Conspiracy to Drug Americas Youth

This is something I've been thinking about for a while now. We've all heard the stories of parents putting their children as young as 3 years old on mood altering drugs just to keep their children from "acting up".

I've even read stories where schools actually demand that the parents place what they see as a "troubled child" on medication.

It seems to me that this type of medication is being abused in the worst way in order to keep children in a "zombie" like state so they do as their told. Like the medication is being used to replaced actual "parenting".

They dont let kids be kids anymore. This is of course great for the pharmaceutical companies since the more people get hooked on these drugs the more money they make.

Here's some info on the different disorders that kids get diagnosed with these days by to called "mental health profesionals".

The more common diagnosed in children is of course ADHD:

webmd.com
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), also known as hyperactivity or attention deficit disorder (ADD), is a common condition in children.

Children with ADHD generally have problems paying attention or concentrating, can't seem to follow directions, and are easily bored and/or frustrated with tasks. They also tend to move constantly and to be impulsive (do not think before they act). Although these behaviors are common in children, they occur more often than usual and are more severe in a child with ADHD. These behaviors interfere with the child's ability to function at school and at home.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Here's some info on the types of medications used to treat these disorders:

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs): MAOIs work by stopping, or "inhibiting," the breakdown of the neurotransmitters that control mood, called monoamines. The major monoamines are norepinephrine and serotonin. Common MAOIs include Nardil and Parnate. Anxiety disorders are sometimes treated with MAOIs. People taking MAOIs must be very careful about their diets and avoid certain foods that can interact with the medication. For that reason, MAOIs have largely been replaced by the newer antidepressants, which do not have diet restrictions.

Tricyclic antidepressants also work by increasing the levels of norepinephrine and serotonin, but they take a different approach than the MAOIs. The tricyclics target the nerve cells, reducing their ability to reabsorb the neurotransmitters. Common tricyclics include Elavil, Norpramin and Pamelor. Tricyclics are sometimes used to treat affective disorders, such as depression or bipolar depression.

Selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the newest class of antidepressants. SSRIs work by specifically targeting serotonin. SSRIs include Celexa, Luvox, Paxil, Prozac, and Zoloft. Affective disorders, such as depression, and anxiety disorders are often treated with SSRIs.

Medications Used to Treat Mental Disorders


So my question is..... is there a Conspiracy to drug Americas Youth? Is there an effort currently being promoted by government as well as the pharmaceutical Industry to get people hooked on mood altering drugs to keep them subdued?

Note: Before people start replying one note here. I know some people actually have seen some great benefits by using this medication. Even in my own family since some of them used to take this type of medication and it helped them tremendously. Im referring to the use of this medication in children of a very young age.


[Edited on 28-4-2004 by Ocelot]

[Edited on 28-4-2004 by Ocelot]

Schools are threatening to expel hyperactive children who do not take the controversial drug Ritalin, the BBC has learnt.

Some parents are even being told that their children may be taken into care if they do not put their children on the drug.

The claims come as a survey in Scotland suggests some youngsters are selling Ritalin to drug dealers or swapping it for CDs and phone cards.

Parents' charity Overload Network International said the situation was so bad, some school secretaries and dinner ladies were having to hand out extra doses to children.

Schools in row over Ritalin

Public school administrators, long the enthusiastic adherents of a "Just Say No!" policy on drug use, appear to have a new motto for the parents of certain tiny soldiers in the war on drugs: "Medicate or Else!" It is a new and troubling twist in the psychiatric drugs saga, in which public schools have begun to issue ultimatums to parents of hard-to-handle kids, saying they will not allow students to attend conventional classes unless they are medicated. In the most extreme cases, parents unwilling to give their kids drugs are being reported by their schools to local offices of Child Protective Services, the implication being that by withholding drugs, the parents are guilty of neglect.

Just Say Yes to Ritalin!

Some public schools are accusing parents of child abuse when they balk at giving their kids drugs such as Ritalin, and as judges begin to agree, some parents are medicating their children for fear of having them hauled away by authorities.

There is a growing debate about diagnosing and medicating children with attention deficit disorder (ADD) and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

In Albany, NY, a couple put their 7 year old son back on Ritalin after a family court ruled that they must continue medicating him for ADD.

Child protective services visited a NY couple after anonymous allegations of "medical neglect" were reported after they took their son off of Ritalin and other drugs because of the side effects.

Maryland psychiatrist Peter Breggin says that often divorced parents disagree on medicating kids, and judges recently have ruled in favor of the parent who wants to medicate.

