Kids with August birthdays are more likely to get an ADHD diagnosis. Here’s why.

One of the most contentious debates in child development in the United States is what's leading to the sharp rise in cases of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). More than one in 10 children ages 4 to 17 are estimated to have the diagnosis, and scientists are looking at the role things such as genetics, environmental exposures and low birth weight might play.


More >> Kids with August birthdays are more likely to get an ADHD diagnosis. Here’s why.

• ADHD Might Be A Misdiagnosis For Child's Maturity, Study Finds

Thousands at risk of unfairly losing welfare benefits because of "no jab no pay"

Thousands of Australians are at risk of having their welfare payments unfairly slashed because of inaccuracies in Australia's immunisation register, which is being used to process the Turnbull government's new "no jab, no pay" rules, health care workers say.

More >> Thousands at risk of unfairly losing welfare benefits because of "no jab no pay"

Youngest Kids In Class At Higher Risk Of ADHD Diagnosis

By the time they're in elementary school, some kids prove to be more troublesome than others. They can't sit still or they're not socializing or they can't focus enough to complete tasks that the other kids are handling well. Sounds like ADHD. But it might be that they're just a little young for their grade.

More >> Youngest Kids In Class At Higher Risk Of ADHD Diagnosis

• Active Children Are Being Overdiagnosed With ADHD a New Study Finds
• Children born in August at increased risk of being diagnosed with ADHD than those born in September: Study

ADHD is vastly overdiagnosed and many children are just immature, say scientists

Many children are needlessly prescribed drugs to combat ADHD when they are just immature, a study suggests

More >> ADHD is vastly overdiagnosed and many children are just immature, say scientists

• ADHD children may just be immature, research suggests

What’s causing ADHD to skyrocket in kids?

In 2003, 7.8% of 4- to 17-year-olds in the US were were diagnosed with ADHD, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health. By 2011, that figure had reached 11% of students, with 20% of high-school boys diagnosed with the condition.

More >> What’s causing ADHD to skyrocket in kids?

“New Mexico Law Prohibits Forced Psychiatric Drugging of Children”

Bill 53 has officially become law in New Mexico House Bill, ensuring that a parent’s decision not to administer psychiatric drugs to a child is not grounds for a child being removed from parental custody.

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Drugging Children to Keep Them Quiet

Two mothers mentioned getting perscriptions from doctors to medicate children during a plane trip. Presumably to keep them calm and sedated. This honestly bothers me profoundly! I try not to give my child chemical medications at all, just as I try to avoid taking them myself.

More >> Drugging Children to Keep Them Quiet

ADHD Meds Tied to Lower Bone Density in Kids

Children on medications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may have lower bone density than their peers, a new U.S. study suggests.

More >> ADHD Meds Tied to Lower Bone Density in Kids

Parents ask lawmakers for pediatric medical marijuana

Joy O’Meara, of Trumbull, can’t keep track of the times she’s made emergency calls for her 7-year-old son, Jamison, but she won’t forget the moments when she held his seemingly lifeless body and began CPR.

More >> Parents ask lawmakers for pediatric medical marijuana

Pills for your kid's ADHD? Try this instead

You likely first heard about attention-deficit disorder, or ADD, in the early 1980s when the condition came onto the popular radar under that label, and parents and teachers scrambled to learn about treatment.

More >> Pills for your kid's ADHD? Try this instead

South Dakota partners with Big Pharma to prey on Native Americans in genocidal campaign to increase revenues

The use of culturally-biased guidelines in determining mental health status allows the agency to circumvent Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) rules, designed to keep these children from ending up in non-native foster homes, while generating millions of dollars for the pharmaceutical industry.

More >> South Dakota partners with Big Pharma to prey on Native Americans in genocidal campaign to increase revenues

Too many Pa. foster children are on psychiatric meds

Following a report last summer that large numbers of Pennsylvania children on Medicaid, especially those in foster care, are taking psychiatric medications, state officials Tuesday announced steps to address the problem.

More >> Too many Pa. foster children are on psychiatric meds 

House panel OKs bill aimed at increasing child immunizations in Utah

The third time was the charm for a bill that requires parents to learn about preventable illnesses before exempting their children from immunizations.

More >> House panel OKs bill aimed at increasing child immunizations in Utah

Early behavior therapy better than medication in treating children with ADHD

In the United States, medication is the first line of treatment for 90 percent of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, Florida International University (FIU) researchers have determined behavioral therapy—when used first—is more effective in treating children with ADHD than medication. It is also more cost-effective.

More >> Early behavior therapy better than medication in treating children with ADHD

Bill would prevent child vaccination opt-outs for personal reasons

Wisconsin parents would no longer be able to cite “personal conviction” for a reason to exempt their children from required vaccinations under a new bill currently being circulated at the Capitol.

More >> Bill would prevent child vaccination opt-outs for personal reasons

Parents credit antibiotic for autistic child's 'monumental' improvements

A five-year-old boy with autism who has never really communicated, has suddenly started answering back when asked a question, is making better eye contact and is happier, according to his excited parents who link these “monumental” changes to an unexpected source.

More >> Parents credit antibiotic for autistic child's 'monumental' improvements

With more parents choosing not to vaccinate, Utah on brink of losing 'herd immunity'

Noah Chesler was excited to go back to school.

Not many 9-year-olds are. But Noah had been gone for nearly two years — after a bone marrow transplant left his immune system too weak to fight the onslaught of infections lurking around every classroom.

More >> With more parents choosing not to vaccinate, Utah on brink of losing 'herd immunity'

ADHD Symptoms Less Likely To Fade When Parents Criticize Their Kids

New research out of the American Psychological Association links persistent attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to having critical parents, suggesting that parental behavior can have a significant impact on the mental disorder. In many cases, ADHD fades away towards the end of adolescence, and may completely disappear in adulthood. Among those whose symptoms persist as they age, harsh and critical parents may play a role, the research suggests.


More >> ADHD Symptoms Less Likely To Fade When Parents Criticize Their Kids

• Being overly critical of your kids makes them more susceptible to ADHD

ADHD in kids: What many parents and teachers don’t understand but need to know

There seems to be a never-ending stream of research reports about attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD — the most commonly diagnosed neuro-behavioral disorder in U.S. children — and how it affects young people.

More >> ADHD in kids: What many parents and teachers don’t understand but need to know

Christie: No apologies to family who left N.J. for sick child's medical marijuana

Christie: No apologies to family who left N.J. for sick child's medical marijuana

Gov. Chris Christie on Wednesday defended the state's strict medical marijuana program and shrugged off a suggestion that a Scotch Plains family had no choice but to relocate to Colorado so their ailing daughter could have easier access to edible cannabis products.