Popular on Rezul
- Philanthropic Coalition Challenges MrBeast
- 11th annual Florida Blueberry Festival April 26 & 27, 2025
- Homeowners Turn to Smart Kitchen Remodeling Companies in Fort Lauderdale
- Tec-Masters to Support In-Space Testing of Honda Regenerative Fuel Cell Technology on the International Space Station
- CriptoAuge's Technological Breakthroughs Paving the Way for Cryptocurrency to Enter the Mainstream
- The Villages Welcomes NexGen Laser Pain and Rehab Centers—Revolutionizing Pain Management with MLS Laser Technology
- Spring Special: Say Goodbye to Lice Removal to a Convenient Location in Conroe, TX
- Transform Your Home with Expert Kitchen Remodeling Near Bloomington, MN
- Introducing The Lead Nurturer: A Curated Hub for Digital Strategy, Lead Generation, and Business Growth Conversations
- One Home Service Names Perfect Touch Painting as Broward County's #1 Painting Company for 2025
Similar on Rezul
- Charleston, SC - ACSEC offers Rain Barrels Through Annual Program
- Greek Government Issues Landmark Ministerial Order Addressing Citizenship of Greek-born adoptees
- OpsVeda Announces Launch of TariffSight, the World's First Comprehensive Platform to Address Tariff-Driven Challenges
- MAJOR New release of Krypto500 (ELF-HF) Sigint - COMINT software
- New Build-to-Suit VA Medical Office Facility Coming to Highland Heights, KY
- NaturismRE Launches the 11 Levels of Naturism: A Groundbreaking Framework Guiding the Global Naturist Journey
- K2 Integrity and Sonata One Partner to Accelerate Capital Raising, Reduce Risk, and Deliver Scalable Advisory Services for Private Fund Managers
- Coming Up on "Financial Freedom with Tom Hegna" Financial Expert Parker Faulkner
- Kemeny, Ramp & Renaud, LLC Welcomes Prominent Trusts and Estates Attorney Gary B. Cornick to Its Firm
- SutheDermal.com Launches: Revolutionizing Comfort in Self-Injection Therapies
The ADHD Epidemic: How Profit, Not Science, Drives the Surge in Diagnoses
Rezul News/10694257
CCHR supports Federal Investigation Launched into the Mass Labeling and "Medicating" of America's Children, especially for ADHD
LOS ANGELES - Rezul -- A federal investigation has been launched into the 3.4 million American children being diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and their potential overmedication. The probe is part of a broader review of America's health, with an initial focus on children. The Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR), a mental health industry watchdog, asserts that this investigation is long overdue, arguing that children are being labeled with a disorder for normal childhood behaviors such as fidgeting, restlessness, and daydreaming and being drugged with powerful stimulants. CCHR further contends that parents are not informed that there is no biological basis for ADHD, which is heavily marketed as a neurobiological condition to justify the prescription of stimulant drugs.
CCHR ascertained that 58,091 children aged five or younger were prescribed ADHD drugs in 2020, according to the IQVia Total Patient Tracker Database.[1] Yet the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved ADHD drugs for children under six. A surge in calls to poison control centers due to ADHD medication-related adverse events from 2000 to 2021 underscores the dangers, with children under six three times more likely to be hospitalized than their older counterparts.[2]
The expansion of ADHD diagnostic criteria has been widely criticized. Critics argue that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM) has been heavily influenced by pharmaceutical interests, raising concerns about the validity of the diagnoses. A study in PLOS Medicine revealed that 69% of the DSM-5 task force members had financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry, up from 57% in the DSM-IV task force.[3]
A Counseling Australia report detailed how the psychiatric field effectively created the ADHD market: "DSM-III and DSM-IV provided the diagnostic framework, academic psychiatrists validated its existence, and corporate interests marketed the condition aggressively." The DSM-III criteria for ADHD alone were projected to increase diagnoses by 23%. Dr. Allen Frances, former chair of the DSM-IV task force, warned that diagnostic changes fueled a "false epidemic" of both ADHD and autism, drastically increasing the number of children labeled with the disorder and prescribed stimulants to treat it.[4] By 2012, the number of American children prescribed an ADHD drug was six times the number in 1990.[5]
More on Rezul News
ADHD symptoms are determined by APA member votes and include: easily distracted, misses details, forgets things, becomes bored with a task after only a few minutes, have trouble completing or turning in homework assignments, often losing things (e.g., pencils, toys, assignments), fidgets and squirms in their seats, on the go, and has difficulty waiting for their turns in games.