According to Peter Jensen, who is on the board of Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder, the courts are going to rule in favor of medication more and more.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, 3.8 million school children are diagnosed with ADD/ADHD and at least 2 million take Ritalin, a stimulant, for symptoms such as inattentiveness, impulsivity and sometimes hyperactivity. Many others are treated with different drugs.

The long-term effects of children talking stimulants have not yet been studied.

William Frankenberger, who has studied ADD/ADHD at the University of Wisconsin-EAU Claire for more than 20 years, says it's "disturbing to take a decision like that out of parent's hands."

In an accompanying article, several parents described their personal stories. One couple had a police officer come to their door. Only the fact that they had gotten a second opinion IN WRITING that her son did not need to take any medication saved them from possibly having him taken into protective custody. They had decided to take him off of the medications that he was on - Ritalin, Dexadrine, and Paxil, because they caused serious side-effects such as withdrawl and hallucinations. Currently, their son is taking no medication and is on a special diet which helps with his condition.

US Courts Forcing Parents to Medicate Kids for ADD/ADHD

On March 21, 2000, 14-year-old Matthew Smith dropped dead of a heart attack while skateboarding. The ninth-grader had been on Ritalin since the first grade. Lawrence Smith, father of the youngster, has testified that he and his wife were forced by Michigan Social Services to put their child on Ritalin or else be charged for neglecting their son's educational and emotional needs.

"His last report card was his best," says Lawrence Smith. "But it wasn't worth it for us. Putting him on Ritalin was the worst decision I've ever made." And that's because no long-range study had been made of the effects of Ritalin on children who take it over a number of years.

Can Ritalin kill a child?

A recent study reveals that the drug being prescribed to tens of millions of school-age children for a scientifically unproved mental disorder is more potent than coc aine.

Thirty years ago the World Health Organization (WHO) concluded that Ritalin was pharmacologically similar to coc aine in the pattern of abuse it fostered and cited it as a Schedule II drug - the most addictive in medical use. The Department of Justice also cited Ritalin as a Schedule II drug under the Controlled Substances Act, and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) warned that "Ritalin substitutes for coc aine and d-amphetamine in a number of behavioral paradigms."

Despite decades of official warnings and supporting research confirming the similarities of methylphenidate (Ritalin) and coc aine, tens of millions of children in the United States have been prescribed this psychotropic drug for a widely accepted yet scientifically unproved mental condition: attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Now a recently concluded study at the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) not only confirms the similarities of coc aine and Ritalin, but finds that Ritalin is more potent than coc aine in its effect on the dopamine system, which many doctors believe is one of the areas of the brain most affected by drugs such as Ritalin and coc aine.

Ritalin Proven More Potent Than Cocaine - Nearly 10 Million Kids Drugged

Doctors prescribing these drugs claim the unaccounted increase in children being diagnosed and prescribed psychotropic drugs is "better diagnosis and detection." But that claim is not borne out by any new empirically verifiable diagnostic tool. In fact, diagnosis of children with psychiatric disorders is entirely subjective--there are no objective markers or tests, merely check lists.

To understand the huge increase in the number of children on psychotropic drugs, one needs to examine the financial interests of those who promote the practice of such prescribing. Among the professional organizations that have pushed for widespread use of psychotropic drugs in treating "troubled" children-- without demonstrating the existence of an actual mental illness for which the drugs prescribed have proven to be safe and effective--is the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. TIME fails to note, however, that the Academy is funded by--and therefore under the influence of--the manufacturers of psychotropic drugs.

TIME - Medicating Young Minds with Mood / Behavior Altering Drugs

About 650 Florida foster children, including some not under the care of a pediatrician, have been given mind-altering drugs. They represent more than half of a group examined by an advocacy agency appointed by the governor.

Infants and toddlers were being administered the drugs, most of which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not found to be safe or effective for children's use, according to a report released Thursday by the Statewide Advocacy Council. The report follows a two-year study by the council.

''The use of psychotropic drugs by preschoolers was a disturbing discovery, since most of these drugs have not been approved for use in young children,'' the report states.

Mind-altering drugs given to some babies in DCF's care

Hmmm. Strange, don't you think, how most of these drugs are antidepressants? They lift mood, creating a pleasurable sensation.

Point the first- Pleasure is the only stimulus that people cannot acclimate to. Are these drugs inhibiting the natural production of norenephrin to the point that the glands atrophy, thus creating more of a market for these drugs?

Point the second- by giving childrne pills at such an early age, what does this accomplish? The habituation of children to the use of drugs. It encourages children to take medication for each ache and pain, and gives them the stanard that drug use is 'okay'.


Antidepressants are pretty hefty to be throwing aroudn so casually.

