'ADHD is a myth'

Few topics pertaining to childrens health arouses more controversy than Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD.

Seven percent of Aussie kids have been diagnosed, with treatment usually involving medication and counselling, but according to Professor Robert Spillane ADHD is a complete myth.

Professor Spillanes beliefs:


There is no way, scientific or medical, that a child can be tested for ADHD, there is therefore no way that it can be medically proven. The diagnosis is totally subjective - we can run X-rays for broken bones to provide a definitive and conclusive answer, we can check blood pressure to see if levels are high or low, insulin levels can be monitored to determine whether someone suffers from diabetes but there is no medical test for ADHD, because it is a behavioural issue.

Seven percent of Australian kids have been diagnosed with ADHD, with NSW and the ACT leading the nation. Up to 80 000 children within Australia are being treated with drugs, and children as young as two years old are being diagnosed.

The definition of an illness is very important in this case. ADHD cannot be deemed an illness or condition per se, because an illness / condition can be medically and biologically tested consistently, with same findings seen to occur in each subject. This does not happen with ADHD. There are no blood tests which can prove or disprove this - there are no finite measures.

If a child is acting in a way that displeases parents and teachers, society will label that child as "sick". If kids annoy or irritate other people, they are in danger of being labelled "ill". We are simply labelling children whose behaviour is unsavoury or unfavoured as sick, and this is unwarranted. So called "professionals" are focussing on behaviour that displeases parent, teachers etc, rather than that which is a proven medical condition. Basically, the diagnosis is a comparison between extroverted kids, and quieter or less extroverted kids.

Since this is not a matter of illness, children should not be treated as such, or prescribed medicine. Children aged six, seven and eight years old have died of stroke after using ADHD drugs - they are stimulant drugs which boost the heart and brain systems, and often their tiny bodies cannot handle the impact. Further, when amphetamines are given to two and three year olds, whose brains are tiny and still developing, nobody knows the consequences - science does not know the outcomes.

The theory that a chemical imbalance exists in children holds absolutely no merit, as this cannot be measured - there is absolutely no way that science can test or detect chemical balances or imbalances.

Overactive children are simply starved of stimulation. They get bored when their stimulation levels are too low, and therefore seek this stimulus via other means. The onus is on adults - parents, carers and teachers - to provide and facilitate a more stimulating learning environment.

A study by Gregory Fabiano of the University of Buffalo, published in the Clinical Psychology Review says, "We now know that ADHD is a lifelong condition." But Professor Spillane says this is "rubbish, deeply misleading and flawed".
From a medical perspective, to meet an Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder diagnosis, six or more of the diagnostic symptoms established by professionals must have been present for at least six months to a point that is disruptive and inappropriate for the child's developmental level.

Symptoms include fidgeting, excessive talking, running around at inappropriate times, frequently disrupting class, blurting out answers in class, taking action before thinking, making rash decisions, not paying attention, making careless mistakes, not listening, not finishing tasks, and not following directions.

SHARE:MESSENGERFACEBOOKMOREPost on FacebookBlog on SpacesAdd to deliciousAdd to DiggShare on MySpace?Share, bookmark, and save your favourite ninemsn articles and features. Learn more.[x]
Sorry, your configuration doesn't support this feature.
The minimum requirements are MSN Messenger 6.0 or higher and Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher.
Download Windows Live Messenger now.

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• Psychiatry
• Drugs
• ADHD
• Control
• Disorder
• Hysteria
• mentally
• psychiatric

[Breetastic]

@xBFAunleashedx You dont have ADHD....you're just fucking stupid kid. I was diagnosed with ADHD at 5...was a medicated zombie like you for a while...until you realize its all bullshit.

[manessvijay]

i have focussed myself fully in restoring my 7 year old adhd autistic son and helped him move towards normalcy w/out the help of any medication naturally, allowing all his tantrums with infinite patience and by doing so, created a fusion of understanding between both of us and today he is more than 70% normal, so, going by my experience, i fully endorse professor spillanes' views.

[persiancatsarecool]

So for this kid when he is 40 he has the impulse control of a 30 yr old- this is the growing out of it. Its not really growing out of it becaue you are still behind but not the difference is not so noticable compared to others your age. Depend on how bad it is though. Meditation helps but requires discipline I would have had trouble with when younger. I wish I had known when I was young. This guy is just blowing his horn and that of his profession. Hi take on antidepressants is whacked out

[persiancatsarecool]

This guy says in the beginning he is not a medical doctor - duh!. It is apparent several minutes into it he has no understanding of neurophysiology. How shold one confirm the diagnosis- biopsy the brain? With ADHD the frontal lobe is slow to develop in comparison to peers. So perhaps you are 13 with the impulse control of a 3 year old. Can this guy not see how this could be a problem?

[airbornes96]

ADHD IS 100% REAL ITS A REAL ILLNESS I HAVE ADHD AND I CANT FOUCUS AT ALL ANYONE WHO THINKS ITS FAKE ARE JUST SAD THAT THEY ARE GAY AND SCREWED UP THINKING THEY CAN TELL WHAT IS REAL AND NOT STUPID IGNORANT PEOPLE

[SPIDER]

@OdomtologyBooks

flagged for spam, has nothing to do with the video.

[SPIDER]

@Breetastic

if you were a medicated zombie then your communication between your psychiatrist who diagnosed you wasn't sufficient and your dosage was likely too high. I take 50MG of Vyvanse and feel great for the most part, you were probably on Concerta and Adderall..those have the side effects of crash/zombie feeling.

[Breetastic]

@0Utubeuser Lets do the equation:

$24 for 30 pills, or roughly a month, which is 10 milligrams

100 bottles for every one gram

which would be 2,400 dollars per every gram of ritalin in the country

1 kilo is a thousand grams

2,400,000 per kilo of ritalin

times the 17, 618 kilos that were brought in and sold in the pharmaceutical business year of 2001,

…means it's a 42,283,200,000 dollar industry?

its brilliant, tell kids they are inferior then have them buy back their efficiency

[OdomtologyBooks]

KINDLE owners!! Don't believe what BIG PHARMA tells you!! /watch?v=pg_K5C2iaqw

[oTRoFl4wL3ss]

@0Utubeuser Kids dont have adhd ur just told u have adhd b/c ur schoolwork is all fucked up and parents now a days dont have the patience to work with their children so they medicate them. When u take a certain drug for something ur told u have over a certain amount of time you become dependent on the drug . And thus actually making your "ADHD" much worse. Its all bullshit kids are just kids and they are hyper not made to sit still. 2 b honest kids that r boring zombies seem to have the disorder