::
This Months Newsletter ::
Kids
Get Psychiatric Drugs Too Often
The
above headline is from the October 21, 2001 issue of the
USA Today newspaper. The opening sentence from the article
makes the statement, "Doctors are increasingly prescribing
psychiatric drugs such as Ritalin and Prozac to preschoolers,
despite questions about safety and effectiveness."
Child
psychiatrist Glen Elliott of the University of California
Medical School in San Francisco, spoke at the American Academy
of Pediatrics meeting in San Francisco and said, "Every
pressure I'm aware of is pushing toward more use of these
pills in young kids, and the potential for problems is huge."
He goes on to explain, "HMOs are encouraging quick
diagnoses, working parents often can't be home to enforce
structured behavior-improvement programs, and everyone seems
to want quick fixes."
The
concern about usage of these drugs has been growing following
a recent report that showed that Ritalin use more than tripled
in preschoolers between 1991 and 1995, and prescriptions
for antidepressants doubled in that age group during the
same period. Dr. Marsha Rappley, a pediatrician at Michigan
State University's College of Human Medicine in East Lansing
states that one of the concerns are side effects, which
can range from mild to significant. Problems that can occur
include headaches, stomach aches, sleep problems and loss
of appetite. Additionally there is very little research
on safety and effectiveness in kids under 4.
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