Should Children with Adhd Be Medicated?

Should children with ADHD be medicated? Although many parents, doctors, and teachers would say yes I believe there are far too many risks for children with ADHD to be medicated. [You left out a comma in the previous sentence.] Diagnosing ADHD is purely a matter of a doctor's opinion. Parents often use medication as the first option for their children instead of trying alternative methods of medication. Medication needs to be the last option.

Children with ADHD are being medicated unnecessarily. The problem is there are no biological tests for the disorder, and it cannot be revealed through a blood test. ADHD should be the last resort for a diagnosis, but it is often the first choice. In many cases a child who is disruptive in class or has problems concentrating are diagnosed with ADHD, although the children are really having problems in their home life.

Lefever (2001) states "84% of children with ADHD received medication at some point in time, 70% were receiving medication at the same time that this article was written (4). [Usually, you want to begin with your own topic sentence, and then, use the evidence.]

Martin (2006) stated "75 out of 100 kids who walk into a psychiatrist's office for the first time walk out with at least one prescription" (4). In the past 4 years the number of prescriptions for ADHD medications has increased significantly. Womersley (2006) says that since 2001 spending on drugs to treat ADHD has soared from 441,000 pounds a year to 1.8m. O'Connor (2001) says "28% of elementary school students who were medicated for ADHD received two drugs simultaneously, for many students treatment began as early as preschool"(. 5) [You're providing some good information here.]

To reduce the rates of medication, lefever called for a "public health agenda that includes

Improved systems for tracking ADHD diagnosis. treatments, and outcome and primary prevention initiatives. Gardiner (2006) says that reports show children from lower socio-economic backgrounds are being medicated in much higher numbers than those from affluent backgrounds.

Gardiner (2006) examines the argument that disadvantaged children are being "drugged to control their behavior, and that children have been given medication to beat stress in their lives, not just to be treated for ADHD". Should this sentence be a part of the previous paragraph?]

Gardiner (2006) states that "one in seven children in foster care are being treated for ADHD and some children reported taking three medications"(9). [another missing comma.] Obviously these children are being medicated to make them easier to handle. Newspapers have even reported teachers requesting students be drugged to make them more manageable, in my opinion if a teacher cannot handle children then they should not be a teacher. [You have a comma splice in the previous sentence.] Gardiner(2006) blamed the high rate of ADHD in disadvantaged kids on genetics; she said it was more than likely ADHD was being passed down the line by generations who never even realized the illness existed.

Gardiner(2001) believes many children being treated for ADHD are suffering from stress and not a chemical imbalance, after reading that article I think that society needs to look at using other forms of treatment for behavioral problems and that family problems need to be addressed. [another comma splice] Gardiner (2001) says that there are a lot of complicated reasons as to why children behave in certain ways. [This paragraph is too short.]

Another area in ADHD medications that I want to cover is the bad side effects that the medications have. [It is distracting to tell your readers what you are going to do.] ADHD medications have many bad mental and physical side effects. Mental side effects include: psychosis, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, aggressive behavior, depression, social withdrawal and lack of energy. Womersley(2006) said parents of children taking Strattera have been warned to watch for signs of depression and suicidal behavior. The physical side effects of these medications are: stunted growth, tics, nausea, weight loss, headaches and liver damage.[The colon is not necessary before this listing.]

Long- term use of the drugs tends to create the very same problem that the medication is supposed to combat-attentional disturbances and memory problems as well as irritability and hyperactivity. A vicious cycle happens such as doctors prescribing more medication, as treatment continues its calming effects diminish, requiring more medication. [another comma splice] The drug rebound is easily confused with the child's ADHD, causing the Doctor to increase the medication. Between 1990 and 2000 186 children died from taking the drug Ritalin, and research is also being done to see if Ritalin causes brain damage. [You need a comma after the dates.]

KC(2007) parents who have chosen medication give mixed testimony. Some have had dramatic and outstanding results. Others have not had such good luck with many modifications in the child's medication with few results. Some parents mourn the loss of a spark that their child once had, and others say they noticed no personality changes in their child. Some people who initially decided against medication had poor results and realized a tremendous turn around once they decided to medicate. The outcome with medication is very individualized for the child as it would be without medication. Benefits of medication may include more control of a child's behavior, improvement in a child's ability to concentrate, and more availability for learning based tasks.

Martin(2006) says "Children with ADHD are often medicated as a first option for the convenience of adults who want to make them compliant, children with ADHD should be celebrated not medicated"(4). Martin(2006) "Children with ADHD have traits that their peers do not posses, society needs the energy, creativity, imagination and passion that only children with ADHD have"(5). [This paragraph is too short.]

Another reason that children shouldn't be medicated is that medicating a child destroys a child's confidences, self worth and sense of identity. This is another reason why I believe children with ADHD shouldn't be medicated, children with ADHD are unique and society needs people with their personality traits. Also another reason why children shouldn't be medicated is that medicating a child destroys a child's confidence, self -worth, and sense of identity. [This is a repeat of previous information.] When we try to change our children by medicating them we send them the message that they are inferior and incapable of