Stimulants doom Children to life of unhappiness, despair, depression.

http://www.forbes.com/business/newsw...tr1172286.html

Attention deficit drugs may have long-term effects
Reuters, 12.08.03, 12:00 AM ET

WASHINGTON(Reuters) -

Key points (see link for entire story)

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD drug
..... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats give
dummy injections.

William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston and
colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin, known
generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of
pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection.

When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" -- how
quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress.

"Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in
learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency toward
depression," Carlezon said in a statement.

snip...

Carlezon said he did not believe the effects were specific to Ritalin, made
by Swiss drug giant Novartis. It could instead be a general effect of
stimulant drugs, many of which act by increasing the activity of a key
message-carrying chemical called dopamine.

Higher dopamine levels could affect the way brain cells cement their
connections during development, Carlezon wrote in the Dec. 15 issue of the
journal Biological Psychiatry.

A team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
found that adult rats were less responsive to rewarding stimuli and reacted
more to stress if they had been given methylphenidate as youngsters.

A third study done by a team at Finch University of Health Sciences/The
Chicago Medical School found changes in how dopamine neurons responded to
methylphenidate.

"These three studies remind us how limited our knowledge is of the
neurochemical and functional characteristics of the human brain during
childhood and adolescence and on the effects of psychotropic drugs on brain
development," Dr. Thomas Insel, Director of the National Institute of Mental
Health, wrote in a commentary."





--
"Monsters cannot be announced.
One cannot say: 'here are our monsters',
without immediately turning the monsters into pets."
--Jacques Derrida

L wrote:

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD drug
.... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats give
dummy injections.

Wow! I'm gonna start mixing Ritalin in with the Decon.

Rats and humans are different. Even if this were not true, because the
biochemistry of brains of kids with ADHD is different from kids without
ADHD, this may not apply to them.

The title of the thread is also misleading. There is nothing in the article
that suggests that kids with ADHD are doomed to unhappiness, despair or
depression. And considering that the ADHD drugs help kids and adults do
better in school, work and life, it appears that ADHD drugs help prevent
kids and adults from being doomed to despair, unhappiness and depression.

Jeff
"L" wrote in message
s.com...

http://www.forbes.com/business/newsw...tr1172286.html

Attention deficit drugs may have long-term effects
Reuters, 12.08.03, 12:00 AM ET

WASHINGTON(Reuters) -

Key points (see link for entire story)

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD drug
.... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats
give
dummy injections.

William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston
and
colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin, known
generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of
pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection.

When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" -- how
quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress.

"Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in
learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency
toward
depression," Carlezon said in a statement.

snip...

Carlezon said he did not believe the effects were specific to Ritalin,
made
by Swiss drug giant Novartis. It could instead be a general effect of
stimulant drugs, many of which act by increasing the activity of a key
message-carrying chemical called dopamine.

Higher dopamine levels could affect the way brain cells cement their
connections during development, Carlezon wrote in the Dec. 15 issue of the
journal Biological Psychiatry.

A team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
found that adult rats were less responsive to rewarding stimuli and
reacted
more to stress if they had been given methylphenidate as youngsters.

A third study done by a team at Finch University of Health Sciences/The
Chicago Medical School found changes in how dopamine neurons responded to
methylphenidate.

"These three studies remind us how limited our knowledge is of the
neurochemical and functional characteristics of the human brain during
childhood and adolescence and on the effects of psychotropic drugs on
brain
development," Dr. Thomas Insel, Director of the National Institute of
Mental
Health, wrote in a commentary."





--
"Monsters cannot be announced.
One cannot say: 'here are our monsters',
without immediately turning the monsters into pets."
--Jacques Derrida

On Tue, 09 Dec 2003 13:12:57 GMT, "Linda Gore" wrote:

http://www.forbes.com/business/newsw...tr1172286.html

Attention deficit drugs may have long-term effects
Reuters, 12.08.03, 12:00 AM ET

WASHINGTON(Reuters) -

Key points (see link for entire story)

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD drug
.... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats give
dummy injections.

William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston and
colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin, known
generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of
pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection.

When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" -- how
quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress.

"Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in
learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency toward
depression," Carlezon said in a statement.

Typically, there's some, uh...creative...editing at work here.

The article, as more widely published, carries the title, "Early Exposure to
Ritalin May Blunt Desire for Cocaine Later in Life."

Another little detail is the dosage administered to the rats in the study. We
know the methylphenidate was administered to the study animals by injection--but
what was the dosage? Just to put this into perspective, there was a study done
for the FDA a few years ago, regarding any possible carcinogenic properties of
methylphenidate (Ritalin). Some of the rats in the study developed a rare type
of non-fatal liver cancer. This, predictably, led to lurid claims from the
ignorant that "Ritalin Causes Cancer!!"

Apart from the FDA's statement--that the findings provided a "weak signal," and
that they considered methylphenidate to be a safe and effective treatment, there
was the matter of the dosages administered to the rats in the study.

It was as high as 4,000 ppm per day over the term of the study--that's 200 mg/kg
per day. Do the math: a 75 pound kid (34 kg) would be taking 6,800 mg per day,
instead of the typical rate of 15-60 mg per day.

But those kinds of facts just don't "sell" on Usenet, do they?

