Are children with Attention Deficit Disorder being overmedicated Research Paper

Are children with Attention Deficit Disorder being overmedicated - Research Paper Example However, due increased research and concerns, treatment providers have embraced the use of behavioral interventions for treatment. This paper will examine the patterns of medication of children with this disorder to establish whether there is overmedication. It will first provide a general introduction of the disorder, explaining its prevalence, and history. It will also discuss the standard diagnosis criteria for the disorder as well as its effects and treatment options. Introduction Attention Deficit disorder (ADD) is a neuropsychiatric syndrome linked with major functional impairment, including patient and family distress, comorbid psychiatric and developmental conditions, and poor academic outcomes. The prevalence of ADD according to population-based studies estimate is about 4%. The diagnosis and identification of Attention- deficit disorder in children is usually during their early elementary school years making it one of the most frequent behavioral or psychological disorders of childhood (Rappley et al, 1999). Bedard et al (2003) asserts that Attention deficit disorder is among the most widespread developmental psychiatric disorders detected in childhood. One of the recent theory claims that the crucial impairment in this disorder is a deficit concerning response inhibition. He explains, â€Å"Response inhibition is part of the multidimensional construct of inhibition and is a self-generated, higher-order executive function that refers to the ability to stop a planned course of action.† According to prevalence studies carried out, boys are 2 times more prevalent to ADD than girls are. In addition, these studies have also reported on a positive link between ADD and academic problem. However, across studies there was a great variation on the degree of co morbidity ranging from 10% to 90%. Although research have not confirmed, there is an assumed link of ADD prevalence and the children’s background being more prevalent among children from min ority and low-income populations (LeFever et al, 1999). It is in the late 1960s in the United States that the construction of ADD occurred with the acceptance that a variety of behavioral characteristics defined the medical disorder without a specific requirement to ascertain evidence of neurological or biological dysfunction. The rapid increase in the use of the diagnosis and treatment with medication globally occurred in the 1990s. In the United States and Australia, there is a significant increase in diagnosis although there has been an evident increase in other countries worldwide (Kean, 2004). Effects of the disorder and diagnosis Among the signs experienced by quite a numbers of children with ADD during the adolescent years

Underage Drinking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Underage Drinking - Essay Example Lacks of legal framework coupled by moral decay in the society are the two main barriers to mitigating the problem of underage drinking. The number of young people engaging in underage drinking has been increasing with time. Everyday there are more than 5,000 kids in the US who are aged 16 and below who have the first full alcoholic drink. Statistics have shown that alcohol is the most abused substance compared to other like tobacco, marijuana, or other hard drugs by the young people. The average age of drinking has been set ad 12 to 17 years although the average age at which kids are introduced to alcoholic drinks is at 13 years. The episode of binge dirking has also been increasing with time. It is shown that the level of binge drinking by young people has increased by more that a half compared to the level in 1990s. Between 1993 and 2001 studies have found out that more than 56% of the kids aged between 13 and 20 had at least one binge drinking occasion in the past 30 days. A recent study has show that more than 10.8 million persons between the age of 12 and 20 reported to have been drinking alcohol in the past on e month. Almost 7.2 million of them were binge drinkers. (The Center for Alcohol Marketing, 2008) There are many reasons that have given by the young drinkers as to why they find it easy to abuse alcohol compared to other substances. They have given a variety of reasons but the availability of alcohol and lack of restrictive laws on the use of alcohol has been given as the most prevalent factor why they abuse alcohol than other drugs It has been shown that alcohol is readily available and can be purchased without restrictions unlike other substances. But a good number of them also showed that there is little apparently control. Even when they go to their home drunk, they are not reprimanded by their parents. This is perhaps the greatest factor that has contributed to increased number of underage drinking as compared to other reasons that can be given. It shows an intricate moral decay and lack of parental control on underage drinking. On the issue of availably of the drinks, the convenient suitor have been criticized for promoting under age drinking they have been providing drinks to the kids even without need of identification. While there are strict government laws regulation the sale of alcohol in other areas, these rules have not been well enforced in convenience stores. The fact that there are not official to look at what kids are drinking makes it more complicated to control underage drinking. However it may be difficult for the convenience stores to put in place control measures that will ensure that underage drinkers don't purchase drinks since it has been shown that some of them come in company of their parents and purchase the drinks. The issue of underage drinking has been tackled using a variety of tactics. The state security machinery including the police force has been directed to deal firmly with the problem. But the underage