Phonics International

Children's hyperactivity 'is not a real disease', says US expert

Neuroscientist says children are being 'labelled' as having ADHD when there could be other reasons for their disorder

Labels - are they always the answer?

March 2014

I wrote a blog last week entitled ‘Behaviour Matters’, in which I attempted to illustrate part of a typical working day at the PRU I teach at. A section of this blog featured the following observation, regarding the labelling of children:

‘This academic year, in particular, I have felt that certain pupils really believe that they are more powerful than the teachers and other staff that they are, ostensibly, in the charge of. These pupils are, after all, at the more extreme end of the market. They are excluded from school, know most of the tricks, and the threat of exclusion no longer applies. Also, – sometimes usefully for them – they have often had a label such as ADHD, Dyslexia or Autism applied. This they can then wield, like a shrunken head, whenever an authority figure challenges their conduct (“I can’t help it, I’ve got ADHD and I forgot my medication, right?!” etc).’

ADHD Does Not Exist

by Richard Saul M.D.

3 April 2014

ADHD drugs review call in Wales from psychologists

By Nelli Bird
BBC News

The way drugs to treat a common childhood disorder affecting behaviour are prescribed in Wales should be reviewed, said psychologists.

There was a 57% rise in prescriptions for the most common drug to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) between 2007 and 2013.

Experts say the long-term effects of methylphenidate are unknown.

Thousands of Toddlers Are Medicated for A.D.H.D., Report Finds, Raising Worries

By ALAN SCHWARZ

May 16, 2014

ATLANTA — More than 10,000 American toddlers 2 or 3 years old are being medicated for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder outside established pediatric guidelines, according to data presented on Friday by an official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The report, which found that toddlers covered by Medicaid are particularly prone to be put on medication such as Ritalin and Adderall, is among the first efforts to gauge the diagnosis of A.D.H.D. in children below age 4. Doctors at the Georgia Mental Health Forum at the Carter Center in Atlanta, where the data was presented, as well as several outside experts strongly criticized the use of medication in so many children that young.

Doctors say parents and schools are pushing them to label children who are just shy or bookish as mentally ill

Overbearing parents are pushing GPs to dish out drugs for treatment
Professor Sir Simon Wessely, says there is a growing trend to medicate

Drugs such as Ritalin and Prozac are now common place

However, the child may not have a disorder at all, according to an experts

By BELINDA ROBINSON

PUBLISHED: 21 June 2014