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Doubts About ADHD- Facts For Parents |
By:
Robert William Locke |
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Doubts About ADHD- Facts For Parents
Robert William Locke
Is it really ADHD or are the children just being naughty? Parents and child care therapists are beginning to ask this question. The fear now is that many doctors and parents are using the term ADHD as a general dumping ground for kids with problems.
In just ten years the prescriptions for the most widely used drug (Ritalin) for ADHD children in the UK has risen from 4,000 to 360,000! This represents an enormous cost to the the National Health Service to the tune of 28 million. But many parents are now questioning whether the term ADHD is a handy label for disobedient and badly behaved children.
Experts disagree and there are two camps. In one camp, we have those who say that the actual number of children diagnosed with ADHD is only a fraction of those really suffering from the problem and that the ratio is 1 in every 20 children. In the second camp, we have those experts who say that many children are misdiagnosed and that the problem is exaggerated.
You cannot easily diagnose ADHD and sometimes the diagnosis is interpreting a questionnaire and that is hardly objective. One way of making the distinction is that a child may only misbehave in certain situations or settings. The genuine ADHD child will have problems in all situations. It is a medical condition though and is present since birth.
ADHD symptoms are divided into two groups:symptoms of inattention and symptoms of hyperactivity/impulsivity. There is a clear inability to focus. Disorganisation and restlessness are constantly present. The child will not sit still for one second ! Impulsiveness and inability to assess risks may be present. There is difficulty in following instructions and the child will be easily distracted. Problems with peers arise when it come to turn taking at play.
Why are parents finding it difficult to control their children ? One reason could be that the structure of families is rapidly changing and single parent families are on the increase. There are other social reasons too - children go out and play less. Children are glued to playstations and eat lots of snacks which have additives. These additives have recently come under very close scrutiny and some experts argue that snacks should have a health warning on them!
The problem of misdiagnosing ADHD has come under scrutiny and medics have been criticized for making mistakes. As medication sales for ADHD rocket, the pharmaceutical companies are not going to complain. Some side effects are worrying and the Adderall drug for ADHD in Canada was withdrawn because there was a link with heart disease. Therapy with counselling remains more effective in the long term treatment of this condition than drugs.
Whether your child has ADHD or not may be hard to decide in some cases. Whatever the diagnosis, you will need advice on handling children. The site below has been written by a doctor who has two children with ADHD. He shares his expertise in dealing with difficult children.
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Article Source: http://www.statssheet.com/articles/article61173.html |
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