ADHD is a disorder that was first identified in 1902 by George Still and yet the prescription of drugs for this disorder only dates back to the 1960s, beginning with the use of Ritalin (1960) as a stimulant. The other two drugs predominantly used to ameliorate the symptoms of ADHD, Adderall and Vyvanse, are much more recent additives into the war on ADHD (Adderall in 1996 and Vyvanse in 2008) amongst many other attention deficit disorders. Logically, if a disorder has been around for over a century and only started to become treated with drugs around 50 years after its discovery, why are there so many new, recent prescription drugs being prescribed at alarmingly increasing rates to children and adults whose diagnosis in these cases has also been exponentially increasing? Evidently, in the 58 year gap from the discovery of ADHD and the use of any medication in relation to it, there were other methods of treatment. Through the use of research found in various journals and websites, we will attempt to gauge to data behind treating ADHD with Adderall and find relationships. The criterion for the diagnosis of ADHD, since its revelation in 1902, has been altered greatly creating a gap for a more lenient psychiatric institution. Using sources such as the CDC, FDA and APA, we will use data on factors behind the statistics of both rising ADHD diagnosis and Adderall prescription to form connections.
We argue that Adderall, and other stimulants used to treat ADHD, are being overprescribed and overused in this purpose, pushed by psychiatrists, and reaching further, private drug companies. Due to this leniency, Adderall has become the “millenial’s drug of choice” (Smith, 2014) regardless of its actual necessity
http://eportfolios.macaulay.cuny.edu/seminar3posters/files/gravity_forms/1-f14ea90e75361cb91bd42582a860ee01/2014/12/BogatzSuberska-MHC-Sem-3.pdf
Megan Bogatz, Nicolette Suberska
David Munns, Kevin Ambrose
John Jay College
adhd, prevalence
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