Many experts argue that these behaviors are simply characteristic of childhood, not signs of a mental disorder. Gifted children, in particular, face a heightened risk of being misdiagnosed with ADHD. According to Dr. Erik von Hahn writing in the American Academy of Pediatrics, gifted children may display behaviors that mimic ADHD, such as excessive questioning due to their curiosity or hyperfocus on specific areas of interest.
He further states that boredom can lead to inattention as well as feelings of depression. In such cases, "the child does not have ADHD or another disability, and the appropriate intervention is to provide needed stimulation. Otherwise, the child is at risk for academic and social failure despite superior potential."[6] He warns that mislabeling these children can lead to inappropriate interventions that hinder their development rather than support their needs.
Dr. Mary Ann Block, author of No More ADHD, wrote: "There is no valid test for ADHD. The diagnosis is completely subjective." And 'while some compare ADHD to diabetes, there really is no comparison. Diabetes is an insulin deficiency that can be objectively measured. Insulin is a hormone manufactured by the body and needed for life. ADHD cannot be objectively measured and amphetamines are not made by the body or needed for life."[7]
The late pediatric neurologist Dr. Fred Baughman, Jr., author of The ADHD Fraud: How Psychiatry Makes "Patients" of Normal Children, further criticized the practice stating that children are misled when they "believe they have something wrong with their brains that makes it impossible for them to control themselves without a pill."[8]
Peter C. Gøtzsche, MD, has also raised concerns about the broader implications of ADHD diagnoses and stimulants such as methylphenidate prescribed to treat it. He warns that stimulants can cause behavioral issues, specifically: Stimulants reduce overall spontaneous mental and behavioral activity, including social interest, which leads to apathy or indifference, and many children—more than half in some studies—develop depression and compulsive, meaningless behaviors.[9]
More on Rezul News
Profit can drive ADHD diagnoses with stimulant sales projected to rise from $19.5 billion in 2020 to $34.8 billion by 2027.[10]
CCHR, which was established in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and professor of psychiatry Dr. Thomas Szasz, has long campaigned for children's rights, successfully advocating for federal legislation in 2004 that prohibits schools from forcing students to take psychotropic drugs as a requisite for their education. As the federal investigation unfolds, CCHR says there is hope that the widespread labeling of children as "mentally disordered" and prescribing psychotropic drugs will be recognized as a profit-driven practice harming children's health and future.
Sources:
[1] www.cchrint.org/psychiatric-drugs/children-on-psychiatric-drugs/
[2] www.cchrint.org/2023/09/25/3-million-children-at-risk-for-adhd-drugs-adverse-effects/; childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/emergency-calls-adhd-medication-errors-guanfacine-tenex/; Gary A. Smith, MD, DrPH, et al., "Pediatric ADHD Medication Errors Reported to United States Poison Centers, 2000 to 2021," Pediatrics, Oct. 2023, publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/doi/10.1542/peds.2023-061942/193956/Pediatric-ADHD-Medication-Errors-Reported-to
[3] Lisa Cosgrove, Sheldon Krimsky, "A Comparison of DSM-IV and DSM-5 Panel Members' Financial Associations with Industry: A Pernicious Problem Persists," PLoS Medicine, 13 Mar. 2012, pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3302834/
[4] Dr. Helen Bannister, "ADHD epidemics: The marketing of ADHD," Counselling Australia Magazine, circa 2024, magazine.theaca.net.au/articles/adhd-epidemics-the-marketing-of-adhd
[5] Dr. Helen Bannister, "ADHD epidemics: The marketing of ADHD," Counselling Australia Magazine, circa 2024, magazine.theaca.net.au/articles/adhd-epidemics-the-marketing-of-adhd
[6] Erik von Hahn, M.D., FAAP, "When diagnosing ADHD, consider possibility of giftedness in some children," American Academy of Pediatrics News, July 2012, sengifted.org/when-diagnosing-adhd/
[7] Dr. Mary Ann Block, "No More ADHD," 15 Sept. 2009, www.cchrint.org/2009/09/15/no-more-adhd/
[8] www.cchrint.org/2022/02/14/new-diagnostic-manual-with-adhd-listed-could-turn-childhood-into-a-mental-disorder/; Fred A. Baughman, Jr., MD, "Treatment of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder," Journal of the American Medical Association, 12 May 1993, p. 2369
[9] Peter C. Gøtzsche, MD. "Critical Psychiatry Textbook, Chapter 9: ADHD (Part Two)," MIA, 14 Aug. 2023, www.madinamerica.com/2023/08/critical-psychiatry-textbook-chapter-9-part-two/
[10] www.cchrint.org/2023/09/25/3-million-children-at-risk-for-adhd-drugs-adverse-effects/; childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/emergency-calls-adhd-medication-errors-guanfacine-tenex/
CCHR ascertained that 58,091 children aged five or younger were prescribed ADHD drugs in 2020, according to the IQVia Total Patient Tracker Database.[1] Yet the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved ADHD drugs for children under six. A surge in calls to poison control centers due to ADHD medication-related adverse events from 2000 to 2021 underscores the dangers, with children under six three times more likely to be hospitalized than their older counterparts.[2]
