Zyprexa

For text: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/ats-ap_health12mar16,1,3869296.story?

ctrack=1&cset=true For more on Health: http://www.ncpa.org/iss/hea/ 12770 Coit Road Suite 800 Dallas, TX 75251 Phone 972/386-6272 - Fax 972/386-0924 601 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 900 South Building, Washington, DC 20004 - 202/628-6671 - Fax 202/628-6474 Copyright © 2003 National Center for Policy Analysis - All rights reserved.

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But the true affect is unproved.

In fact, the safety or risks of the drugs in youths remain unknown.

Yet the number of kids being prescribed the drug annually increased from about 500,000 to about 2.5 million from 1995 to 2002.

And guess what are among the side effects of these types of medication in adults?

Weight gain and diabetes.

There's no proof that antipsychotics cause or contribute to either of these problems in youths.

Of course, how could there be when pediatric studies on the drugs have not been done?

This is a dangerous practice.

When the effect these drugs have on psychotic youths is not even documented, why are doctors prescribing them for nonpsychotic kids?

Just because parents who have seen TV commercials or ads in magazines request them is no reason for doctors to disregard their much-superior medical knowledge.

Parents who have only seen ads, or for any reason are dosing their children, should think critically about what they are doing.

Although in some cases drugs may be the best or the only answer, they may not be the solution for problems these children will have to deal with throughout their lives.

Perhaps the children need to learn who they are and how to deal with that.

Perhaps parents ought to let them be who they are instead of s...

“I guess my up-front message, front and center,” she continued, “is that you know that ADHD drugs can cause serious side effects and death, including sudden death, hypertension, myocardial infarction, stroke, and possibly bipolar disorder.

“This being the case,” she said, “I urge you to recommend that these drugs have an appropriate black box warning placed on the label starting immediately.”Sandra Lucas, appeared at the hearing to speak on behalf of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, a psychiatric watchdog group, and told the panel, “we do know that the side effects of the stimulants are not only present, they are extremely serious and sometimes lethal.” “So,“ she asked the committee, “while the FDA ponders the problem of studying the issue and conducting the studies that may have inherent flaws, what real, immediate protections are to be put in place for parents and children?

”During the hearing, Drug Safety panel member, Dr Art Levin, told the committee, “I think we have to recognize that when a drug is approved and marketed the public assumes a level of comfort in the safety of that drug unless they are told otherwise.”“And, for us to sit around and talk about this,” he...