Introduction
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a condition diagnosed from childhood and which makes it difficult for patients to pay attention and stay focused on tasks.
Overmedicating children to treat ADHD has negative or adverse impacts, especially those caused by harmful medications used.
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The stimulant and non-stimulant medications treatment options for ADHD has negative impacts on children unlike the use of behavioral therapy (Singh, 2017).
In spite of the need for the treatment, overmedicating children to treat ADHD should be avoided due to harmful effects like short-lived benefits; increase in mental problems, side effects, and stigmatization.
Background
Medicating children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has become a controversial topic as others point out that professionals overdiagnose and overmedicate those with the condition.
The primary reason for the prescription of ADHD medications to children is to improve their levels of attention and lower hyperactivity and impulsivity in children.
The medications can also be used to enhance their ability to focus and work.
Furthermore, they may lower aggression through the provision of a calming effect and enhancing coping with frustration.
However, overmedicating children to treat ADHD has side effects because its continuous use will have adverse outcomes other than what is intended.
Reasons against overmedicating children to treat ADHD
The positive impacts of ADHD medication are short-lived; hence are not effective in the long-term.
As the children continue to use them, their body system will get used to them, and this means that they will not be effective anymore.
Perceived benefits of improving schoolwork and peer relationships will decline at a future time because of more limited capacities for self-observation and self-reflection which are common among ADHD patients.
As the children grow, they may experience various functional impairments in addition to an addiction to the extent that they cannot function without them.
Overtreatment of children with ADHD leads to an increase in the number of mental issues.
Mental health diagnosis is susceptible to overdiagnosis because the decisions are based self-reported or observable behavior; hence the interpretations are subjective.
In most situations, the immediate doctor could misdiagnose a child, and this means that they will take medications to treat a wrong disease.
Furthermore, a psychiatrist may not be the one prescribing medications to patients, and this could lead to overtreatment of the disease.
Hence, there is a need to solve the issue of overdiagnosis and overtreatment of children with ADHD.
Overtreatment of ADHD consists of various side effects for the children using the medications.
Children can be more sensitive to using the medications for a long time; hence negatively affecting them.
Some of the common effects include loss of appetite, abdominal pain, aggression, headache, insomnia, dizziness, and fatigue.
Other less common effects of ADHD medications include moodiness, dysphoria, and loss of creativity (Buitelaar, 2017).
In the end, overtreatment will have more adverse effects on children with ADHD instead of improving their conditions.
The continuous use of ADHD treatments causes an increase in stigmatization
As earlier indicated, overtreatment of children with ADHD leads to an increase in the number of mental illnesses, a condition that most people in society fear.
Furthermore, society tends to isolate and discriminate against people with ADHD.
Therefore, other children may want to commit suicide especially in situations where they feel the medications do not work anymore and they do not fit into their respective environments
Reasons for overmedicating children to treat ADHD
Diagnosing and providing medications and treatment for children with ADHD has positive impacts on their behavior, and this improves their quality of life.
The medications that the child receives lead to a reduction or complete discontinuation of behaviors.
There will be a declined level of extreme aggression, and the children will tend to be more friendly with those around them.
Medications improve the concentration of children diagnosed with ADHD, and this makes them fit with their peers.
Generally, overmedicating children to treat ADHD will have a positive impact on their behavior and how they relate with those around them, especially their fellows.
Conclusion
Overdiagnosis and overtreatment of children with ADHD have caused several controversies today because of its adverse effects on users.
The continuous use of the drugs and therapies have negative impacts such as an increase in mental illnesses, side effects of the medications, and stigmatization.
Overtreatment has short-term impacts, and this means that the expected long-term benefits of increasing academic performance and peer relations are compromised.
On the other hand, the positive impacts of overtreatment of children with ADHD are that it reduces or discontinuous their negative behavior; hence improving their quality of life.
List of Sources/Bibliography
Buitelaar, J. K. (2017). Optimising treatment strategies for ADHD in adolescence to minimise ‘ lost in transition’to adulthood. Epidemiology and psychiatric sciences , 26 (5), 448-452.
Coon, E. R., Quinonez, R. A., Moyer, V. A., & Schroeder, A. R. (2014). Overdiagnosis: how our compulsion for diagnosis may be harming children. Pediatrics , 134 (5), 1013-1023.
GIULIANO, K., & GEYER, E. (2017). ADHD: Overdiagnosed and overtreated, or misdiagnosed and mistreated?. Cleveland Clinic journal of medicine , 84 (11), 873.