The expansion of ADHD diagnostic criteria has been widely criticized. Critics argue that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM) has been heavily influenced by pharmaceutical interests, raising concerns about the validity of the diagnoses. A study in PLOS Medicine revealed that 69% of the DSM-5 task force members had financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry, up from 57% in the DSM-IV task force.[3]
A Counseling Australia report detailed how the psychiatric field effectively created the ADHD market: "DSM-III and DSM-IV provided the diagnostic framework, academic psychiatrists validated its existence, and corporate interests marketed the condition aggressively." The DSM-III criteria for ADHD alone were projected to increase diagnoses by 23%. Dr. Allen Frances, former chair of the DSM-IV task force, warned that diagnostic changes fueled a "false epidemic" of both ADHD and autism, drastically increasing the number of children labeled with the disorder and prescribed stimulants to treat it.[4] By 2012, the number of American children prescribed an ADHD drug was six times the number in 1990.[5]
More on Rezul News
- OpsVeda Announces Launch of TariffSight, the World's First Comprehensive Platform to Address Tariff-Driven Challenges
- MAJOR New release of Krypto500 (ELF-HF) Sigint - COMINT software
- New Build-to-Suit VA Medical Office Facility Coming to Highland Heights, KY
- Felician Sisters of North America Announce Partnership with City of Livonia
- Family Office Real Estate Institute Announces Exclusive Investment Forum
ADHD symptoms are determined by APA member votes and include: easily distracted, misses details, forgets things, becomes bored with a task after only a few minutes, have trouble completing or turning in homework assignments, often losing things (e.g., pencils, toys, assignments), fidgets and squirms in their seats, on the go, and has difficulty waiting for their turns in games.
Many experts argue that these behaviors are simply characteristic of childhood, not signs of a mental disorder. Gifted children, in particular, face a heightened risk of being misdiagnosed with ADHD. According to Dr. Erik von Hahn writing in the American Academy of Pediatrics, gifted children may display behaviors that mimic ADHD, such as excessive questioning due to their curiosity or hyperfocus on specific areas of interest.
He further states that boredom can lead to inattention as well as feelings of depression. In such cases, "the child does not have ADHD or another disability, and the appropriate intervention is to provide needed stimulation. Otherwise, the child is at risk for academic and social failure despite superior potential."[6] He warns that mislabeling these children can lead to inappropriate interventions that hinder their development rather than support their needs.
Dr. Mary Ann Block, author of No More ADHD, wrote: "There is no valid test for ADHD. The diagnosis is completely subjective." And 'while some compare ADHD to diabetes, there really is no comparison. Diabetes is an insulin deficiency that can be objectively measured. Insulin is a hormone manufactured by the body and needed for life. ADHD cannot be objectively measured and amphetamines are not made by the body or needed for life."[7]
The late pediatric neurologist Dr. Fred Baughman, Jr., author of The ADHD Fraud: How Psychiatry Makes "Patients" of Normal Children, further criticized the practice stating that children are misled when they "believe they have something wrong with their brains that makes it impossible for them to control themselves without a pill."[8]
Peter C. Gøtzsche, MD, has also raised concerns about the broader implications of ADHD diagnoses and stimulants such as methylphenidate prescribed to treat it. He warns that stimulants can cause behavioral issues, specifically: Stimulants reduce overall spontaneous mental and behavioral activity, including social interest, which leads to apathy or indifference, and many children—more than half in some studies—develop depression and compulsive, meaningless behaviors.[9]
More on Rezul News
- Fairfield Inn by Marriott Scottsdale Old Town Opens
- Liquified Solutions a featured exhibitor at the 2025 Senior Living Executive Conference
- Silva Construction Gives Advice on Home Remodeling Trends for 2025
- BKM's Senior Managing Director of Operations, Susan Rounds, and Associate Director of Design, Koren Mercer, Honored as 2025 Women of Influence
- Pelican Reef Group Announces Grand Opening of New High Point Showroom – IHFC Building H-621 & Event April 27th, 2025
Profit can drive ADHD diagnoses with stimulant sales projected to rise from $19.5 billion in 2020 to $34.8 billion by 2027.[10]
CCHR, which was established in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and professor of psychiatry Dr. Thomas Szasz, has long campaigned for children's rights, successfully advocating for federal legislation in 2004 that prohibits schools from forcing students to take psychotropic drugs as a requisite for their education. As the federal investigation unfolds, CCHR says there is hope that the widespread labeling of children as "mentally disordered" and prescribing psychotropic drugs will be recognized as a profit-driven practice harming children's health and future.
