ADD/divorce

Guest — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:44:46 -0400

I have two kids and am divorced. My kids went nuts at first when we separated but they didn't need medication. We are over-medicating kids. Kids, in general, are very resilient. Kids of divorce, even more so.

Are Kids of Divorce More Likely to be Prescribed ADD Drugs?

Eve Miller — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 09:34:41 -0400

Children of divorce are twice as likely to be prescribed a medication for attention deficit disorder (ADD), such as Ritalin, versus those who parents stay together, according to a recent report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal by Professor Lisa Strohschein.

The study of more than 4,700 children began in 1994 while the families were still in tact, and the result was that more than 6% of 633 children from divorced families were prescribed Ritalin, versus 3.3% of children with parents who stay together.

“It shows that divorce is a risk factor for kids to be prescribed Ritalin,” said Strohschein.

While other studies have shown that children of single parents are more likely to get prescribed drugs such as Ritalin, the new study probes the question of whether the problem is caused by being born to a never-married mother, or another factor altogether.

“So the question was, ‘is it possible that divorce acts a stressful life event that creates adjustment problems for children, which might increase acting out behavior, leading to a prescription for Ritalin?”’ Strohschein told Reuters.

I say no. I might be overtired and cranky, but is this really a surprise to any of us? Does a researcher really need to spend a whopping 17 years no less, trying to substantiate whether or not divorce, or any home problems for that matter, make kids act out?

Professor Strohschein, take note, unstable conditions do affect people—kids and adults. That may, in some cases, mean divorce. Or lack of divorce for that matter, especially when the children are living in a virtual war zone whenever both parents are home. How about a study on happy vs. unhappy home situations, or kids exposed to parental fighting?

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ADD/divorce

Are Kids of Divorce More Likely to be Prescribed ADD Drugs?