ADHD Medication : Treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

There is no shortage of choices when it comes to ADHD medication.

Ritalin, Ritalina, Rilatine, Ritalin LA, Attenta, Concerta, Metadate, Methylin, Rubifen, Focalin, and Daytrana are ADHD medications made from some form of the stimulant Methylphenidate.

Amphetamine based medications include Adderall, Dexedrine, Desoxyn, and Vyvanse (a prodrug).

Strattera is the only non-stimulant ADHD medication approved by the FDA for ADHD treatment. Strattera is a norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, basically an antidepressant.

Each of these ADHD medications will be discussed in detail in the articles below. Most of them carry the FDA's "Black Box Warning" Labels and should be used cautiously.

Stimulants such as amphetmine and methylphenidate have been around for over 60 years. In the second World War the German army used amphetamines so that the soldiers could march all night and fight all day.

Medications such as Ritalin, Dexedrine, Concerta, and ADDerall, are derived from one of these two general classes of stimulants. Overall, they work very well, and probably 75% of those who try them will benefit.

Stimulants work by increasing both blood flow and the levels of Dopamine in the brain, especially the frontal lobes where the brain’s Executive Functions take place.

They also enhance the inhibitory systems of the brain by enhancing Serotonin and Norepinepherine levels.

They do not work by having some mystical "opposite effect" on children.

There is an unbelievable amount of research done on children and Ritalin. We have heard that Ritalin is the most widely studied medication prescribed to children in the world, and we would not dispute that claim. It seems that every doctoral candidate writing his dissertation for psychology does something with Ritalin.

Stimulants, whether Ritalin or the amphetamines such as Dexedrine or ADDerall, all have benefits for children and adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder – ADD ADHD.

Stimulants will increase the brain’s ability to inhibit itself. This allows the brain to focus on the right thing at the right time, and to be less distracted, and less impulsive. Stimulants increase the “signal to noise ratio” in the brain.

They will also increase both gross motor co-ordination and fine motor control. For several years the sales brochure for Ritalin simply had pictures of children’s handwriting before Ritalin, and with 10 mg of Ritalin in their system. The changes were dramatic, and physicians wrote a lot of prescriptions for Ritalin.

There are many charges that Ritalin is “over-prescribed” in America. But if those charges are true, it is only because Ritalin actually works! If it didn’t work, sometimes dramatically, it wouldn’t be “over-prescribed.”

But are we great advocates for the use of stimulant medications?

No. At least not as the first treatment to try.

We would prefer that parents try the nutritional medicines like ATTEND and Extress, and our ADHD diet first.

However, there is a time and a place for the use of stimulant medications. And we want you to have accurate information about them.

Read about each ADHD medication and how they are used in the treatment of ADHD. Also read the articles on the FDA hearings, and the FDA "black box warnings."