Sources:
[1] www.cchrint.org/psychiatric-drugs/children-on-psychiatric-drugs/
[2] www.cchrint.org/2023/09/25/3-million-children-at-risk-for-adhd-drugs-adverse-effects/; childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/emergency-calls-adhd-medication-errors-guanfacine-tenex/; Gary A. Smith, MD, DrPH, et al., "Pediatric ADHD Medication Errors Reported to United States Poison Centers, 2000 to 2021," Pediatrics, Oct. 2023, publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/doi/10.1542/peds.2023-061942/193956/Pediatric-ADHD-Medication-Errors-Reported-to
[3] Lisa Cosgrove, Sheldon Krimsky, "A Comparison of DSM-IV and DSM-5 Panel Members' Financial Associations with Industry: A Pernicious Problem Persists," PLoS Medicine, 13 Mar. 2012, pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3302834/
[4] Dr. Helen Bannister, "ADHD epidemics: The marketing of ADHD," Counselling Australia Magazine, circa 2024, magazine.theaca.net.au/articles/adhd-epidemics-the-marketing-of-adhd
[5] Dr. Helen Bannister, "ADHD epidemics: The marketing of ADHD," Counselling Australia Magazine, circa 2024, magazine.theaca.net.au/articles/adhd-epidemics-the-marketing-of-adhd
[6] Erik von Hahn, M.D., FAAP, "When diagnosing ADHD, consider possibility of giftedness in some children," American Academy of Pediatrics News, July 2012, sengifted.org/when-diagnosing-adhd/
[7] Dr. Mary Ann Block, "No More ADHD," 15 Sept. 2009, www.cchrint.org/2009/09/15/no-more-adhd/
[8] www.cchrint.org/2022/02/14/new-diagnostic-manual-with-adhd-listed-could-turn-childhood-into-a-mental-disorder/; Fred A. Baughman, Jr., MD, "Treatment of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder," Journal of the American Medical Association, 12 May 1993, p. 2369
[9] Peter C. Gøtzsche, MD. "Critical Psychiatry Textbook, Chapter 9: ADHD (Part Two)," MIA, 14 Aug. 2023, www.madinamerica.com/2023/08/critical-psychiatry-textbook-chapter-9-part-two/
[10] www.cchrint.org/2023/09/25/3-million-children-at-risk-for-adhd-drugs-adverse-effects/; childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/emergency-calls-adhd-medication-errors-guanfacine-tenex/
Source: Citizens Commission on Human Rights
Filed Under: Consumer
0 Comments
Latest on Rezul News
- Blue Ocean Business School's Deputy Dean Delivers Keynote Address at India Blockchain Summit
- Morgan Porter Earns Broker Associate Title at Parkside Realty Group
- AdvisorVault's Consolidated 17a-4 D3P Service® Full Feature Set Available
- Most Common Car Accidents In America
- Co-Creating the Future of ePaper: ZKONG and E Ink at Touch Taiwan 2025
- New York Times Exposé Vindicates CCHR: ADHD Isn't Biological, Says Watchdog
- HISTORIC FIRST The First Belief System In Human History To Formally Enshrine The Innate Divinity Of The Infant As Civilization's Central Moral Axis
- Stuck in Place? Why Homeowners Are Building Up Instead of Moving Out
- Crafting the Sound of VS Pop™: The Vision of CR Srikanth
- Boston Industrial Solutions, Inc., introduces Rubber and Foam Printing Ink
- LiveDataLink Launches Real Estate Scouting Services in Atlanta for Individuals and Investors
- FeelWise to Exhibit at ATD 2025 International Conference & EXPO in Washington, DC
- Webinar Announcement: Mexico's Evolving AML/CFT Environment: FATF Review and FTO Designations
- Two rare waterfront parcels totaling 4.4 acres in Palmetto hit market
- Damian Redd's "Caught in a Fantasy" Surpasses 100,000 Views on VEVO/YouTube Following Album Reissue
- "May the Fourth Be With You" Epic Star Wars Day Run/Walk in Alexandria, Va
- Museum Hack Presents Hacked Gala: A Rebellious Night of Art, Fashion, and Change at the Met
- Mesa West Capital Originates $134 Million Loan to Refi UGA Student Housing Community
- Artist Séfora Camazano Honored with Prestigious Prize "The New Great Masters in New York"
- MoMojo Records announces posthumous album from Kip London