This essay responds to a New York Times article by Schwartz and Cohen (2013) on the growing number of ADHD diagnoses in children and teenagers. The paper argues that profit-motivated doctors, pressure from pharmaceutical companies, and parental avoidance of behavioral interventions all contribute to hasty and potentially unwarranted ADHD diagnoses. The author links premature pharmacological treatment to broader issues of prescription drug abuse and the mixed cultural messages young people receive about drug use. The essay calls for more careful, holistic diagnostic practices before resorting to medications such as Ritalin.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has become a relatively common diagnosis. Most young people know someone with the diagnosis, if they have not themselves been diagnosed. The article "More Diagnoses of A.D.H.D. Causing Concern," published in The New York Times, highlights the growing concerns surrounding the increase in ADHD diagnoses in children and teens. While there are certainly children who legitimately have ADHD, some doctors are rushing through the evaluation and screening processes and making the diagnosis haphazardly.
The reasons for jumping to a diagnosis of ADHD are varied but relatively straightforward. Many doctors are profit-motivated and simply want to make their clients happy by bowing to what Schwartz & Cohen (2013) describe as "pressure" from parents. Doctors have long maintained close relationships with the large pharmaceutical companies that manufacture drugs like Ritalin, which is prescribed for ADHD. When big pharma wants to sell more drugs, these companies encourage doctors to make diagnoses that warrant prescribing those drugs. Doctors are, in effect, all but bribed through perks and incentives cultivated within the marketing relationship between physicians and the pharmaceutical industry. Journalists like Schwartz & Cohen (2013) are therefore exposing a real problem in American society. The problem does not stop with ADHD; there are many instances in which Americans rush to pharmacological solutions for problems that could be better addressed through lifestyle changes, attitude changes, or social changes.
"Ritalin misuse and links to drug abuse"
"Medication as substitute for proper parenting"
"Cultural contradictions in drug stigma and prescribing"
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