Medication children for ADHD when they really have sleep disorders is damaging in many ways, reports The Columbia Chronicle.
The superabundance of ADHD diagnoses in children today may be caused by a damaging oversight: Undiagnosed sleep disorders, often linked to obesity in children, present identical symptoms. While the latest research has shown a direct connection between sleep deprivation and attention deficit behaviors, mainstream medical practice has yet to catch up. Attention deficit disorders are diagnosed based on behavior, overlooking the glaring fact that the children could have sleep disorders. If this red herring is not caught in a medical evaluation, the stimulant drugs prescribed to treat the mislabeled symptoms can exacerbate the sleep problem.
