The good news for George is that he’ll be tilling very fertile soil. A new study has discovered that 31 million Americans – 15 per cent of the adult population – suffer from at least one type of personality disorder. Roughly half of these have obsessive-compulsive disorder, and a sizeable minority is paranoid and harbours an unusual distrust of others.

The survey, carried out by the American Psychiatric Association, was based on in-depth interviews with 43,000 adults as a representative sample of the entire population.

Psychiatrists recognize 10 personality disorders, seven of which were well represented in the survey.

The bad news for George is that the US Food and Drug Administration has just issued a safety alert on the antipsychotic drugs. They can increase your chances of developing hyperglycaemia and diabetes, the agency has discovered.

Janssen Pharmaceutica, manufacturer of Risperdal (risperidone) has been the first to conform, and has already issued its alert to doctors. In some cases drug-induced hyperglycaemia has been so extreme that the patient has died, the alert reads.

It will be interesting to see if the new warning stays the hand of the prescribing doctor, because little seems to have done so thus far. The use of antipsychotic drugs by low-income families in Tennessee nearly doubled between 1996 and 2001. The growth has mainly been among children diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), even though the drugs should not be prescribed to children.

Not that the news about antidepressants is very much better. A recent study confirms the alarming findings of earlier trials that antidepressants, and especially the SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors), can increase the risk of suicide among teenagers.

The suicide risk is similar for all the antidepressants, even for Prozac (fluoxetine), which earlier studies had not linked to suicidal behaviour.

(Sources: Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, July 2004; FDA website; Archives of Pediatric Adolescent Medicine, August 3, 2004. Journal of the American Medical Association, 2004; 292: 338-343).

* Find out the best way to good mental health from the WDDTY Guide to Mental Health. It’s a sign of great sanity to buy it! Follow this link for your copy: http://www.wddty.co.uk/shop/details.asp?product=19

Which brain chemical this might be, and how it is repaired by a class-II controlled substance with the same effects as cocaine, has never been addressed. But as mounting evidence shows, if MPH is ‘correcting’ brain chemistry, it does so at great cost. The drug has been linked to growth restriction, anorexia, psychosis, insomnia, paranoia, hallucinations, epilepsy-like seizures, stroke and even death. As a drug on a par with cocaine, Ritalin has an enormous potential for dependence and abuse. It only works during the day to control symptoms and has rebound effects, so parents have to wrestle with full-fledged monstrous behaviour in the morning and later in the evening as their often insomniac children spiral out of control.

The new brain chemical
So now Eli Lilly, the folks who brought the world Prozac, ushering in a generation of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressants (SSRIs), has reinvented the solution as Strattera (atomoxetine), the first non-stimulant drug for ADHD and the first new treatment for ADHD in more than 30 years. It’s also the first type of drug that works continually for 24 hours.

Strattera is a highly selective noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, a variation on the noradrenergic and selective serotonergic antidepressants. Noradrenaline (norepinephrine) and serotonin are the two brain chemicals believed to be responsible for depression, but also thought to regulate attention, impulsivity and activity. Since its launch in the US in January 2003, more than five million prescriptions have been written, and the global patient base at its launch in the UK already stood at 1.5 million.

Lilly thinks the drug works by selectively blocking receptor sites on brain nerve cells, allowing noradrenaline to circulate longer, and so enhancing mood and attention.

However, as they admit in their entry in the online version of the American drugs bible, the Physicians’ Desk Reference (www. drugs.com/PDR/Strattera_Capsules.html), precisely how the drug works in ADHD is unknown – so, again, we’re not really sure what chemical we’re replenishing. And although this drug is intended to be taken long term, possibly for years, by children, it has never been subjected to an effectiveness trial lasing longer than nine weeks in children, or had a safety test beyond one year.

What doctors don’t tell you
The most worrying effects of Strattera concern the heart, as it increases both blood pressure and heart rate. Children given the drug have an average increase of six beats/minute above normal although, in one study, nearly 4 per cent experienced an increase of at least 25 beats/minute (Physicians’ Desk Reference). It can also suppress growth, dilate the pupils, and cause weight loss and a sudden drop in blood pressure.

At least 5 per cent of users will suffer from an upset stomach, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, anorexia or decreased appetite, dizziness and mood swings. Other side-effects include aggression, irritability, sleeplessness, headache, cough and dermatitis.

Besides the heart issues, adults taking the drug can suffer from impotence, menstrual disturbances and abnormal orgasms.

