61. END MIND-ALTERING DRUG EPIDEMIC
Dear Grandma Donna: Fourteen-year-old Susan has trouble concentrating at school and was prescribed Strattera for her ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder). Susan’s mother wonders about giving her daughter this drug. Could you tell her about it? Love Savana
Dear Savana: After checking about Strattera, I think Susan’s mother should not fill the prescription. On January 21, 2005, the FDA issued a warning about Strattera. Two patients treated with Strattera developed severe liver injuries. The warning also states that in a small percent of patients, liver injury may lead to liver failure and death or the need for a liver transplant. On September 29, 2005, the FDA warned doctors about reports of suicidal thinking in some children and adolescents who are taking Strattera.
Despite these side effects, Dr. Thomas Laughren said, “FDA still views Strattera as an effective drug.” What kind of thinking is this? There is a risk of suicide and liver damage, yet the FDA calls the drug effective. Could all this be happening to maintain profit margins?
Money could be the major reason that our nation is becoming a country hooked on drugs with reports saying that 13 percent of our population takes mind-altering drugs. Hundreds of thousands of ordinary citizens have been turned into medicine cabinet junkies, not by street pushers, but by professionals dressed in white lab coats and working in nice offices. Most users of these mind-altering drugs blindly trust their doctors with no idea of the serious short and long-term side effects of withdrawals from the drugs and the potential for brain damage.
The pill taker immediately feels better, so the thought that there may be possible serious side effects later is far removed from the mind. These side effects include closing of throat, difficulty breathing, swelling of lips, tongue, and face, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, hallucinations, restless legs, nausea, headache, and many more.
One side effect that all parents who give mind-altering drugs to their children should consider is this information written by Stephen Hinshaw, chairman of psychology at the University of California at Berkeley: He writes, “We know from imaging studies that frontal lobes, which are vital to executive functions like managing feelings and thought, don’t fully mature until age 30. That’s a lot of time for drugs to muck around with cerebral clay.”
Before putting a child on strong and sometimes addictive psychiatric drugs, such as Ritalin, Concerta, and Adderall, parents should try a natural approach, which could cure the problem and prevent the use of any drugs.
The first consideration should be the diet of the patient. Dr. William Crook, who wrote Help for the Hyperactive Child, discovered that in three out of four cases, hyperactivity is diet related. The most common offenders are sugar, artificial food colors and flavors, milk, corn, chocolate, eggs, and wheat.
The recommended diet is one that includes many vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and nuts. The body manufactures, processes and stores more than 100,000 different chemicals. To make these chemicals, a child imports only about 50 raw materials, chemicals his body can’t make by itself such as vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, water, glucose, and fiber. If he doesn’t get enough of these raw materials, his brain and body can’t function normally. This is the case with most children.
Over 90 percent of the young men, whose parents sent them to Advent Home, a home for boys in Tennessee, have ADHD and are on medication. At the home, the youth are removed from all artificial activities such as electronic games, TV, and worldly music. Through a work-study program that includes daily worship, group therapy sessions, exercise, fresh air, and sunshine, lives are transformed.
I suggest that everybody who is taking drugs or giving them to their children search out the evidence available under the heading: “Side Effects of Mind-Altering Drugs.” After Susan’s mother reads the possible side effects of Strattera, I think she will be motivated to change Susan’s diet and lifestyle to be more natural. This should bring healing to her ADHD so she will function normally!
I believe the mind-altering drug epidemic can be ended A NATURAL WAY!
QUINOA AND BLACK BEAN SALAD
1 c uncooked quinoa
1 16-oz can black beans drained and rinsed
1 red pepper chopped
1/4 c cilantro chopped
2 green onions chopped
1 cup frozen corn
1 avocado chopped
DRESSING
1/4 c fresh lime juice
1/2 t salt
1 garlic clove minced
1/4 c cilantro chopped
1/4 c olive oil
1/2 t cumin
Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, then add quinoa and
simmer 20 minutes. While the quinoa is cooking,
chop the vegetables and prepare the dressing. Cool
the quinoa for 5 minutes then fluff with a fork. Add
the beans and vegetables and toss well. Drizzle the
dressing over the salad.