Is ADHD A Real Disease?
Joel Turtel
The vast majority of Ritalin and Adderall is given to school
children in America to treat an alleged disease called ADHD.
Children who suffer from ADHD are said to be inattentive,
impulsive, and hyperactive. They often get bored easily in
class, squirm in their seats, are always on the go, or don’t
get along with other students or the teacher.
In other words, many children diagnosed with ADHD may simply be
bright, normal kids, full of energy and bored out of their minds
sitting in public-school classrooms.
In his testimony to the Pennsylvania House Democratic Policy
Committee, Bruce Wiseman, National President of the Citizens
Commission on Human Rights, stated that “thousands of children
put on psychiatric drugs are simply ‘smart.’” He quoted the
late Sydney Walker, a psychiatrist and neurologist, as saying,
“They’re hyper not because their brains don’t work right, but
because they spend most of the day waiting for slower students
to catch up with them. These students are bored to tears, and
people who are bored fidget, wiggle, scratch, stretch, and
(especially if they are boys) start looking for ways to get
into trouble."
Boredom is not the only reason children can exhibit symptoms of
ADHD. Perfectly normal children who are over-active (have a lot
of energy), rebellious, impulsive, day-dreamers, sensitive,
undisciplined, bored easily (because they are bright), slow in
learning, immature, troubled (for any number of reasons),
learning disabled (dyslexia, for example), can also be
inattentive, impulsive, or hyperactive.
Also, many factors outside the classroom can stress or
emotionally affect children. Some of these factors are: not
getting love, closeness, or attention from their parents; if a
parent, friend, or sibling is sick or dies; if the parents are
divorcing and there is anger, shouting, or conflict at home;
domestic violence at home; sexual, physical, or emotional abuse
by parents or siblings; inattention and neglect at home;
personality clashes with parents or siblings; envy or cruelty
directed at a child by classmates or by siblings at home, and
many other factors.
Also, many other medical conditions can cause children to mimic
some or all of ADHD’s symptoms. Some of these conditions are:
Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), allergies, learning
disabilities, hyper or hypothyroidism, hearing and vision
problems, mild to high lead levels, spinal problems, toxin
exposures, carbon monoxide poisoning, metabolic disorders,
genetic defects, sleeping disorders, post-traumatic subclinical
seizure disorder, high mercury levels, iron deficiency,
B-vitamin deficiencies (from poor diet), Tourette’s syndrome,
Sensory Integration Dysfunction, early-onset diabetes, heart
disease, cardiac conditions, early-onset bipolar disorder,
worms, viral and bacterial infections, malnutrition or improper
diet, head injuries, lack of exercise, and many others.
Because these medical conditions can cause some or all of
ADHD’s symptoms, it becomes next to impossible for any teacher,
principal, or family doctor to claim with any certainty that a
child has ADHD. To be certain, a doctor would have to test the
child for all these other possible medical conditions. Since
parents or doctors rarely do this, every diagnosis of ADHD is
suspect, to say the least.
Any of these medical conditions, normal personality variations,
emotional problems, or outside-the-classroom stress-factors can
disturb a child’s attention, natural enthusiasm, or desire to
learn in class, and make the child exhibit symptoms of ADHD.
Yet, as psychiatrist Peter R. Breggin, author of "Talking Back
To Ritalin," and director of the International Center for the
Study of Psychiatry and Psychology, notes, “These are the types
of [normal] children who get diagnosed as suffering ADHD and who
get subdued with stimulants and other medications.”
Many reputable authorities, such as Dr. Breggin, deny that
ADHD, the disorder for which Ritalin is most commonly
prescribed, even exists. Researchers have found no valid
physical evidence of the disease or laboratory medical tests to
prove it exists.
Parents, do not fall for the ADHD propaganda that public school
authorities are now attempting to force on you and your
children. While some children can have ADHD-type "symptoms" for
various reasons, ADHD itself turns out to be a bogus or unproven
disease. Many public schools now use this bogus disease as a
convenient excuse to pressure parents to give their normal but
bored or high-energy children mind-altering drugs. I also urge
you to read Dr. Breggin's book, "Talking Back To Ritalin."
Article Copyrighted © 2005 by Joel Turtel.
About The Author: Joel Turtel is the author of “Public Schools,
Public Menace: How Public Schools Lie To Parents and Betray Our
Children." Website:
http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com
<< ------------------End of Free Reprint Article --------------- >>
Find More Related Articles
See Also:
Back to All Free Articles About Health & Fitness
Back to
Index of All Free Reprint Articles
