ADD and ADHD are among the most common diagnoses applied to young children and adolescents. The implications of such a diagnosis include a potential health risk, as most children in this category are prescribed behavior altering drugs with dependency-based reactions. Drugs like Ritalin and Adderall are oftentimes prescribed to children who continue to take them only to find that they are not producing any kind of solution to treat the root cause of neurological and behavioral disorders in general.
Mind Altering Drugs Lead Only to Negative Consequences
As of 2006, at least 4.5 million American children were said to have been diagnosed with ADHD, and the prevalence of behavioral disorders has been increasing. This is due in part to misdiagnosis, simply based on the fact that all children do not behave and act in the same manner. Some children may choose to act out of line for a number of reasons, but the stigma of a behavioral disorder is unfairly applied to them. In fact, half of all Americans will be diagnosed with at least one mental illness within their lifetime.
The issue self-perpetuates as the children are prescribed these behavior altering drugs, which alter their brain chemistry and lead to more serious problems like depression and drug dependency later in life. Even over the counter drugs which are much more accessible are dangerous. Pharmaceuticals are only a temporary fix that do not address the fundamental issues behind behavioral disorders. That is why even mainstream health officials are now speaking out against antipsychotics.
Numerous studies have linked diet choices to the appearance of ADD, ADHD, and other behavioral disorders in children and adolescents. Feeding children junk food, processed foods high in sugar, or even excessive amounts of grains have been found to produce all types of behavioral issues. Very recently, gluten consumption has also been linked to ADD and ADHD symptoms.
Altering the diet of a child or adolescent to create more of a balance while including proper nutrition will result in a boost of overall mental health and cognition. These dietary changes will also eliminate many of the apparent behavioral issues and mental dissonances within developing children. Not only can proper nutrition be much more effective than antipsychotics, but it will also be much safer in every aspect. Keep in mind that pharmaceuticals are responsible for millions of deaths, while vitamins are responsible for none. In fact, pharmaceuticals have led to more deaths than ever traffic fatalities.
More important to consider however, is the personal dynamic involved with each individual. Every person is different and develops in a unique way compared to those around them. Children who apparently act out or teenagers who do the same may simply be responding to some form of alienation or attempting to understand themselves better.
It is a tragedy how most doctors are quick to drop the hammer and declare that the individual has a disorder, only to prescribe dangerous and mind-altering drugs as a solution. Each individual needs to be handled differently and should be given the privilege of being counseled rather then being categorized as mentally unstable and coldly given a cookie cutter solution – a habitual trait that seems pervasive in the medical establishment today.
