Subj: Death From Ritalin!!
Date: 12/6/02 7:59:06 AM Mountain Standard Time


Death From Ritalin

The Truth Behind ADHD

<A HREF="http://www.ritalindeath.com/">www.RitalinDeath.com</A>

BY: Lawrence T. Smith



<A HREF="http://www.fightforkids.org/">Fight For Kids</A>



<A HREF="http://www.ritalindeath.com/miracle.htm">Miracle At a Wisconsin High
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<A HREF="http://www.ritalindeath.com/Crusade.htm">Parents' Crusade Over
Children's Tragic</A>

<A HREF="http://www.ritalindeath.com/Crusade.htm"> Deaths From Psychiatric
Drugs</A>



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<A HREF="http://www.stop-drugging-kids.com/">Parents for Label & Drug Free
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<A HREF="http://ritalindeath.com/SimpleTruths.htm">A Few Simple Truths About
ADHD and Stimulant Drugs</A>

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I'm here today, to warn parents of the risks involved in giving children
stimulant medications used to treat ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder). These behaviors are listed in the <A
HREF="http://ritalindeath.com/Page/Contro2.htm">DSM-IV Diagnostic Criteria for
ADHD</A>.

Our fourteen-Year-old Son Matthew died on March 21, 2000. The cause was
determined to be from the long- term (age 7-14) use of Methylphenidate a
medication commonly known as Ritalin.

The Certificate of Death under due to, (or because of) reads. Death caused
from Long Term Use of Methylphenidate, (Ritalin). According to Dr. Ljuba
Dragovic, The chief pathologist in Oakland County Michigan, upon autopsy,
Matthew's heart showed clear signs of small vessel damage, the type caused by
stimulant drugs like amphetamines.

The medical examiners told me that a full-grown man's heart weighs about 350
grams and that Matthew's heart weight was about 402 grams.

Matthew did not have a preexisting heart disease or defect that we knew of.
We, his parents never ignored his medical needs. The medical examiner said
this type of heart damage is not easy to detect with the standard test
necessary for prescription refills.



While visiting the doctor with the schools diagnosis and the recommendation
for Ritalin, he seemed very frustrated and asked us to let the school know, I
am not a pharmacy. This leads me to believe that we were not the first
parents sent to this doctor, with the schools diagnosis and recommendation
for Ritalin.

No one ever informed us of other crucial tests (echocardiogram) that we could
have had done that would have discovered the enlargement of the heart muscle,
caused from scare tissue which these types of drugs cause. The standard test
performed consists of blood work, listening to the heart, questions about
school behaviors, sleeping and eating habits.

It all started for Matthew in the first grade the school social worker in
Berkley, Michigan kept calling us in for meetings. One particular morning
before an IEP meeting, the school social worker Monica Fuchs, my wife and I,
were waiting on the others to arrive.

Monica made us feel very threatened when she said that if we wouldn't
consider getting Matt on Ritalin for their diagnosis of Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder, that social services (child protective services)
could charge us for neglecting his educational and emotional needs. My wife
and I were scared of the possibility of losing our children, if we did not
comply.


I believe that some school employees like having children medicated because,
it makes frustrated students that are having a difficult time learning and
understanding, easier to manage, regardless of the physical and psychological
risks this practice poses to children.

Not all families can afford hundreds of dollars for a drug free, private
evaluation, so they will not be cornered into medicating their child.

I am hoping that Republicans and Democrats will work together and fight this
horrific war against the future of America, our children.

Medical diagnosis should remain outside the realm of education and stay
there. Pressure to seek specific medical treatment is not the job of the
school system.

We did not want Matthew on any medications, even though the school social
worker or the doctor never informed us about the dangers of Ritalin and other
stimulant medications used for ADD and ADHD. We just didn't feel good about
putting our son on drugs and we made it very clear to school officials.

Informed Consent", which states in part A person's agreement to allow
something to happen (such as surgery) that is based on a full disclosure of
the facts needed to make the decision intelligently; i.e. knowledge of risks
involved, alternatives etc" and "the probable risks against the probable
benefits"

The violation of parent's rights is when they are not told of the
unscientific nature of so-called disorders such as ADHD or the risks of the
treatments involving (drugs) and they certainly are not told of alternatives
to their child's behavior such as undiagnosed allergies or food
sensitivities, which could manifest with the symptoms of what psychiatry
calls ADHD.

