The Concept Of Attention Hyper Deficit Disorder In Children

The concept of “Attention Hyper Deficit Disorder” has intrigued me ever since I was diagnosed with it four years ago. I was given a prescription to Adderall and after taking the medication for two years, I grew tired of it, mainly due to the unexpected side effects. I experienced a dramatic weight loss, suffered unpredictable mood swings, and constantly dealt with high levels of anxiety. My doctor told me these were all ‘normal’ side effects and offered me more medication to deal with them. This is where I had what many would refer to as an epiphany. Taking more medication to deal with side effects from another medication? It did not seem logical to me, and definitely was not something I even remotely considered. Therefore, I stopped taking the medicine and decided to seek out a more ‘natural’ way to treat this supposed disorder I had. This meant sticking to a strict diet, workout regimen, and getting at least eight hours per night. Additionally, I was forced to cut back on going out and partying every weekend with friends. While it was difficult at first, all the changes I made not only improved my performance in school, but vastly improved my overall health, better than any medication ever had. This inevitably led me to question the legitimacy of ‘A.D.H.D’ and if handing out stimulants is the answer. As a result, I set out to find the reason so many kids are getting diagnosed with this disorder and offer more natural solutions to help aid them.

The study, published by Jeffery Halperin, is possibly the most relevant and important article pertaining to my argument. The author notes that the medication given to treat patients with A.D.H.D. is both “costly and problematic” as it can lead to a host of other symptoms, which therefore require more medication. For example, a patient that is given a prescription to Adderall has a high risk chance of developing anxiety, which can lead to getting prescribed anti-anxiety medication. This is a concept I previously touched on in the introduction. Now that the patient is taking two medications for two different disorders, the doors are opened for even more side effects to ensue; requiring even more medication. It is a never ending cycle. The article also talks about health risks for children taking stimulant medications. Like the American Heart Association suggesting “problematic interactive effects of stimulant medication with underlying cardiac conditions” in children. There is also the glaring issue of what happens to patients when treatment stops, i.e., the doctor discontinues their medication once they reach a certain age, or a problem arises in the patient’s insurance and they are unable to afford it. If A.D.H.D. is considered a lifelong condition, why is there no lifelong treatment? The author also suggests (and urges) alternative treatments for children who are believed to have A.D.H.D. He notes that there are “numerous children’s games, activities, and exercises that would be easy for families to play that target the diffuse neurocognitive deficits that have been associated with A.D.H.D.” Even simple games like “Simon Says” and “Hopscotch” can help alleviate symptoms. The point is, there are many natural solutions to help a child focus more in school. Giving them stimulants to serve as a chemical straightjacket is not the answer, and even seems morally wrong.

The report, published in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology, brings up the idea that screen time has an impact on a child’s cognitive ability. This is something that I believe massively contributes to attention problems in children, especially in an age where every five year old is given an iPad to be quiet. The study builds on this idea and focuses on how television viewing puts preschool children at risk for attention problems. The study was done by gathering 170 children from local preschools and placing them in groups based A.D.H.D-like symptoms. Those with no symptoms were placed in separate groups. After placing the children in groups, children and parents participated in an assessment. The results concluded that it is “not unreasonable to posit a relationship between excessive television viewing and later attentional difficulties.” The author says that this is because television is something that is “highly reinforcing” (especially to children) and requires virtually no effort, unless you count changing the channel or volume. On the flip side, the author notes that the reason some children watch so much television is because an attention disorder is already intact. Regardless, there is an indefinite link between screen time and attention issues. This pertains to my research question by suggesting that a potential reason children are struggling to concentrate in school is due to the technology they are exposed to at an early age.

The scholarly source, published by multiple authors in a manuscript for the U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, details a study that looked to “examine the impact of technology on four areas of ill-being - psychological issues, behavior problems, attention problems and physical health.” The study covered various age groups ranging from 4-18 and worked by surveying parents about their own children. The authors came up with their study after The American Academy of Pediatrics said they “recommend no screen time for children under the age of 2 and limited screen time for all children”. The authors noted that preteens and teenagers were left out of the study and wanted to investigate how using an increased amount of media impacts their overall health. An important part of the study, one that perhaps relates most to my research question – why there is a rise in A.D.H.D. among children in the United States - finds that attention deficit disorder is higher in those considered to be ‘addicted’ to the internet. Other symptoms of users with increased web activity included impulsivity, obsessive-compulsive disorder, hostility, and social anxiety - all traits linked to A.D.H.D. The study also found that the more television time a toddler is exposed to, the more likely they are to develop attention problems down the road. Aside from technology, the study also examined the children’s diet and activity levels. Researchers found that psychological issues and attention problems were linked to an unhealthy diet and lack of exercise, citing that “one hour or more of physical activity each day” is recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Additionally, parents whose children regularly consumed sugary sodas, fried foods, fast food, and candy showed a host of problems, both physical and mental. Researches ultimately concluded that, while diet and physical activity play a major role in a child’s development, technology had the most significant impact, saying “regardless of the demographic makeup of either the parent or the child…the use of technology may be a potential cause of poorer health.”

The hefty article, published by Hannes Schwandt and Amelie Wuppermann, make it a point that “the youngest get the pill”. At 48 pages long, Schwandt and Wuppermann take a look at the underlying causes of A.D.H.D and how the disorder is highly misdiagnosed. The reason they say the disorder is so misdiagnosed is because of, believe it or not, birthdays. Children whose birthday places them in school earlier than others puts them at higher risk of getting diagnosed with A.D.H.D. According to the authors, this is because “Relatively younger students are less mature and often less disciplined”. The report also shows data taken from schools all across Germany, providing undeniable proof that children born during specific months have higher cases of A.D.H.D, further proving that misdiagnosis happens all too often.