Ritalin abuse scoring high on college illegal drug circuit
January 8, 2001
From Linda Ciampa
CNN Medical Correspondent
(CNN) -- There's a popular drug on the streets with nicknames such as
"Vitamin R" and "R-Ball" that's making its way into the college scene. But
it's not for kicks -- students use this drug to improve concentration and
study longer.
The drug is Ritalin, a mild stimulant
[Fred A. Baughman Jr., MD:
It seems that the industry rep or industry-owned psychiatrist being
interviewed, always gets in that it is a mild stimulantthis despite the fact that it can
cause sudden cardiac deaths]
commonly prescribed for young children
to treat attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD.
But on U.S college campuses, students are popping Ritalin without a doctor's
prescription -- which is illegal -- before taking on all-night study
sessions or to boost alertness during an important test.
"People find this drug enticing because they can get their academic work
done quicker or do more in a shorter period of time," said Dr. Eric
Heiligenstein, of the University of Wisconsin. "So for students who have put
off work or are not very strong academically, we find some are using it to
kind of counteract or remedy their problems."
It's not just college kids who are turning to Ritalin. New reports suggest
there is a growing trend of Ritalin abuse among younger teens or even adults
bent on getting more done at work or keeping with today's fast-paced
lifestyle.
Federal drug officials said Ritalin is among the top controlled prescription
drugs reported stolen in the United States. The Drug Enforcement
Administration also lists methylphenidate, Ritalin's generic name, among a
dozen or so "drugs of concern."
There are health concerns surrounding this trend. Ritalin can increase a
person's heart rate and blood pressure, among other problems.
"What it means, in rare situations, is the person is put at risk primarily
for a cardiac arrhythmia," said Dr. Lawrence Diller, author of "Running on
Ritalin." "Then there's irregular beating of the heart -- which can cause
sudden death."
[Fred A. Baughman Jr., MD:
It is significant that a
physician/author of Diller's importance,
speaks
bluntly of the cardiac risk of this drug,
generally portrayed in the mental
health industry, as 'safe' and
'non-addictive.' For the totality of the
misrepresentation of Ritalin' risk by
CHADD see the October, 1995, DEA
Background Paper on Methylphenidate. What
Dr. Diller says here means that the
death of Stephanie Hall (see 'Death by
ADHD' on adhdfraud.com) was not, as the
Stark County Coroner and Novartis, the
manufacturer, contend: a 'natural
death'. I would ask Diller, who
nonetheless sees hundreds of children per
year
he deems to be in need of Ritalin, if the
'risk vs. benefit' analysis of Ritalin
for the invented, non-disease--ADHD-- is
ever justifiable? It is a
'no-brainer': these are normal children,
giving them Ritalin and other
amphetamines, all of them addictive,
dangerous and sometimes--as Diller
concedes--deadly--is never justifiable.]
Still, Ritalin is safer than some drugs because the stimulant has not been
produced in clandestine labs, regulators said. Also, it remains a safe and
effective treatment for millions suffering from ADHD, according to the
drug's maker, Novartis Pharmaceuticals.
[Fred A. Baughman Jr., MD:
Contending, through their
creationCHADD--that ADHD is a bona fide disease due to a chemical
abnormality of
the brain (the sum and substance of CHADDs disinformation campaign) when no
supportive, scientific proof exists; when this contention is patently
fraudulent.
Here we have the federal government at every level, notably, the FDA
and DEA not only allowing, but legislating and encouraging the disemination of these
addictive, dangerous, sometime death-dealing drugs, to the US populace,
regardless of age.
See the 1970 warning given by a non-industry-controlled psychiatrist to a
Congressional Hearing considering the wisdom of opening up the Pandoras box
of pharmaceutical treatments for US children not properly reared and educated:
Testimony of Dr John D. Griffith, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt
University School of Medicine at 1970 Congressional (chair by Rep. Cornelius
Gallagher) Hearings, regarding funding pharmacological therapy for school
problems.
Dr John D. Griffith: "I would like to point out that every drug, however
innocuous, has some degree of toxicity. A drug, therefore, is a type of poison and its
poisonous qualities must be carefully weighed against its therapeutic
usefulness. A problem, now being considered in most of the Capitols of the Free World, is
whether the benefits derived from Amphetamines outweigh their toxicity. It is the
consensus of the World Scientific Literature that the Amphetamines are of very little
benefit to mankind. They are, however, quite toxic.
after many years of clinical
trials it is now evident that this antidepressant effect of Amphetamines is very
brief- on the order of days. If a patient attempts to overcome this tolerance to the
drug, he runs the risk of becoming addicted and even more depressed."
Today, the US and Canada consume 96% of the world supply of the mild
stimulants, Ritalin, Dexedrine, Adderall, and Desoxynall of them amphetamines. We
victimize and consume our young, for-profit. We could not possibly better sew the
seeds of our own destruction]