If we weren't pressure by the school system, Matt would still be alive today.
I cannot go back and change things for us at this point. However, I hope to
God my story and information will reach the hearts and minds, of many
families, so they can make an educated decision with more than a little
selective information, if any, paid for by psychology and drug companies.

I have created this website in hopes that parents will learn the health risks
involved in using psychotropic medications on growing children.
I hope you will be spared all the suffering and heartbreak this whole ADHD
issue has caused our family and many others.

Please do not be intimidated by family, school staff, doctors, or anyone into
medicating your child for ADHD or ADD. These mental illnesses are
scientifically unfounded with no scientific validity what so ever. The
dopamine theory is nothing more than wishful thinking on the part of
psychiatry and the pharmaceutical industry.

I truly believe this must have been my son's purpose, to save the health and
lives of many others.

How old will people live after taking these types of drugs as a child? Every
time I hear about a child or young adult that has died from heart failure, I
always wonder if they were ever on a psychotropic medication used for ADHD or
depression.

If I would of known about all the children that have died from these
psychiatric medications, I would have never given Matt the first pill.

Did you know that children that are diagnosed as having ADHD or ADD and take
medication, the school labels them as learning disabled, and the schools
receives additional state and federal funding per-child, per-semester.

I wonder if that is one of the reasons why school administrators are so
adamant about medication, and the other would be to control their behavior,
in their drug free school zone.

One of the hardest things for me to deal with is the fact that, Matthew never
wanted his medication.

How many more 11-year-old Stephanie Hall's and 14-year-old Matthew Smith's
will have to die before someone puts a stop to the biggest health care fraud
ever? How many times will school psychology and drug companies get away with
this?

In 1998 at the National Institutes of Health Consensus Conference on ADHD The
NIH issued the following statement regarding ADHD:

"We do not have an independent, valid test for ADHD, and there is no data to
indicate that ADHD is due to a brain malfunction"

Children, do not need to be made into little robots with medication. I feel
that good parenting, structure, diets, and teaching methods can make all the
difference in the world. Different children develop in different ways; you
cannot put children all into one box.

Did you know that the ADHD diagnosis checklist of behaviors is almost the
same as the list of behaviors for gifted children. <A
HREF="http://www.nfgcc.org/">www.nfgcc.org </A>

Did you know that doctor's use to give amphetamines out for diet medication?
They stopped because of the dangerous and sometimes fatal heart related side
effects.

Now drug companies have a new market, with new names for the drugs and have
went from adult weight medication to children's ADHD.

The DEA has classified Ritalin as a schedule two drug, comparable to Cocaine.
Ritalin is also one of the top ten abused prescription drugs on the streets
today.

From the research that I have done on amphetamines, when they are used, all
the veins and arteries constrict and get very small which makes it hard for
the heart to pump blood throughout the body. The extra force it takes to
circulate blood causes damage to the heart.

There are many other drugs that are given to children for ADHD with different
names; Adderall, Concreta, Metadate, Ritalin, the list goes on and on, most
if not all are stimulant drugs with Amphetamine-Speed.

We are coming to a point in our history were children have been taking these
drugs for some time. Now the information is starting to come out. This is a
very sad why for us to find out the long-term side effects, by using our
children as guinea pigs.

Please feel free to share your comments with others on the <A
HREF="http://www.ritalindeath.com/board/?topic=topic1">discussion board</A>.





If you are being harassed to medicate your child for a ADHD?

Tell Them Where To Go!



<A HREF="http://www.ritalindeath.com/">RitalinDeath.com</A>



<A HREF="http://www.adhdfraud.com/">Dr. Fred Baughman: Articles & essays</A>



<A
HREF="http://adhdparentssupportgroup.homestead.com/50conditionsmimicingADHD.html\
">50 conditions Mimicking ADHD</A>



<A HREF="http://www.fightforkids.org/">Fight For Kids.org</A>



<A HREF="http://www.blockcenter.com/">Dr. Mary Ann Block</A>



<A HREF="http://www.breggin.com/">Dr. Peter Breggin</A>



<A HREF="http://www.wildestcolts.com/">Dr. John Breeding</A>






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