ADD Child Symptoms, Ritalin
Long Term Effects, Homeopathy Alternatives
Healing With
Homeopathy
Attention Deficit (ADD) and Hyperactivity (ADHD)
December, The Province newspaper's
4-part investigative report "Drugging Our Children" concluded that
"children are a booming market for psychiatric medications such as
stimulants, anti-depressants and anti-psychotic drugs."
Stimulant drugs such as
Ritalin or Dexedrine, sedatives like Imipramine, and
anti-depressant drugs including Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft, are
prescribed for toddlers, young children, and teens, to treat
attention and hyperactivity problems, depression, anxiety, anger
and aggression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, phobias,
bed-wetting, and insomnia. According to the report, "babies still
young enough to be in diapers are being prescribed powerful adult
tranquilizers." Meanwhile, there is widespread debate about
whether these drugs cause long-term side-effects, especially when
used by young children. Clinical experience has found that
neurological disorders such as facial and body tics may occur
after the use of these drugs, and cardiac problems resulting in
death have been associated with the use of sedatives in young
children.
In B.C. in 1999 approximately
12,000 children aged six to fifteen were prescribed the stimulant
drugs Ritalin (a chemical cousin of cocaine), or Dexedrine (an
amphetamine formerly used as an adult diet drug) for Attention
Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). These drugs are
intended to help children sit still and pay attention in class.
Dexedrine or Ritalin were prescribed to 56 children under age
three, although neither of these stimulant drugs is recommended
for use in children under six.
The study also found that
doctors are prescribing both uppers and downers to thousands of
children and teens. If a stimulant such as Ritalin is used during
the day, children may have trouble falling asleep, or may
experience symptoms such as depression, crying, and moodiness, and
anti-depressants are often used to counteract these side-effects.
To homeopathic practitioners, these
statistics are frightening. Once children begin taking stimulants,
they often need to continue the medication for five to ten years,
sometimes for life. This sets up a habit of taking drugs, perhaps
fostering addictive tendencies later in life. A recently
identified drawback of Ritalin is its popularity as an illicit
stimulant drug. The annual survey "Monitoring the Future", by the
University of Michigan, warns of a trend concerning Ritalin abuse.
From 1993 to 1994 in the United States, 350,000 high school
seniors admitted to having abused Ritalin. The side-effects of
Ritalin addiction include strokes, hypothermia, hypertension and
seizures. Thousands of emergency room admissions and several
deaths have been attributed to Ritalin abuse in teens. Drug
addiction in North America is a huge problem, and the growing
trend to abuse a drug, which is being legally prescribed for
nearly two million children, is of great concern.
How effective is Ritalin in
young children diagnosed with ADHD? Many children respond
positively with varying degrees of success, but over 25%
experience no significant improvements. Like many conventional
drugs, Ritalin only suppresses the symptoms without changing the
underlying condition. Some parents report side-effects including
headaches, dizziness, stomach aches, increased heart rate or blood
pressure, drowsiness, insomnia, nail-biting, appetite loss, social
withdrawal, anxiety, irritability, moodiness, tics and other
involuntary movements or sounds.
Homeopathy is safe and effective
natural medicine with a high success rate in treating emotional
and behavioral disorders in children and teens - including
attention deficit, hyperactivity, depression, apathy, anxiety,
anger, aggression, defiance, and obsessive-compulsive disorders.
Rather than suppressing symptoms, homeopathy seeks to create deep,
long-term behavioral changes. Homeopathic medicines are made from
natural substances, and are so highly diluted that they do not
produce side-effects when prescribed by a qualified homeopath.
Homeopathy recognizes that
behavioral and learning problems vary from child to child, and no
single remedy is suitable for all children. The homeopathic
practitioner sees each child as an individual with unique gifts
and problems rather than part of a stereotypical syndrome, and he
or she will choose the most appropriate remedy for each child's
combination of symptoms.
These
may include:
restlessness
difficulty paying attention and following directions
poor grades
difficulty with reading and writing
sleeplessness
emotional intensity
impulsivity
recklessness
a need for constant stimulation and attention
annoying or disruptive behavior
defiance and tantrums
jealousy
violence and/or destructiveness
difficulty in getting along with other children.
Quoting from Edward H. Chapman,
M.D., Dht, President of the American Institute of Homeopathy, and
Clinical Instructor at the Harvard University School of Medicine:
"For those who need support in their struggle with Attention
Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder … they can be assured from two
hundred years experience using homeopathic medicines that they are
safe. Your conventional doctor may be skeptical if you choose to
use homeopathy. Don't let that stop you. Seek assistance from
well-trained homeopathic providers who are willing to work with
you and your doctors."
Sources:
The Province, December 18, 19, 20, 21, 2000.
Ritalin-Free Kids, Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman and Robert Ullman,
Prima Publishing, 1996.
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