Another Big Pharma scam exposed
Many children are needlessly prescribed drugs to combat ADHD when they are just immature, a study suggests
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is vastly over-diagnosed with many cases simply immature children who are the youngest in their class, a new study suggests.
The term ADHD is often used for a collection of behavioural problems linked to poor attention span including impulsiveness, restlessness and inability to concentrate.
Around three to seven per cent of British children are believed to have ADHD, about 400,000, with many being prescribed drugs to try and improve their concentration at school.
Prescriptions for drugs like Ritalin have doubled to 922,000 a year in the last decade for children diagnosed with ADHD but such medications can cause adverse reactions such as weight loss, liver toxicity, and suicidal thoughts, and in the short term may suppress pubertal growth.
Now a study of nearly 400,000 children between four and 17 years old in Taiwan has shown that the percentage of youngsters diagnosed with ADHD significantly changes depending on month of birth. Where just 2.8 per cent of boys born in September have the condition, the figure jumps to 4.5 per cent in August, rising steadily over the school year. For girls it rose from 0.7 to 1.2 per cent.
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ADHD is vastly overdiagnosed and many children are just immature, say scientists - Telegraph