20 Pills to Cure ADHD

1. 20 Pills to Cure ADHD • By: Katheryn Wilcox • Christopher Arboleda • Aubrey Berman

2. Definitions • According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: • ADHD is a disorder primarily associated with children who have an inability to concentrate and also are hyperactive. • These symptoms must be extreme for a particular developmental period, persistent in different situations, and cause impairment in functioning in order to be diagnosed as ADHD.

3. Stance • We feel children today are being over-diagnosed with ADHD and over-medicated with ADHD medications.

4. Brief History • The first clinical description of ADHD appeared, British pediatrician Sir George Frederick Still, M.D. describes hyperactivity in children as a "defect of moral control“ -1902 • Amphetamines introduced to treat hyperactive children. -1930 • Ritalin introduced as a treatment for hyperactivity. -1956 • Adderall gains FDA approval for the treatment of ADHD and Attention Deficit Disorder. -1996

5. Causes • ADHD is a neurobiological disorder • Heredity • Other factors may include: • difficulties during pregnancy • prenatal exposure to alcohol and tobacco • premature delivery • low birth weight • high lead levels in the body • postnatal damage to the prefrontal regions of the brain • The Exact cause of ADHD is unknown • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V724jfgabKE

6. Symptoms • difficulty paying attention • easily distracted • difficulty finishing schoolwork • Procrastination • forgetfulness in daily activities • fidgeting, squirming when seated • getting up frequently • being always on the go • often talking excessively

8. Neurotransmitters • Neurotransmitters-are endogenous chemicals which transmit signals from a neuron to a target cell across a synapse • The only direct effect of a neurotransmitter is to activate one or more types of receptors • The action that follows activation of a receptor site may be either: • depolarization (an excitatory postsynaptic potential)- makes it MORE likely that an action potential will fire • hyperpolarization (an inhibitory postsynaptic potential)- makes it LESS likely that an action potential will fire

9. Drug Treatments • The stimulant medications increase the release or block the reabsorption of dopamine and norepinephrine • Adderall- The combination of dextroamphetamine and amphetamine. Side effects include vomiting, stomache pain, dry mouth, nervousness, to name a few. • Concerta- Methylphenidate. Side effects include hives, itching, fever, vomiting, seizures, and fainting to name a few. • Vyvance- lisdexamfetamine dimesylate. Side effects include insomnia, headaches, dry mouth, and naseau • Ritalin- Methylphenidate. Side effects include include hives, itching, fever, vomiting, seizures, and fainting. • Strattera- Atomoxetine. Side effects include heartburn, loss of appetite, gas, muscle pain, dizziness

10. Problems With Stimulant Medications • Individuals may become addicted to stimulants and dependent on them • Can cause feelings of hostility and paranoia • Can cause dangerously high blood temperature, irregular heartbeat and potential for cardiovascular failure or seizures • Discontinuing stimulant medications can cause withdrawal symptoms such as: • Fatigue • depression • sleep problems. • It has been shown that children who are medicated with ADHD medications in childhood, are more likely to use illegal drugs, specifically cocaine. • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5r-xWNjUgc&playnext=1&list=PLA59EC2429DBE850B

11. Alternative treatments • Exercise • Food sensitivities/nutrition • Behavioral therapy • Reiki

12. How Does Exercise Help? • There are many reasons for exercise in ADHD. Exercise almost immediately elevates dopamine and norepinephrine and keeps them up for a period of time so that it acts like a little bit of Ritalin or Adderall

13. How Does Nutrition Help? • Many ADHD sufferers insist that eliminating certain foods from their diet leads to a significant reduction in symptoms. Removing sugar from diet does appear to help some children particularly younger children. • The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry believes that the removal of certain dyes and other substances may be beneficial to some children. This is especially effective when artificial colorings and flavorings are removed from the diet altogether. 13

14. How Does Behavioral TherapyHelp? • Sometimes only the child with ADHD needs counseling support. But in many cases the problem affects the family as a whole the entire family may need help. The therapist can assist the family in finding better ways to handle the disruptive behaviors and promote change. If the child is young, most of the therapist's work is with the parents, teaching them techniques for coping with and improving their child's behavior.

15. What Is Reiki and How DoesIt Work? • Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. • Reiki treatment can help you deal with specific illness and promote mental and emotional well being. • Reiki is based on the belief that energy flows through living organisms.