It should never be taken by people taking a MAO inhibitor for depression, as this combination could be lethal, or by those with glaucoma, heart problems or high blood pressure.

What to do instead
See WDDTY vol 14 no 3 for a full description of a diet and supplement programme to beat ADHD without drugs.

Lynne McTaggart

Although ADHD is one of the most commonly diagnosed disorders in childhood, the panel found no consistency in the treatment, diagnosis or follow up of children with the disorder.

In particular, the panel focused on the efficacy, as well as the long term effects, of Ritalin. Studies into the long term treatment of ADHD, usually with a combination of Ritalin and amphetamines, are thin on the ground due to poor follow up. In the short term, what is known is that current treatment regimes, whether they be with drugs or behavioural therapy, do not appear to improve academic achievement or long term outcomes, thus throwing into question the current high use of Ritalin.

While America remains undecided about the use of Ritalin, parents in Israel have expressed their concern about the use of the drug. There is currently a private members bill being introduced into the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, which would regulate the use of Ritalin in the treatment of ADHD. The Israel Medical Association and the country’s health ministry are both opposed to the bill. Nevertheless, it represents a valid attempt to stop incorrect diagnosis of ADHD and the widespread, unnecessary taking of Ritalin by Israeli children.

A study into children’s eating habits in America may enlighten us further as the causes of poor physical and mental health in childhood. Researchers found that children’s major sources of nutrients were breakfast cereals and fruit juices (Pediatrics, 1998; 102: 913-23). Major sources of energy, fat and protein were milk, yeasted bread, cakes, biscuits, quick bread and doughnuts, as well as beef and cheese. High consumption of these foods compromised the intake of more nutritious foods.

She’d always been a strong-willed, distractible, little powerhouse of a child but, with the right diet and cranial osteopathy, we thought those days were behind us. Although hardly at the top of the class, she was coping well and keeping up. However, these last two terms, her teacher reported that her attention had taken a nosedive, and her slow but steady progress had ground to a halt. We were called in and handed lists of educational psychologists, who might enlighten all of us about how to educate this child.

At the same time, Anya’s behaviour at home was also deteriorating. She’d stopped listening and was consistently unreasonable – impossible to get to school or even to bed.

We were at our wits’ end, attempting to work out what had gone wrong, when I suddenly realised that her behaviour was only bad between Monday and Friday. The penny had finally dropped. Something at school was causing her problem.

I investigated and, sure enough, my otherwise enlightened school was giving her milk (and sometimes Nesquik) and chocolate biscuits at 11 am, and wheat and milk products at lunch. Anya had been a highly allergic child and, although we’d specified at nursery age that she shouldn’t have either milk or wheat (and not much chocolate), this current teacher hadn’t taken this on board. So every day, Anya had been drip-fed what amounts to a poison to her brain.

In Anya’s case, it’s likely that her problems stem from biochemical sensitivity. We adopted her from Russia when she was four months old. By then, the well-meaning Russian doctors in charge of her care had given her a tuberculosis vaccine at birth, powerful drugs like phenobarbital and bottles of full cow’s milk (the hospital couldn’t afford formula). There is no doubt in my mind that her gut was damaged by these early and inappropriate interventions, and a wheat-free and dairy-free diet is vital to her ability to learn.

Over the summer, Anya was put on a strict wheat-free diet and worked individually with one of her teachers. Soon, the doorway to her brain reopened, and she began to make steady strides.

Although biochemistry should be the first port of call for any child who finds it difficult to learn, it is equally important to remember that children learn at different speeds. At seven, our first daughter Caitlin was also labelled a problem learner – a candidate for dyslexia. Not only was her creative output too meagre, but the words themselves were weirdly positioned. Perhaps she had a problem with hand-eye coordination, the teachers said. Perhaps we should see a specialist.

When we questioned Caitlin, she told us that, every Monday, the teacher asked her to write what she did over the weekend – but there just wasn’t much of anything new to say. When she’d been chastised for writing too little, she’d spaced out her words to make her story appear longer so that her teacher would stop telling her off.

For years, writing remained a lesser source of creative expression for Caitlin until one day, at 13, she became master of her own words. Within the following year, she was producing astonishing stories and poems, and now, at nearly 15, she’s at the top of the class. So it also went with her maths.

The key to educating our children may not only be to pay attention to what we are feeding them, but to ultimately trust in the mysterious process of learning. There is a right and highly individual season for everyone.

