Doctors warn Australian children are being ‘medicalised’ and too many diagnosed with ADHD

Herald Sun 6 March 2016
Australian children are being “medicalised” as doctors warn too many people are being diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Medical professionals say a growing number of Australians are misusing drugs linked to the condition.
An editorial published in the Medical Journal of Australia says “children in particular are being ‘medicalised’,”.
Doctors who prescribe children stimulant medication have been criticised for their “simplistic attempt to find solutions to more complex problems underlying behavioural and emotional difficulties”, wrote Dr Adrian Dunlop, from the University of Newcastle, and Professor Louise Newman, from the Centre for Women’s Mental Health at the Royal Women’s Hospital in Melbourne.
Adults are also in danger with psychoactive drugs being linked to overdoses.
“The proportion of deliberate overdoses and associated suicidal behaviour is of particular concern. Given concerns about the use of stimulant medication across the community in general, it is in some ways unsurprising that psychostimulants that may be appropriately prescribed can be misused,” the report said.
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