Posted by pseudoname on July 13, 2006, at 23:34:23
In reply to How do you know stims are overprescribed?, posted by alohashirt on July 13, 2006, at 22:27:38
Hi, aloha.
I should've made clear in that sentence, as I did earlier in the thread, that it seemed clear to me only on the basis of personal exposure.
> My understanding is that about 3% of school age children are believed to have ADHD and about 60% of these are diagnosed and being treated.
When I posted earlier, I looked & found that there haven't been any studies for a long time even on the rates of stimulant use, which is a really objective criterion. But the rates of ADHD, if studies were performed, could still be questioned on the validity of the diagnostic criteria & methods.
I guess I would say that ADHD is overdiagnosed; on THAT question, there were at least a few studies back in the '90s when I studied it in class. Which is not to say that it doesn't occur. I would simply urge a far-greater-than-usual amount of caution in accepting that diagnosis or treating it with stimulants.
> how lucky I was to have a relaxed upbringing.
Yeah, that's true for me, too.
poster:pseudoname
thread:664625
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060709/msgs/666927.html