Are ADHD drugs safe? Sound scientific proof is lacking.

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Are ADHD drugs safe? Report finds little proof M. ALEXANDER OTTO; The News Tribune September 13th, 2005 http://www.playattention.com/attention-deficit/articles/are-adhd-drugs-safe-report-finds-little-proof Excerpt: At a time when millions of children and adults are taking drugs for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, the most comprehensive scientific analysis of the drugs to date has found little evidence that they are safe, that one drug is

more effective than another or that they help school performance. The 27 drugs studied included Adderall, Concerta, Strattera, Ritalin, Focalin, Cylert, Provigil, and others that, in some households, are well-known for their sometimes calming affects. The 731-page report was done by the Drug Effectiveness Review Project, based at Oregon State University. The group analyzed 2,287 studies – virtually every investigation ever done on ADHD drugs anywhere in the world – to reach its conclusions They found: • “No evidence on long-term safety of drugs used to treat ADHD in young children” or adolescents. • “Good quality evidence … is lacking” that ADHD drugs improve “global academic performance, consequences of risky behaviors, social achievements” and other measures. • Safety evidence is of “poor quality,”

including research into the possibility that some ADHD drugs could stunt growth, one of the greatest concerns of parents. • Evidence that ADHD drugs help adults “is not compelling,” nor is evidence that one drug “is more tolerable than another.” • The way the drugs work is, in most cases, not well understood. The findings do not mean ADHD drugs are unsafe or unhelpful, just that sound scientific proof is lacking."We have allowed (the drugs) industry to subvert the rules of science. We have watched quietly as governments and academics have colluded with industry to hide information critical to our patients. We have remained silent as our medical schools have churned out graduates who have no knowledge of the dilemmas and scandals of medicine. We have allowed many of our medical journals to

become corrupted and timid," - Dr Aubrey Blumsohn