Change It Up Radio

In 2014, the Center for Disease Control reported that as many as 10,000 toddlers were receiving psychostimulant medication like Ritalin. Some six years later, the numbers are even higher. Is normal behavior too often being labeled as disturbed or disordered because it meets DSM criteria?   Data shows that in 2019, 6,726,189 children and adolescents were prescribed psychotropic drugs, ranging from antidepressants, antipsychotics, anti-anxiety drugs, mood stabilizers, and ADHD medications. In addition, an increasing number of children and young adults with behavioral or emotional disorders are frequently treated with a cocktail of drugs simultaneously.   Although there is limited information on the safety and efficacy of treating children with one or more psychotropic medication, they are commonly prescribed hastily and without the proper time and evaluation needed to make an appropriate diagnosis.   Usage of these medications has continued to increase over the past few decades, yet the risk of adverse side eff