Lynne McTaggart

Probably one of the most destructive food products consumed daily by millions of people, sugar has successfully avoided any extra taxation at consumer level.

Sugar has been conclusively linked to many key illnesses that now plague mankind – diabetes, heart disease, tooth decay and obesity – particularly in the developed world, where sugar consumption is highest. The government’s own advisors have presented numerous research papers over the decades attesting to the hazards of refined sugars. Yet, little or no action is taken against the sugar industry.

The average Westerner consumes 45-68 kg (100-150 lb) of sugar each year, much of it ingested as hidden sugars in packaged and processed goods such as tinned beans, ready-made meals and fruit juice.

Sugar has a powerful effect on the body. A sugar rush has the immediate effect of extra energy and enthusiasm but, as we are all too aware, this is then followed by a crash as the body tries to pull our blood sugar levels back into balance.

It is clear that highly refined foods, especially refined sugar and white flour, can affect pancreatic regulation of blood sugar levels. In turn, impaired insulin secretion can lead to potential disease states, especially type 2 diabetes (JAMA, 1997; 77: 472-7).

The long-term impact of soda and sugar-sweetened beverages on children’s body weight has also been studied by researchers at the Children’s Hospital in Boston and Harvard School of Public Health. They found a 60 per cent greater risk of becoming obese for every additional can or glass of sugar-sweetened soft drink consumed above the average of just over one such drink a day (Lancet, 2001; 357: 505-8).

The simple correlation between children eating highly refined foods and poor nutritional status is confirmed by neurologist Dr Jay Lombard in his book The Brain Wellness Plan, which highlights a strongly suspected link between dietary refined sugars and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Worryingly, the marketing arms of the sugar industry have long exploited the huge consumer market of young people, children and infants, and show no signs of slowing. Pester-power is even more effective than ever before.

Fizzy drinks, ‘fruit’ strips, candy floss-making toys, electrically powered lollypops and sugar products featuring appealing cartoon characters make up virtually all the advertising on TV channels such as CITV and Nickelodeon, directed exclusively at the young.

Although most reputable supermarkets no longer place these products near the checkouts, children who have their own pocketmoney can still buy sweets free of adult supervision. Sweets in this country are too cheap. For £1, you can buy copious amounts of jellies, chocolates and boiled-sugar candies.

The insidious all-pervasive lure of sugar has even reached the organic movement and the Soil Association. In 2000, the You Magazine/Soil Association Awards found some unlikely products as award-winners – jellies, chocolates, jams, coffee, ready-made meals, and even spirits and lager.

Some say that products with little/no nutritional value should not be given organic status, let alone win awards. Nevertheless, at least one positive thing has come out of the taste for organic sweets: organic sugar production is more sensitive to environmental issues.

Examine the labels of children’s vitamins and you’ll be astounded at the inclusion of sugars and sweeteners. As the owner of a vitamin company and a parent, I am appalled at what passes as nutritional in most of these kiddie vitamins. It is certainly better for children to eat a good and varied diet, and top up with green foods for extra nutrients, rather than take a daily sweetie with a handful of vitamins added.

A controversial solution is to place a heavier rate of value added tax (VAT) on all sugar products, especially those directed at children.

One way for all parents and consumers to draw attention to this issue and bring about a change is to write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Dr Gordon Brown, and ask him to introduce a higher rate of taxation for sugar and all sugar-containing foodstuffs, especially those that are clearly and directly aimed at children.

Your letter might suggest that he use the additional revenue raised to inject funds into the NHS or for educational programmes to wean the British public off their sugar ‘addictions’ on to healthier foods. More education for the educators themselves might also result in an agreement to ban sweets from schools and colleges.

One suggestion is for schools not to allow lunches to include fizzy drinks, sweets and chocolates in their school lunches. This works very well in my six-year-old daughter’s school and might encourage parents to become more creative and mindful of health in their lunchtime offerings.

The crux of the problem lies in convincing the government that sugar is not a food, but a largely unnecessary luxury that we cannot afford.

Cheryl Thallon is co-founder and director of the vitamin manufacturing company Viridian Nutrition.

These new class action lawsuits, filed in California and New Jersey, come on the heels of a similar one filed in Texas recently.

All three allege that the multinational drug company Ciba/Novartis colluded with the American Psychiatric Association (APA) to create, develop and promote the widespread diagnoses of ADD and ADHD to boost sales of the drug Ritalin.

