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Fears over huge increase in ADHD children given drugs
Anna Davis, Education Correspondent30 Oct 2009
Soaring numbers of children are receiving drugs to treat hyperactivity and depression, figures show today.
More than 420,000 prescriptions were issued to children under 16 with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in 2007 - up 33 per cent since 2005.
Critics are concerned that the use of drugs to treat ADHD "medicalises" anti-social behaviour and have raised fears about side-effects.
Drugs such as Ritalin, Concerta and Equasym stimulate parts of the brain involved in concentration, attention and activity. But side effects can include cardiovascular disorders and hallucinations as well as drowsiness, dizziness, abdominal pain, decreased appetite, nausea and early morning awakening.
Shadow health minister Anne Milton said: "This data shows that increasingly health professionals are prescribing drugs to treat child mental health problems, when evidence suggests that talking therapies can have an equal, if not better, effect."
The number of prescriptions for anti-depressants and anti-psychotics to children is also on the rise, the data suggested. More than 113,000 prescriptions of antidepressants were also issued to children under 16 in 2007, a six per cent increase over two years.
The Department of Health said: "Nice [National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence] guidance is clear that antidepressants should rarely be prescribed to children and young people and only as part of a treatment regime, stressing that other treatment options should be considered first."
A spokesman added: "Treatment with prescribed drugs should only be started after a specialist in ADHD has thoroughly assessed the child or adolescent and confirmed the diagnosis. Once treatment has been started it should be monitored by a GP.
"Drug therapy should be one part of a comprehensive treatment programme that includes advice and support to parents and teachers."
NHS advice on prescribing of antidepressants to children warns they all have "significant risks".
But Andrea Bilbow, chief executive of the national Attention Deficit Disorder Information and Support Service, said the rise in prescribing of ADHD drugs was "not a big increase" over two years.
She said: "There will be a natural rise in prescribing because we know children benefit from them. They help children stay in mainstream schools."
She added: "However, not enough children are receiving complementary treatment such as parenting programmes that would help with the social difficulties children with ADHD experience."
Fizzy drink sweetener is linked to high blood pressure
A sugary ingredient in fizzy drinks thought harmless could cause high blood pressure, researchers say.
High fructose corn syrup can be found in many processed food and soft drinks. But people who eat or drink the equivalent of two-and-a-half sugary soft drinks a day increase significantly their risk of developing high blood pressure, they have found.
Fructose exists naturally in fruit and the syrup's introduction 20 years ago as a healthy alternative to sugar has caused its consumption to rise sharply.
But large quantities cause the liver to pump fats into the bloodstream, possibly damaging arteries.
The University of Colorado researchers, who looked at more than 4,500 adults with no prior history of high blood pressure, said further work was needed to see if lowering fructose consumption could normalise blood pressure.