Martinez-Raga, J., Ferreros, A., Knecht, C., de Alvaro, R., & Carabal, E. (2017). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder medication use: factors involved in prescribing, safety aspects and outcomes. Therapeutic advances in drug safety , 8 (3), 87-99.
Merten, E. C., Cwik, J. C., Margraf, J., & Schneider, S. (2017). Overdiagnosis of mental disorders in children and adolescents (in developed countries). Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health , 11 (1), 5.
Reading, R. (2014). Attention ‐ deficit/hyperactivity disorder: are we helping or harming?. Child: Care, Health and Development , 40 (2), 300-300.
Singh, J. (2017). Pharmacotherapeutic options for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). International Journal of Research in Medical Sciences , 5 (11), 4677.
Potential Challenges or Issues That May Be Encountered When Writing the Essay
One of the possible challenges that can be experienced is writing a conclusion for the essay. I may find it hard to find something useful or interesting to write in the final section to make it attractive. As a result, the conclusion will be dull or with clichés; hence the work will not end on the best light. Furthermore, there may be a challenge in determining the most important points that come first before the others. However, the outline helps to lower the extent of the problems that I may encounter when writing the final draft.
Merten, E. C., Cwik, J. C., Margraf, J., & Schneider, S. (2017). Overdiagnosis of mental disorders in children and adolescents (in developed countries). Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health , 11 (1), 5.
The increase in the number of mental disorders in children and adolescents is caused by overdiagnosis of mental conditions. Overdiagnosis results from various elements including diagnostic criteria and the available health care systems that provide misleading information to care providers. The source is relevant to the study because it offers solutions and procedures that can be used to avoid overdiagnosis in children. It is a scholarly journal on child adolescent psychiatric mental health. Also, the used sources have been cited in the journal; thus the information provided is rendered to be reliable and accurate. The source is a recent journal article because it was published in 2017. The authors conclude that the use of semi-structured clinical interview aid in resolving the issue of overdiagnosis in children.
Reading, R. (2014). Attention ‐ deficit/hyperactivity disorder: are we helping or harming?. Child: Care, Health and Development , 40 (2), 300-300.
The author acknowledges that cases of ADHD have significantly increased over the past decades. The rise in prevalence has become a point of concern globally. Overdiagnosis is attributed to diagnostic change due to continued changes in DSM criteria over time. Mental health diagnosis is susceptible to overdiagnosis because the decisions are based self-reported or observable behavior; hence the interpretations are subjective. The journal is reliable because it was published in 2013, revised in 2014. It is further a scholarly journal, and the author has published several journals relating to child care, health, and development. The limitation of the journal, however, is that it does not have a literature review about the topic. The author has lso not provided any conclusion.
Singh, J. (2017). Pharmacotherapeutic options for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). International Journal of Research in Medical Sciences , 5 (11), 4677.
Singh describes the treatment of ADHD as a costly health problem. The use of various drugs and stimulants for treatment causes side effects on the users. The behavioral disorder is particularly diagnosed in children and adolescents. The source is suitable for the study because it provides various ways that can be used in the treatment of ADHD and associated consequences. Singh (2017) acknowledges that ADHD medication affects particular brain neurotransmitters that help in the transmission of a message. The source is peer reviewed and has been published in the International Journal of Research in Medical Sciences. The author is a postgraduate who has several publications on pharmacology, and this demonstrates his ability to provide reliable information with technical language. The author concludes that the treatment for ADHD is changing where medication needs to be incorporated with behavioral therapy.
Martinez-Raga, J., Ferreros, A., Knecht, C., de Alvaro, R., & Carabal, E. (2017). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder medication use: factors involved in prescribing, safety aspects and outcomes. Therapeutic advances in drug safety , 8 (3), 87-99.
The authors provide several interventions that can be used in combating the issue of ADHD in children. Pharmacotherapy is considered as the most effective and cost-effective component. Various factors determine the prescription and medication to be used by people diagnosed with ADHD. Treatment of ADHD assists in increasing the normal functioning of the patient and emotional ability to yield better outcomes like improved performance, and reduction in criminality. The source is vital in this study because it provides a framework for the needed interventions in the handling of ADHD medications. The source is reliable because all the sources have been cited. Besides, the authors have published several journals, and this shows that they are competent. Other publishers have also cited the source in PubMed Central. The author concludes that training is needed in creating awareness of clinicians concerning ADHD to ensure that they are in a position to effectively identify symptoms to provide proper treatment.
