ADHD: Parents Should Use Alternative Treatments for Illness A child named Alva comes to mind. Alva's teacher taught by rote, which was too mechanical for the boy's creative mind. His thoughts often wandered, while his body seemed in perpetual motion in his seat. The teacher found Alva, inattentive and unruly and often threatened punishment. Alva, fearful and out of place, ran away from school (Robbins 2). The preceding quote is an example of a student that lived many years ago that would most likely be diagnosed today with ADHD. There is an increasing debate on the subject of using prescription drugs to treat the condition of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD. The use of methylphenidate stimulants for treatment of ADHD is a huge concern of many physicians and parents. There are several alternatives to using drug therapy when children are diagnosed with ADHD, and these are alternatives which should be exhausted before placing children on stimulant drug-therapies.For over twenty-five years, hyperactivity has been a problem with children, usually found when the children are school age. ADHD has been noted as a nuerological disorder. The areas in which the children have problems are: inattention, impulsivity, hyperactivity, and boredom (Attention Deficit Disorder Information Library).An article in American Medical News states,"Increasingly, ADHD is viewed as one of the most prevalent childhood chronic health conditions In recent years, these prevalence rates have raised concerns about possible overdiagnosis, leading some experts to worry that typical childhood behavior is being treated as an illness" (Stapleton). This is probably one of the biggest problems with the ADHD prescription of drugs. Many ADHD diagnoses have been based solely on the parents and teachers in the form of standardized questions and /or checklists. Many physicians are not performing extensive tests to rule out other reasons for a child's be...
