The New Pharmacopoeia.

This article explores the dangers of some psychoactive drugs commonly prescribed to children. Psychiatric drugs seem to offer a modern devil's bargain: your child's happiness, comfort and success in exchange for potentially dangerous side effects and an unpredictable future for his or her developing brain. How risky are these medicines? In a small trial involving 12 children with ADHD, researchers found a high number of chromosome abnormalities in those who took methylphenidate for three months, abnormalities seen in some forms of cancer. Antipsychotics like olanzapine (Zyprexa) and risperidone (Risperdal) can cause significant weight gain and increase the risk of diabetes. The mood stabilizers valproic acid (Depakote) and carbamazepine (Tegretol) can damage the liver and dangerously alter the production of blood cells. We can't dismiss the dangers of these drugs--but we must also respect the dangers of the illnesses themselves. Though drugs can cause calamities, they usually don't.