Essay - Ritalin: an Unacceptable Choice Introduction Thesis Statement: While Some Researchers...

Ritalin: An Unacceptable Choice

Introduction

Thesis Statement: While some researchers believe the drug to be a s*****fe, effective treatment for ADHD, the prescribing of the drug ***** an untested population, the addictive nature ***** the *****, the potential ***** abuse in young children, and the sometimes life altering side effects of the medication make Ritalin an unsafe alternative for ADHD treatment.

***** Argument - Safe ***** Effective

***** statement of safety

***** showing safety

Studies showing effectiveness

***** Response - Untested in growing population of users

Studies not done on ***** children

JAMA study

Limited research on children

Opponent Argument - More potent than cocaine

***** statement of caution

***** statement of caution

Brookhaven *****

Proponent ***** - Non*****addictive

Study shows drug not addictive in ***** with ADHD.

Opponent Response - Very Addictive

Teenagers

Access ***** youth to potent *****

Quinton and Byrne study

Meadow *****

Greenhill study

Opponent Argument - side effects

*****, Musten, Pisterman, Mercer, and Bennett *****

Conclusion

*****

Ritalin: An Unacceptable *****

The drug commonly referred to as "Ritalin" (methylphenidate) is the most frequently prescribed medication for the treatment of a dise*****e known as attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (*****) (White, 289). This disease is one of ***** most diagnosed mental illnesses among children, with an estimated 4.1 percent of youths aged 9-17 being ***** with the disease every 6 months (NIMH, 2001), *****d an estimated 4.3 million ***** under the age ***** 18 currently listed as ADHD or ADD suffers (White, 290). Due to the large number of prescriptions written for Ritalin since ***** FDA approved this drug ***** the treatment of children over thirty years ago (Hyman, 1), medical professionals and society in general have continuously reevaluated the use of the drug to determine the *****'s effectiveness, safety, and necessity in the treatment ***** younger *****.

The FDA, as mentioned, approved the use of methylphenidate (MPH) as a safe treatment for ***** over ***** years ***** for the ***** ***** the illness in children ages ***** and up, and numerous studies have echoed this concept. More than 160 controlled studies ***** been done on the effectiveness on the drug in treat*****g symptoms such as hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsive behaviors (Hyman, 1). In many, drug treatment alone h***** ***** found to control ***** better than behavioral treatment and routine community treatment (*****, 2003).

However, ***** treatment has been tested in ***** of children aged six and up, and yet many in ***** medical profession are diagnosing Ritalin to ***** far younger than this recommended age. According to a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), the prevalence of MPH use in children ********** two through four tripled in some *****as between 1991 and 1995 (Zi*****, et al, 1027). There have only been seven studies of children ***** the age of ***** on Ritalin, and those seven combined had ***** 156 subjects (*****, 1).

The result, then, is an increase in the prescribing of a ***** to a largely untested group of *****. The