Are our children being over medicated

[Desertthorn]

I truely believe that our children are being over medicated. They get a sniffle and we rush them to the doctor and if the doctor doesn't prescribe something for them, we didn't get any help.
I was glad to see this article (below) about a study on herbs that help children, not so much for what it said, but because its nice to see that someone is studying alternatives to prescriptions.
There is a lot to be said for chicken soup, for prunes and for letting illness just run their course.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory?id=585943

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[Effie]

I agree. What I think is even more dangerous is that kids are being medicated for behavioral or mental disorders. I think this is total crap. Sure, there are some kids who need it, but I think 95% of them don't need it. If your kid is hyperactive or can't pay attention in school, you shouldn't medicate him. He's a kid. If he wasn't hyperactive or sometimes distracted, THEN I'd worry that there is something wrong with him! Give them less sugar, turn off the TV, and actually spend time with them. Don't screw them up for life by giving them medication when their brains & bodies are still developing.

<off my soap box>

[Kisseslikepearls]

Re: Are our children being over medicated

I think alot of it is not only the parents, but the doctors as well. My pedi was from India and didn't believe in prescribing antibiotics for colds and the like. I believe I'm healthier for this since my immune system had to take on alot of things on its own. He told my parents that, yes, baby will cry and yes, baby will be uncomfortable, but in a few days, she'll be ok.


I can count on one hand the number of times he prescribed something for me...a couple rounds of that yucky orange stuff that comes in a small bottle for an ear infection, and then the pink and white yummy stuff--one tastes like bubble gum and the other like circus peanuts. I think the last two were for my strept throat. Of course, I got all my vaccinations too. I never got tubes in my ears either. Strangly, one of my best friends did and she has had nothing but trouble since...4 ear surgeries as of this year.

Its like an email that ciculates around continuously said: Its amazing how our grandparents survived to be in their 70's+ without light socket covers, baby gates and being allowed to use a hammer and drive tractors at young ages.

I also think not running to the doctor every two minutes helps me now. I'm not wasting money on trip and drugs for colds: I pop my Vitamin C and move on. Granted, not always a good thing since I had untreated mono for 3 weeks and landed in the hospital for the 'push through' attitude, but with the exception for recovery time from that, the only time I've ever missed school or called in sick to work were my migrane days....I missed 3 days of school for my entire HS career.

Babying our children only hurts them later. And I am one of those who believes that a firm smack on the hind end would solve 80% of behavioral problems.

[Bugaboo]

Re: Are our children being over medicated

When my oldest son (now 11) was in kindergarten it was a nightmare. The school kept telling me how "He has ADHD!" and I kept saying "No he doesn't!" All year it was a tug of war. We would actually have what I call "intimidating" meetings because of the sheer amount of people they would invite. The teacher, counselors, the principal and etc. A lot of those meetings would be me and my husband or just me. I held my ground though even against 7 people (or more or less) at one time. I don't care if you're the principal...where's your MD degree? lol! The next year he had a really good teacher who had him observed most of the year by some professionals. He has Aspergers Disorder. (form of autism) Now that he's on the right IEP for him he's doing great! The Asperger's specialists say that he'll grow up to be a normal (well as normal as we get) functioning adult. We still face discrimination though. His 4th grade year he went in for football and the main coach didn't read the info sheet I filled out and when he found out my son has Asperger's he was asked to leave the team for his own "safety". Yeah, whatever. Broke my heart into pieces. It's tough because to the outside world he looks like any other kid but when you interact with him you know something is different. The neighbor kids are starting to ask him to come out and play so we're making progress. He actually has friends at school now and that's a big leap. He never cared if he had friends or not but getting counseling on how to socialize made an impact finally. His 5th grade year he went to a different school that has a special program and that made a huge difference as well. He had the option of going to the middle school this year or staying at the other school for his 6th grade year. He decided to stay, which I'm glad. And when those coaches come scrambling to get him to play again they can shove it. My son is almost as tall as I am and has feet bigger than mine! He's built really stout and strong so I know they're going to be chomping at the bit again to get him to play. It was the co-coaches or whatever they're called that convinced him to sign up in the first place!

Sorry for the long ramble...this is just something I feel strongly about. Because not once has my son ever taken any medication for Asperger's. I can count on one hand how many times he's been given antibotics. I only take them to the doctor (outside of regular check ups) if I think they're injured or have something really bad. Wow, I can't even remember the last time my kids had antibotics.