truth is that protecting your children from toxic drugs is being completely responsible. It is those who advocate these drugs for children who are abdicating responsibility and avoiding the challenge of truly meeting the needs of our children.

6. You are going against medical advice. Physicians work for you. There is something called informed consent. If they have given you false or inaccurate information, or attempted to deceive you in any way, then the advice that they have given is faulty and you can justifiably take matters (concerning "ADHD") into your own hands. It is your responsibility to protect the short and long-term health, well-being and development of your child.

Resources
Breeding, J. The Wildest Colts Make The Best Horses. Bright Books, 1996.
Breggin, P. Talking Back To Ritalin. Common Courage Press, 1998.

This brochure was created by Steve Edelman, MA, and John Breeding, PhD. Please copy and distribute widely.

Dr. John Breeding • 2503 Douglas St. • Austin, TX 78741 • 512-326-8326 wildcolt@flash.net WildestColts.com
Aspire Chiropractic
Dr. Brenda Kress
333 Grand Ave. Ste 102
St. Paul, MN 55102
651-294-2332

For more information on this topic or if you are looking for a Chiropractor in St. Paul feel free to contact us.

Tags: