Are We Over Medicating Our Kids?
My friend Rene and I have this running joke anytime we are faced with a difficult question. We ask ourselves, “What would the Chinese do?”or “WWCD?”
Let me give you a recent example:
Rene: Do you think that it’s okay that I work up till my due date or should I take a month off before I have the baby? Will the baby be okay?
Me: Do you really think that the women in China are asking this question??? There are 6 BILLION Chinese people and I can pretty much guarantee you that the majority of those mothers are not taking time off before the baby is born.
Is not that we think the Chinese are superior beings, but without all the affluence, they are forced to “make do” with what they have. It has become our litmus test to determine if we are being over-sensitive based on our cultural biases. I mean, when Rene listed a “wipe warmer” as a newborn necessity, I just about peed my pants. I can almost imagine all of those people in the factories of China laughing at the fact that they are manufacturing products like wipe warmers for us …
So recently on Momversation, I brought up the topic, “Are We Over Medicating Our Kids?” My opinion? I totally think we over medicate our children in America. And I also think we over medicate adults too.
Before you start the rampage of wonder drug testimonials and accusing me of being on the Tom Cruise/eMeter/thetans side of the fence. I don’t hate medication. On the contrary … I’ve had a love affair with Ambien (that ended badly), I went on some dates with Paxil too. It just never worked out. I never ruled them out as an option, but I’ve never had much luck in the long term (but I know that plenty of people have had luck with them).
It’s been my experience that of all the doctors that I’ve seen over the course of my lifetime, not one, NOT A SINGLE ONE, suggested that I lose weight and exercise more as a treatment for my depression. And oddly enough, diet and exercise (and meditation) has been the most effective treatment for me thus far. Some of you may say that I must not have been that depressed, but honey, I’ve suffered through bouts of debilitating depression all of my life … it’s been a long dark road to get to this point. I am not going to defend myself here.
But I often wonder how the folks in China (or any other country) get around pumping as much medication into their systems as we Americans? Do they have a lower incident of ailments that require medication? Do they have some secret alternative medicine or treatment that they are using? Or are they just running around all under-medicated? How do they get around it or do they? WWCD?
What do you think?
PS. Let me just restate that I am not anti-prescription meds. But I am pro-alternative treatment.
Tags: depression, momversation, videos
This entry was posted on Saturday, May 16th, 2009 at 2:15 pm and is filed under Daily, Midthirties Crisis. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
17 Responses to “Are We Over Medicating Our Kids?”
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Could it be that the Chinese have so much going on, they don’t really have time to analyse their feelings? They just have to get on with the practical business of daily life and find a way to deal with things. Whereas we have more time to think, think, think and get down. I agree that over medicating is a problem in the West. I remember a time when I had an injury and wasn’t able to move around a lot, the doctor offered me anti-depressants as a precautionary measure. Just in case being at home made me depressed. Crazy!
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I’m with you, although it’s not that I’m so much pro-alternative as I am pro-preventative. Drugs have their place, but so many illnesses could be circumvented by preventative care (nutrition, exercise, etc.) rather than walking out of the doctor’s office with something that just treats the symptoms.
Chinese are more oriented to acupuncture and herbs… I think they’re onto something. They believe in “chi” or that every part of your body is interconnected. I believe that, too.
Most doctors I’ve seen are very quick to prescribe medications, and then when you have side effects, they prescribe another medication to fix the side effect. Pretty soon, you’ve got medication upon medication all trying to fix side effects of other medications. Your body is all out of whack and you don’t know where to turn.
With respect to your statement of, doctors suggesting weight loss and exercise for depression, I can tell you that most people would be offended and insulted if their doctors did that. My former husband’s doctor told him that and he was pissed off about that for years. Probably still is…
All that to say, I agree with you.
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My doctor did recently tell my boyfriend that exercise was the best antidepressant. At the same time, he did offer to write him a prescription if St. John’s Wort didn’t work for him (didn’t work for me). On the other hand, I’m glad I won’t have to twist his arm to write me a prescription for an antidepressant… at least until I get to the point where I can leave the house enough to get to the gym again. In the past I tried acupuncture, but it didn’t really work.
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I have a different opinion on this. I think that it’s a bigger problem of misdiagnosis than over-medication. I spent 15 years struggling with some acute symptoms that I had misdiagnosed repeatedly. Every time I tried to get an answer, the first thing the doctors tell me is to lose weight. Um… I’m sorry, but weight loss is NOT the cure-all. FINALLY, after 15 years of frustration, I was able to get a CORRECT positive PCOS diagnosis. I had PCOS when I was a skinny 20 something… I still have PCOS, but doctors seem to think that if I would just lose some weight it would be resolved. Uh. Not so much…
I do believe that natural remedies are way underestimated too. Right now, I am doing a combo of mainstream meds (metformin prescribed for the PCOS) along with natural supplements. I’m taking an iron and B vit supplement, along with Maca root for my non-existent sex drive, and to be honest, this is the best I’ve felt in ages.
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Here in the USA doctors LOVE to write out those prescriptions because, cha-ching, it all revolves around moolah. They’re all interconnected — doctors, prescription drug industry, health insurance, etc etc. Not ALL doctors are this way … but in general terms the entire health industry is lining their pockets thick.
But to get more specific on your subject matter — YES, we tend to medicate way too easily versus seeking other natural/holistic means. I think all this medicating is making us MORE sick and more dependent on drugs we didn’t even need to begin with. Sometimes it’s because we’re looking for a quick and easy fix … like diet pills that promise big but just make you fatter in the end, versus looking for other more involved methods like changing diet and lifestyle.
Don’t get me wrong — there are many cases where medication is indeed valid and much needed, but the point is that many tend to jump the gun and prescribe or reach for something they may not have needed to begin with when there are healthier options out there that work just as well if not better.
I totally think we are over-medicated as a culture. I was just talking about this with my mother. Why is it that my significant other has chronically high blood pressure (and I mean PRE-STROKE kind of high. Bad.) yet his doctor, whom he visits every two weeks to pick up meds, has NEVER- not once, even suggested weight loss, diet change, or quitting smoking. It is ridiculous.
I know people are helped by medications, certainly. However all my experiences with them (and there are MANY) have ranged from bad to hospitalized for side effects. One depression med I shall not name caused me to gain 40 lbs in ONE month. Yeah.
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I agree that we overmedicate here – or rather, we treat symptoms and then forget to look at root causes. That said, I’m not sure that life in China is necessarily healthier. 50+% of children surveyed have been exposed to domestic violence. That’s potentially half a million people. It’s also a culture that teaches by negative reinforcement and punishment – and while that can accomplish tons (and I speak from personal experience) it has potentially tremendous long-term implications for the mental health of a billion+ people. I think a holistic approach, regardless of the country, will probably be most effective – that is, treating ailments with medication to reduce short-term symptoms and simultaneously spending time examining the core beliefs/root causes which take a lot longer to fix.
What a great topic! My husband and I are both “medication sensitive,” which means one Benadryl and we are out for days. I’m a bit of a control freak, so I have never been a fan of putting medications in my body. That said, I also have a kidney disease which pretty much guarantees that someday, I’m going to be pumping myself full of things ranging from blood pressure meds to anti-rejection drugs, should I ever require a transplant. For now, I only take Tylenol and the occasional Claritin, in addition to my daily blood pressure pill. I’ve never felt worse than when I was on birth control pills and I’ve never felt better than when I was able to get a weekly massage/accupressure treatment from a friend in massage school. (FOR FREE! That rocked.) My mom just sent me a very interesting article that discussed the benefits of honey and cinnamon. They seem to cure (or help) every ailment known to man. Like you, I’m happier using things in my kitchen and exercising to make myself feel better. Except when I’m giving birth, apparently. I asked for everything they had.
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For me personally, I would be appalled if a doctor thought a simple little pill would fix all my troubles. Um, no. Making my situation better will — and if I still have issues with depression even when my life is just about as great as I’d like it to be, then and only then will I concede to numbing myself with a little pill.
I also love how some people have pill holders with 10 to 20 different pills. That can’t be good for us. I think to an extent we’re definitely going over board with medications.
Wipe warmers. LOL. On the other hand I think the problem isn’t that “we” can buy wipe warmers, but “Chinese women” can’t. May the world flourish and prosper so that one day EVERYONE can buy wipe warmers
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And about that medication thing. In my opinion it all comes down to options and having them. I don’t doubt culture has something to do with it too — “the Chinese” preferring acupuncture to medication or whatnot, but I also think it has something to do with options and privilege. We have options that Chinese women don’t. That doesn’t mean we know all about these options, or know which one is the best for us, though.
So for the Chinese its a problem of limited options, whereas for us its more a problem of limited (but thankfully not restricted) information on the huge array of options we do have. When we are so privileged, its very easy for us to choose the one that seems the newest and sparkliest, like happiness in a little pill.
I think we’re definitely overly medicated, overly careful, and it’s harming our kids. It’s ultimately not doing them any good, to care too much for them, and not allow them to experience a little of real life. Yeah, diaper wipe warmer. Just ridiculous.
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I agree that we are certainly over-medicated, an opinion that was driven home when I went to a counseling center reporting depressive symptoms and the therapist asked me if I wanted to be put on anti-depressants before she even had the door closed. I’m not entirely sure the root of the problem lies in perscription meds though. I’ll be the first to admit that when I feel a headache coming on I take Advil. But there are so many over-the-counter medications that don’t really do anything critical but are downed in huge numbers. Have a runny nose? Don’t buy a box of tissues, take Pill X. Have a cough? Don’t have a eucalyptus drop, drink Liquid Y. Then again, maybe this is just due to my personal aversion to going to the doctor…I wonder if there is a pill that can clear that up.
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I agree that this country is far over-medicated, children and adults. In addition to the fact that Americans are just less healthy than many other places (I’m specifically thinking of Western Europe), there’s a cultural tendency to look for an easy solution. There are many people who legitimately need mental health medication, cannot function without it, and having seen people go down that road, that is not a quick or easy fix. On a larger scale, though, I think people go to the doctor (and this includes mental health) expecting a prescription. Because health care is so expensive here, if we go to a doctor and she tells us to get some rest, or diet and exercise, we feel like we’ve wasted our money. My best friend growing up was constantly on antibiotics. Her parents took her to the doctor for the slightest thing, and they always gave her pills, even if they knew she had a virus and antibiotics wouldn’t help, because that’s what they wanted. In Germany, I was given antibiotics once, for a bladder infection. Once. I was never given antibiotics for a cold or flu, because they don’t do anything. Viewing mental illness as another illness, I think Americans look for the same kinds of solutions. Medication works for some illnesses, but even if it’s not the best solution, it’s what most people are expecting when they seek professional help.
When it comes to children, I think in some cases people have an unrealistic idea of what it takes to raise a child, and turn to medication when it gets hard because that’s what they would do for themselves. Sometimes I want to tell people, he’s not ADD, he’s a five-year-old! Maybe if he burned off some of that energy running around instead of sitting on his ass in front of the TV for 12 hours a day, he’d be able to concentrate in school! But just like other people’s relationships, you never really know what goes on with other people’s kids.
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Finally, another sane person. Yes, kids and adults these days are overmedicated to the nth degree. My biggest concern is the kids. Kid is wiggly? Give them medicine? Kid is mad? Give them medicine and on and on.
As a mom with a child on medication, a child who needs medication, I am in no way against medicine but I would really like it if everyone respected it more.
His first Dr. was all “Here is a prescription, hope it all works out for you!” He was in the hospital for 4 days at one point and came home on 5 different medications. He was so fired. Children should not be used as a means to try out medications to see what happens, nor should medication be used as a way to dull all of their emotions because Hello? Sometimes we get mad, and sad and we have to deal.
I could go on and on but a rant may not be the best way to come out of lurking!
Hi Giyen,
I’m delayed in commenting here, but this really resonated with me. I just saw the momversation vid.
I’ve had chronic migraines [like 5-6/week and I had to quit my job] for a two years. Luckily, I have a partner who is a doctor and has wonderful insurance which allows me to explore different doctors, but all my docs have thrown this pill and that pill at me. I tried exercise, acupuncture on my own, diet change, and nothing. Finally, my new doctor whom I love, diagnosed me with a neck problem and sent me to physical therapy. I don’t know if it’ll cure it, but all I want is “better” and so far it’s going in the right direction. And I love her even more. Haha.
The lesson is “Do your research.” It has never been easier to be proactive with the Internet at our fingertips, and yet people are perfectly happy to be complacent and passively accept their treatment.
I think you made some good points in your post.