We are over-medicating children

By: Andrew Browning

Posted: 1/28/08

According to an episode of Frontline on PBS called "The Medicated Child," more than one million children have now been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The episode's research shows that over a 10-year period, there was a staggering 4,000 percent increase in the number of diagnoses.

These statistics are so disproportionate I do not view them as a true reflection of the disorder. Many of these children, along with having the diagnosis of bipolar, are also labeled with learning disorders and various anxiety and social disorders. The solution for many doctors and families is medication. So much medication in fact, there are children who may be taking eight or more medications to try and solve their problems. One pill causes a side effect that only goes away with another pill, and this cycle goes on until things get out of hand.

Children and teenagers should not be on strong medications at an early age. We do not yet know what the long-term side effects are, and unless the diagnosis is correct, which doesn't seem to be the case, we could be doing incredible harm to the development of our children.

"The Medicated Child" raises a few fundamental questions that our society must find answers to. For example, what ever happened to children being children? Is our lifestyle causing the dramatic increase in the diagnosis of bipolar and related disorders, or is it an overbearing culture of hypochondriacs that needs answers to why their children are behaving "abnormally"? Are medications really improving children's daily lives or just making the parents feel better about the situation? Most importantly, is the risk worth the reward?

I understand that medications can be beneficial for some children if the diagnosis is correct, but drugs are being over-prescribed at an astonishing rate and it is not the best answer.

Americans are always looking for simple solutions to their problems. It is so much easier to hand your child a pill and say, "OK, now you are going to get better and be normal. Act the way you are supposed to." It is too bad it does not always work that way. I am sure to some of you my opinion will not seem that credible because I do not have children of my own.

On the other hand, I have worked with a lot of people who have disabilities, especially children. I have seen first-hand the number of medications and the subsequent side effects they have. It seems like doctors are just going through the motions when prescribing medications, and I fail to recognize how pills can be the answer.

Thinking back to my own childhood, I realize that I exhibited some of the same symptoms as these children. I had mood swings, tantrums and explosive irritability, which are all possible symptoms of bipolar disorder in children. What child at one point or another does not exhibit these types of behaviors? I also had an incredibly hard time paying attention and focusing on any one thing at a time. I struggled all the way through high school.

I am sure if I were a child today, I would be prescribed medication after medication as a way to force me to pay attention and become sedentary in class. I am glad I was never prescribed any medications growing up.

Sticking a wrench in the cognitive and emotional development of a child can have devastating effects, and it is not the answer. If you want to form your own opinion, you can watch the episode for free online at: www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/medicatedchild/.