DE

Originally posted by DeusEx
Point the second- by giving childrne pills at such an early age, what does this accomplish? The habituation of children to the use of drugs. It encourages children to take medication for each ache and pain, and gives them the stanard that drug use is 'okay'.

Exactly my point. I think that even though these drugs do help some people, they are dangerous and can often have very serious side effects. I question the logic of using these drugs on young children in order to keep them like zombies so they behave.

Chalk up another profitable victory for those promoting the legal drugging of America's children, also known as the good folks of the pharmaceutical industry. Earlier this month, a federal judge struck down a Food and Drug Administration regulation that required drug makers to test medicines routinely given to children.

As a result, America's legal drug pushers are once again free to offer their potent concoctions for our kids' consumption without having to prove that they are safe or effective for pediatric use.

This is no small matter, given the skyrocketing number of children being prescribed heaping helpings of powerful mood-altering drugs. For instance, 1.5 million kids are currently taking Prozac and its equivalents even though the FDA hasn't approved these drugs for use by anyone under 18.

Drugging Our Children The Legal Way

Once part of the problem is the knee-jerk reaction of parents and schools to assign medication to every problem child instead of figuring out the motivation BEHIND the acting out.

Does it disturb anyone else that often kids trade these drugs in for cash, CDs, or other drugs?

DE

Originally posted by DeusEx
Once part of the problem is the knee-jerk reaction of parents and schools to assign medication to every problem child instead of figuring out the motivation BEHIND the acting out.

Does it disturb anyone else that often kids trade these drugs in for cash, CDs, or other drugs?

Yeah it does disturb me. Essentially these kids are being turned into drug dealers since many of them sell the drugs like you said.. in exchange for money and other things.

Not only that, it fuels the growing drug black market. We're hitting another hippy patch- drug use is generally accepted, and so these actions are actually helping fuel a schoolyard where a kid trades in his bottle of Ritalin for a few rocks.

Second, almost all of these drugs are seratonin inhibitors, and seratonin is fairly important for brain function. I haven't slept in about two and a half days...so someone dedge up what seratonin functions are. I'll put odds on it affecting higher-order brain function.

DE

In the November 30, 1998 edition of Time magazine a feature article entitled "The Age of Ritalin" reported that in 1995, just under "half a million prescriptions were written for controlled substances like Ritalin...for children between the ages of 3 and 6."

By 1997, the number had reportedly jumped to over 800,000 perscriptions being written for children taking mood-altering psychotropics such as Ritalin, Prozac, Zoloft and Paxil.

It has been reported that there are schools with over 10 percent of their student bodies going to class under the influence of state-prescribed psychotropic drugs like Ritalin.

Drug-Free School Zone?

Originally posted by DeusEx
Second, almost all of these drugs are seratonin inhibitors, and seratonin is fairly important for brain function. I haven't slept in about two and a half days...so someone dedge up what seratonin functions are. I'll put odds on it affecting higher-order brain function.

DE

About Serotonin

The Role of Serotonin in Clinical Disorders

The serotonin transporter: a primary target for antidepressant drugs

The Role of Serotonin

Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, or 5-HT) is a monoamine neurotransmitter synthesized in the central nervous system.

Serotonin is believed to play an important part of the biochemistry of depression, bipolar disorder and anxiety. It is also believed to be influential on sexuality.

Serotonin taken orally is not passed into the serotonin pathways of the brain. Since it is such an important regulating chemical, the blood-brain barrier prevents serotonin in the blood stream from directly affecting serotonin levels in the brain. However, the amino acid tryptophan and its metabolite 5-hydroxytryptophan � which serotonin is synthesized from � are capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier. These chemicals are readily available as dietary supplements and may be effective serotonergic agents.

Serotonin - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Originally posted by DeusEx
Not only that, it fuels the growing drug black market. We're hitting another hippy patch- drug use is generally accepted, and so these actions are actually helping fuel a schoolyard where a kid trades in his bottle of Ritalin for a few rocks.

It seems ridiculous to me that so many parents have no problems keeping their child drugged with these type of medication. And like you said, it seems that people arent allowed to be depressed anymore.

It seems like very few reconize prescription drugs like mood enhancers and ADD/ADHD meds as drugs like the ones found on the streets.

I believe that drugs are largely responsible for most mental disorders, the drug companies sell bad product when they can profit, and some or just too stupid to realize that children are going to misbehave.

Originally posted by jrod
I believe that drugs are largely responsible for most mental disorders, the drug companies sell bad product when they can profit, and some or just too stupid to realize that children are going to misbehave.

Exactly. That's the bottom line for them, making money. Many parents are too goddamn lazy to actually parent their kids that they would rather have their children on drugs.