but it is not this simple. it is nice to think of it in simple terms, that the innocent children and parents are having dangerous drugs forced onto them by unscrupulous doctors, all at the behest of multinational drug companies.

while this happens sometimes, the truth is it is often parents who ASK for the drugs. i have experienced it in my practice frequently. they refuse to consider any other intervention, refuse to reassess their parenting skills or style and demand someone drug their children into submission.

i live and work in australia, and here there is often restrictions on what sort of services or help is available depending on ones diagnosis. if i give a patient a label like ADHD or Autism then someone can give the family some assistance. without a label, the family is on their own. i suspect, knowing what i know of the american health care system, that this phenomena is even more powerful over there. the system wont deal with individuals, it only deals with labels.