Despite that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has long been considered as a psychiatric disorder. However, a renowned neurologist believes that the condition isn't actually a real disease.
Bruce Perry, one of the world's top neuroscientists has stepped out to support claims that ADHD, a common childhood condition characterized by excessive restlessness as well as having difficulty in paying attention and in controlling behavior, isn't really a disease but rather symptoms of various physiological conditions.
"It is best thought of as a description. If you look at how you end up with that label, it is remarkable because any one of us at any given time would fit at least a couple of those criteria," said Perry, a Senior Fellow of The ChildTrauma Academy in Houston, Texas who has served as consultant in a number of high profile cases that involved traumatized children including the Oklahoma City bombing and the Columbine High School massacre.
Perry also pointed out that while many doctors are eager to prescribe psychostimulants to children with ADHD, the medications do not offer long term benefits. He cited findings of animal studies that suggest of potential damage over use of the drug. Sales of drugs that treat ADHD have notably increased through the years. Sales of Ritalin, an ADHD medication, for instance have increased 56 percent from 2007 to 2012.
"If you give psychostimulants to animals when they are young, their rewards systems change. They require much more stimulation to get the same level of pleasure," Perry said. "So on a very concrete level they need to eat more food to get the same sensation of satiation. They need to do more high-risk things to get that little buzz from doing something. It is not a benign phenomenon."
Perry said that non-pharmacological ways of helping children with ADHD such as getting them to play instruments and do yoga would be a better and safer option. He also noted the crucial role that parents play.
The American Psychiatric Association stated that 5 percent of children in the United States have ADHD. The condition affects boys three times as much as girls and can persist through adolescence and even through adulthood. Children who are diagnosed with ADHD often exhibit poor attention span, impulsiveness and hyperactivity over long periods of time.