The potential involvement of such an august body as the APA is a new twist in the Ritalin tale. However, the prosecutors are believed to have evidence that not only did the APA collude with the drug companies, they accepted financial contributions from Ciba as well as from other members of the pharmaceutical industry while doing so.

The impetus for the trials has come from the country wide experiences of parents who have been forced to administer Ritalin to their children under a court order, or lose them on the grounds of neglect. Many of these families are now suing psychiatrists for creating a market for the drug (BMJ, 2000; 321: 723).

“Ciba/Novartis planned, conspired and colluded to create, develop and promote the diagnoses of Attention Deficit Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in a highly successful effort to increase the market for its product Ritalin.”Furthermore: “The American Psychiatric Association (APA) conspired, colluded and cooperated with the other Defendants while taking financial contributions from Ciba as well as other members of the pharmaceutical industry. . .”

Mr Richard Scruggs, one of the lawyers in the class actions, said that the defendants “manufactured a disease. It has been grossly overprescribed. It is a huge risk” (BMJ, 2000; 321: 723).

The APA issued a statement in July saying: “Allegations that the (APA) conspired with others to create the diagnoses of [ADD and ADHD] as part of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual so that medication could be used to treat these disorders are ludicrous and totally false. The APA will defend itself vigorously by presenting a mountain of scientific evidence to refute these meritless allegations, and we are confident that we will prevail.”

The US support group CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder/Hyperactivity Disorder), which strongly advocates the use of Ritalin and is partially funded by drug firms, is also cited in the class action. For further details, see http://www.ritalinfraud.com.

Most of the artificial flavourings and colourants itemised in the latest research are already banned in one or more other countries, and the UK stands alone in banning virtually none of them.

The embarrassment for the UK is that it’s a government-commissioned study, carried out by the Asthma and Allergy Research Centre, that has provided the proof.

The study, involving 277 three-year-olds from the Isle of Wight, showed that up to 25 per cent of children had temper tantrums or behaved badly after consuming food and drink containing additives. The children drank fruit juice containing 20 mg of artificial colourings and 45 mg of preservative for two weeks. They then switched to a placebo drink, which had no additives.

Parents reported a marked difference in their children’s behaviour after switching drinks.

The researchers concluded that ‘significant changes in children’s hyperactive behaviour could be produced by the removal of colourings and additives from their diet’.

Following on from this, the Food Commission says it has identified 200 children’s food and drink that contain one or more of the additives examined by the researchers.

The additives tested were the food colourings tartrazine (E102), sunset yellow (E110), carmoisine (E122), ponceau 4R (E124) and the preservative sodium benzoate (E211), found in sweets and snacks such as Jammie Dodgers and Smarties, and in Irn Bru and Tizer drinks.

E102 can provoke asthma attacks and nettle rash in children, and is banned in Norway and Austria. E110 is associated with rhinitis, nausea and abdominal pain, and is banned in Norway. E122 is also linked with asthma, and is banned in Sweden, the USA, Australia and Norway. E124 triggers asthma attacks, and is banned in the USA and Norway. E211 is linked to asthma attacks and nettle rash, but has yet to be banned in any country.

Even though the evidence appears overwhelming, UK food agencies remain non-committal. The Food and Drink Federation says the evidence is inconclusive, a view that is shared by the Food Standards Agency.

The chances of an early ban remain remote.

Around five million children in the USA are taking some prescribed stimulant to treat their hyperactivity. Production of Ritalin has increased by 730 per cent between 1992 and 2000, while Adderall production has soared by 2500 per cent. The market for legal stimulant use in the USA is a cool $1 billion a year.

This exponential growth has been fuelled, in part, by an intensive advertising campaign to doctors and parents, and also to the sweeping, and often inappropriate, diagnosis of hyperactivity, or ADHD. It’s also been used on children who are unruly, and on enhancing their performance at school.

Not content with making America a junkie culture, the manufacturers are now turning to Europe in general, and the UK in particular, to increase sales even further.

Currently, UK doctors prescribe only one-tenth of the Ritalin that their US counterparts prescribe, although this figure is slowly climbing.

The drug manufacturers now want to see a more rapid acceleration in the UK, warns leading American paediatrician Dr Lawrence Diller.

So, if your child ‘suddenly’ develops ADHD, and your doctor prescribes Ritalin or one of its competitors, you will know where the squeeze is coming from.

(Source: British Medical Journal, 2003; 326: 67).