Scientific American Mind article on preventing ADHD

[Anonymous]

UCLA is finding an association between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and later ADHD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child has a cardiac condition that we recently learned about with a prolonged QT interval. It turns out I have it too. This is what the kids who just suddenly "drop dead on a soccer field" often are thought to have. It is congenital for some, but it is also induced by certain medications, and I believe many ADHD meds are on that list. Kids like mine can absolutely NOT take meds that further prolong the QT. If you are on a med and notice increased heart rate like that, do NOT take them. Make sure to get an EKG and have the corrected QT interval checked out by a pediatric electrophysiologist, or at least a cardiologist who knows what they are doing. You don't want to play around with that.

Wow. I didn't realize that ADHD/ADD meds were linked to fatal heart conditions like that. I'm thinking that especially with younger children, they probably aren't thinking about the dangers of an increased heart rate.

Also, the adolescent suicides. How many of these high school students were under the influence of perscription meds? We will never know....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UCLA is finding an association between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and later ADHD.

No, the study shows a correlation between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and a higher prevelance of ADHD in the children born to them. Correlation is not causation. In fact, one of the researchers noted the causation could be a link between who are more sensitive to pain and having a child with ADHD. Thus the use of the pain medication may point to the cause rsther than be the cause itself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UCLA is finding an association between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and later ADHD.

No, the study shows a correlation between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and a higher prevelance of ADHD in the children born to them. Correlation is not causation. In fact, one of the researchers noted the causation could be a link between who are more sensitive to pain and having a child with ADHD. Thus the use of the pain medication may point to the cause rsther than be the cause itself.

Thanks for additional info. Link?

[Anonymous]

The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

You know you're dreaming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

What data?
Don't you read the warning pages for these drugs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UCLA is finding an association between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and later ADHD.

No, the study shows a correlation between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and a higher prevelance of ADHD in the children born to them. Correlation is not causation. In fact, one of the researchers noted the causation could be a link between who are more sensitive to pain and having a child with ADHD. Thus the use of the pain medication may point to the cause rsther than be the cause itself.

Thanks for additional info. Link?

I wonder how they can study this with any accuracy. Most kids aren't diagnosed with ADHD until they're preschoolers at the earliest and at least for me, by that time my memory of Tylenol use during pregnancy would have been a total guess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UCLA is finding an association between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and later ADHD.

No, the study shows a correlation between use of Tylenol during pregnancy and a higher prevelance of ADHD in the children born to them. Correlation is not causation. In fact, one of the researchers noted the causation could be a link between who are more sensitive to pain and having a child with ADHD. Thus the use of the pain medication may point to the cause rsther than be the cause itself.

Thanks for additional info. Link?

I wonder how they can study this with any accuracy. Most kids aren't diagnosed with ADHD until they're preschoolers at the earliest and at least for me, by that time my memory of Tylenol use during pregnancy would have been a total guess.

You take the opposite approach.
You ask a pool of pregnant women to record their tylenol usage.
Then track them for a while (10+ yrs?) and see which ones develop ADHD.
It would be a long term study, but you are right, you can't just ask women year later.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

You know you're dreaming.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970204336104577094624185636102

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

You know you're dreaming.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970204336104577094624185636102

Article?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

There are no recent studies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

You know you're dreaming.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970204336104577094624185636102

Article?

Yes the article cites 2 studies and if you really want to you can google them. I have discussed the results of these studies with my pediatrician, psychiatrist, doctors at NIH and a cardiologist and they were unanimous in agreeing that as best we know at this time, based on these studies, these medications don't elevate the risk in otherwise healthy children of sudden cardiac events. Even for kids with known heart conditions the benefit may outweigh the risk. The American Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend routine ekgs before prescribing these meds and the American Heart Association has only said it would be "reasonable" to do so and that was in 2007 before these 2 studies came out.

As a parent I have to weigh this against the data that shows the significant increase in car accidents for adhd drivers and my own observations of my unmedicated 10 year old biking across intersections without looking both ways. I am far more concerned about the anxiety and depression he feels when his life spirals out of control than some unproven and miniscule risk of a heart attack. But then I vaccinated my kids for the same reasons, despite the known and well established risks. Did you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The most recent studies have found that adhd meds don't raise the risk of heart conditions in kids. The data show no increase in the risk of sudden cardiac death.

You know you're dreaming.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052970204336104577094624185636102

Article?

Yes the article cites 2 studies and if you really want to you can google them. I have discussed the results of these studies with my pediatrician, psychiatrist, doctors at NIH and a cardiologist and they were unanimous in agreeing that as best we know at this time, based on these studies, these medications don't elevate the risk in otherwise healthy children of sudden cardiac events. Even for kids with known heart conditions the benefit may outweigh the risk. The American Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend routine ekgs before prescribing these meds and the American Heart Association has only said it would be "reasonable" to do so and that was in 2007 before these 2 studies came out.

As a parent I have to weigh this against the data that shows the significant increase in car accidents for adhd drivers and my own observations of my unmedicated 10 year old biking across intersections without looking both ways. I am far more concerned about the anxiety and depression he feels when his life spirals out of control than some unproven and miniscule risk of a heart attack. But then I vaccinated my kids for the same reasons, despite the known and well established risks. Did you?

How does a stimulant drug make your 10 year old look both ways before crossing an intersection on his bike?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child has a cardiac condition that we recently learned about with a prolonged QT interval. It turns out I have it too. This is what the kids who just suddenly "drop dead on a soccer field" often are thought to have. It is congenital for some, but it is also induced by certain medications, and I believe many ADHD meds are on that list. Kids like mine can absolutely NOT take meds that further prolong the QT. If you are on a med and notice increased heart rate like that, do NOT take them. Make sure to get an EKG and have the corrected QT interval checked out by a pediatric electrophysiologist, or at least a cardiologist who knows what they are doing. You don't want to play around with that.

Wow. I didn't realize that ADHD/ADD meds were linked to fatal heart conditions like that. I'm thinking that especially with younger children, they probably aren't thinking about the dangers of an increased heart rate.

I have Long QT from diet pills my mother took during her pregnancy with me. You get LQT either due to being inherited like the previous poster says or it's acquired usually from some type of drug/medication. Many many drugs are listed as drugs to avoid if you have LQTS but in and of themselves don't necessary cause LQTS. So not to be alarmed that most if not all these ADHD drugs are on the list because they increase heart rate which can be dangerous IF you have LQTS but if you don't have LQTS or other heart probs they aren't necessarily harmful to people with normal heart rhythm.
Ask your pediatrician to rule out these probs before u give these meds to your kids and if there are no detected heart probs then it should not be a prob.
Kids who die of sudden cardiac arrest in sports are often Kids who, like me, had an undiagnosed heart condition. LQTS is often the culprit for sudden death in kids and young adults including athletes. If your child ever faints following exertion, surprise/startle or any unexplained reason, get him or her to a cardiologist. Even if you think fainting is caused by low blood sugar or have been diagnosed with seizure disorder these can be false diagnoses as they were in my case. I had numerous fainting spells and was misdiagnosed until my late 40s when I got my first pacemaker. For more info on LQTS, meds, etc. see www.sads.org