16. Misdiagnosis • Economist Todd Edler claims suggests that as many as 900,000 children who have been diagnosed with ADHD in America may not have the condition • Teachers tended to perceive symptoms of ADHD in younger children more often than in older children. • Many diagnoses stem from a recommendation from the child’s school or day care setting • Some teens fake ADHD symptoms in order to gain access to prescription medications • Severe conflict of interest between the doctors who prescribe prescription medications and the pharmaceutical companies who sell them • Many children are prescribed ADHD medications from their family practitioner, whose training in psychology is usually only about 3 months.

17. Prescription Drug Abuse • In 2006, more than 2.1 million teens from the ages of 12-17 reported abusing prescription drugs • According to the University of Michigan’s annual “Monitoring the Future” studies, in 1994 there were high school seniors who abused Ritalin than those who were legally prescribed • Researchers at Northwestern University found that 75 percent of college kids abused ADHD drugs, often grinding them up and snorting them just like cocaine

18. Global Issues • The use of drugs to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, has more than tripled worldwide since 1993 • “ADHD could become the leading childhood disorder treated with medications across the globe,” Richard Scheffle • France, Sweden, Korea and Japan all showed increases in ADHD drug use among 5- to 19-year-olds. • According to neurologist Dr. Fred Baughman, 500,000 children [in the USA] were diagnosed ADHD in 1985 and between 5 and 7 million were today. • Substantial growth has also been reported in Australia, a country of just 19 million people, where it's estimated that at least 50,000 children are now on drugs prescribed for ADHD.””University of Queensland figures show that legal use of dexamphetamine in Australia has risen from 8.3 million tablets prescribed in 1984 to 38.4 million tablets in 2001. Over the same period Ritalin prescriptions rose from 1.5 million tablets to 19.3 million.”

19. Economic Issues • Drug companies "fund" medical schools with millions of dollars annually in exchange for their loyalty, and therefore medical students are taught only to prescribe drugs and never learn that nutrition cures chronic diseases • ABC television revealed on 20120 (October 27, 1995) that CHADD has received over $800,000 from Ciba-Geigy, the company that makes Ritalin • CHADD has even petitioned the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to remove Ritalin from its controlled substance status. Such removal would make it easier for doctors to write prescriptions for Ritatin, expanding the use of the drug.

20. Future • Costs are likely to rise globally as long-acting medications which offer easier use and result in better compliance, become more prevalent outside the U.S. • Global ADHD Therapeutics Market to Reach $4.2 Billion by 2015

21. Conclusion • Due to the potential dangers of stimulant medications, the prescriptions which are written to treat ADHD should be more closely monitored. • It is necessary to further develop the tests which are used to diagnose the disorder in order to reduce the amount a misdiagnoses which are frequently occurring. • Corruption, conflict of interests, lack of education, invalid testing techniques, and being able to easily fake symptoms of the disorder are all factors which lead to the over prescription of medication to treat ADHD.

22. References • Abnormal Psychology Eleventh Edition. Kring, A., Johnson, S., Davison, G., Neale, J., John Wiley & Sons. New Jersey, 2010. • Angell, Marcia., (2008). Drug Companies & Doctors: A Story of Corruption. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved February 26, 2011 from http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2009/jan/15/drug-companies-doctorsa-story-of-corruption/ • Casey, B.J., & Durston, S. (2006). From behavior to cognition to the brain and back: What have we learned from functional imaging studies of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder? American Journal of Psychiatry, 163, 957-960. • http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/technology • How Easy is it to Fake ADHD? (2010). Retrieved February 20, 2011 from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mouse-man/201007/how-easy-is-it-fake-adhd • Kluger, J. (n.d.). Medicating young minds. Retrieved from http://behaviorhealth.org/medicating_young_minds.htm • Landau, E., (2010). ADHD: Who makes the Diagnosis? Retrieved February 25, 2011 from http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/08/11/adhd.medication.schools/index.html • http://behaviorhealth.org/medicating_young_minds.htm • SERVICES, U. D. (2008). Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). National Institutes of Health. • http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder/complete-index.shtml • The National Institute on Drug Abuse: The Science of Drug Abuse and Addiction. Retrieved February 25, 2011 from http://www.nida.nih.gov/ResearchReports/Prescription/prescription2.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology