ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and AD/HD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) have been widely used terms to diagnose children's problematic behavior for the past fifty years though the particular symptoms that they comprise have been noted for two hundred years ("mental restlessness").
Fifty years ago the symptoms were believed to reflect MBD (Minimal Brain Dysfunction). Yet rather than explaining behavior, ADD and AD/HD merely describe it, like saying that someone is wearing a blue shirt and not why they are doing so or why the child is behaving as they do.
While the reasons for their behavior are beyond the scope of this brief Blog item (they are explained in detail in my most recent book, Shopping For A Shrink), a study at the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research has increased professional concern about the amphetamine medication which has long been prescribed for such children.
Both adult men and women who frequently used amphetamine drugs were found, decades later, to have a 56% increased risk of developing Parkinson's Disease.
This emphasizes the importance, before taking any medication, of researching its potential benefits and risks; and having the condition for which it is being prescribed be clearly and logically explained to you by the prescribing professional.
Copyright (c) 2011, 2015 by Stanley Goldstein.
All rights reserved.
Fifty years ago the symptoms were believed to reflect MBD (Minimal Brain Dysfunction). Yet rather than explaining behavior, ADD and AD/HD merely describe it, like saying that someone is wearing a blue shirt and not why they are doing so or why the child is behaving as they do.
While the reasons for their behavior are beyond the scope of this brief Blog item (they are explained in detail in my most recent book, Shopping For A Shrink), a study at the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research has increased professional concern about the amphetamine medication which has long been prescribed for such children.
Both adult men and women who frequently used amphetamine drugs were found, decades later, to have a 56% increased risk of developing Parkinson's Disease.
This emphasizes the importance, before taking any medication, of researching its potential benefits and risks; and having the condition for which it is being prescribed be clearly and logically explained to you by the prescribing professional.
Copyright (c) 2011, 2015 by Stanley Goldstein.
All rights reserved.