“ADHD is a for-profit contrivance, a through-and-through, 100% fraud, invented in-committee, at the American Psychiatric Association (APA).”

That is the opinion of neurologist, Dr. Fred A. Baughman Jr., board-certified in both adult and pediatric neurology. Dr. Baughman is kind of the lone voice crying in the wilderness on this issue, but his words ring true.

Perhaps until now you haven’t given it much thought and have just accepted the mainstream view that ADD/ADHD is an epidemic today. Could it really be true that the best interest of children is not being addressed in the widespread prescription of psychotropic drugs to treat this alleged disorder? Is it really all about profit and maintaining control in the classroom?

Do you know that there is no physical diagnosis for ADD/ADHD? Everything is based on a subjective list of behavioral symptoms, often initially evaluated by a teacher.

Are you aware that schools receive additional money for each child that is diagnosed with ADD/ADHD?

Do you have any idea of the profit potential of these drugs? According to IMS Health, a pharmaceutical information and consulting firm, sales totaled $3.1 billion in 2004.

What about side effects that can include chest pain, high blood pressure, rapid heart rate, stroke and sudden death?

I’ll explore all these issues in future posts. In the meantime if you have been challenged in your thinking and want to know more, take a look at Dr. Baughman’s site, ADHDFraud and RitalinDeath. The Ritalin Death website was created by the parents of 14-Year-Old Matthew Smith whose death certificate reads “Death caused from Long Term Use of Methylphenidate, Ritalin.”