Joe Parsons


http://www.mclean.org/PublicAffairs/...lincocaine.htm

snip...

Carlezon said he did not believe the effects were specific to Ritalin, made
by Swiss drug giant Novartis. It could instead be a general effect of
stimulant drugs, many of which act by increasing the activity of a key
message-carrying chemical called dopamine.

Higher dopamine levels could affect the way brain cells cement their
connections during development, Carlezon wrote in the Dec. 15 issue of the
journal Biological Psychiatry.

A team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
found that adult rats were less responsive to rewarding stimuli and reacted

"Joe Parsons" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 09 Dec 2003 13:12:57 GMT, "L" wrote:

http://www.forbes.com/business/newsw...tr1172286.html

Attention deficit drugs may have long-term effects
Reuters, 12.08.03, 12:00 AM ET

WASHINGTON(Reuters) -

Key points (see link for entire story)

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD
drug
.... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats
give
dummy injections.

William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston
and
colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin, known
generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of
pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection.

When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" -- how
quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress.

"Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in
learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency
toward
depression," Carlezon said in a statement.

Typically, there's some, uh...creative...editing at work here.

The article, as more widely published, carries the title, "Early Exposure
to
Ritalin May Blunt Desire for Cocaine Later in Life."

Another little detail is the dosage administered to the rats in the study.
We
know the methylphenidate was administered to the study animals by
injection--but
what was the dosage?

ROFLMOA

Another one champing at the bit to tear the study to smithereens before it
is even published, eh?

Cant you at least await it's publication...before attempting to discredit
it?

The study by Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in
Boston will be published in 5 days...in the dec. 15 2003 issue of Journal of
Biological Psychitry.

"Joe Parsons" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 09 Dec 2003 13:12:57 GMT, "Linda Gore" wrote:

http://www.forbes.com/business/newsw...tr1172286.html

Attention deficit drugs may have long-term effects
Reuters, 12.08.03, 12:00 AM ET

WASHINGTON(Reuters) -

Key points (see link for entire story)

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD
drug
.... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats
give
dummy injections.

William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston
and
colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin, known
generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of
pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection.

When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" -- how
quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress.

"Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in
learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency
toward
depression," Carlezon said in a statement.

Typically, there's some, uh...creative...editing at work here.

The article, as more widely published, carries the title, "Early Exposure
to
Ritalin May Blunt Desire for Cocaine Later in Life."

Another little detail is the dosage administered to the rats in the study.
We
know the methylphenidate was administered to the study animals by
injection--but
what was the dosage?

Administering methylphenidate by injection is a lot different than taking
methylphenidate (MPH) orally. Orally, MPH is absorbed and begins to work
rather slowly (over an hour or so). When injected, it reaches the brain
almost immediately. So this is comparing apples to oranges. That makes me
wonder about all the conclusions of the study. Unfortunately, the computer
geeks at the journal have not updated the web pages with articles after Oct.
2003.

Thanks for pointing this out Joe. It is not a minor detail by any means.

Just to put this into perspective, there was a study done
for the FDA a few years ago, regarding any possible carcinogenic
properties of
methylphenidate (Ritalin). Some of the rats in the study developed a rare
type
of non-fatal liver cancer. This, predictably, led to lurid claims from the
ignorant that "Ritalin Causes Cancer!!"

Apart from the FDA's statement--that the findings provided a "weak
signal," and
that they considered methylphenidate to be a safe and effective treatment,
there
was the matter of the dosages administered to the rats in the study.

It was as high as 4,000 ppm per day over the term of the study--that's 200
mg/kg
per day. Do the math: a 75 pound kid (34 kg) would be taking 6,800 mg per
day,
instead of the typical rate of 15-60 mg per day.

Maybe they were trying to get a year's worth of Ritalin each day?

But those kinds of facts just don't "sell" on Usenet, do they?

Apparently they don't sell in the press either.

Thanks.

Jeff

Joe Parsons


http://www.mclean.org/PublicAffairs/...lincocaine.htm

snip...

Carlezon said he did not believe the effects were specific to Ritalin,
made
by Swiss drug giant Novartis. It could instead be a general effect of
stimulant drugs, many of which act by increasing the activity of a key
message-carrying chemical called dopamine.

Higher dopamine levels could affect the way brain cells cement their
connections during development, Carlezon wrote in the Dec. 15 issue of
the
journal Biological Psychiatry.

A team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
found that adult rats were less responsive to rewarding stimuli and
reacted

"L" wrote in message
s.com...
"Joe Parsons" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 09 Dec 2003 13:12:57 GMT, "L" wrote:

http://www.forbes.com/business/newsw...tr1172286.html

Attention deficit drugs may have long-term effects
Reuters, 12.08.03, 12:00 AM ET

WASHINGTON(Reuters) -

Key points (see link for entire story)

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD
drug
.... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats
give
dummy injections.

William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in
Boston
and
colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin, known
generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of
pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection.

When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" --
how
quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress.

"Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in
learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency
toward
depression," Carlezon said in a statement.

Typically, there's some, uh...creative...editing at work here.

The article, as more widely published, carries the title, "Early
Exposure
to
Ritalin May Blunt Desire for Cocaine Later in Life."

Another little detail is the dosage administered to the rats in the
study.
We
know the methylphenidate was administered to the study animals by
injection--but
what was the dosage?

ROFLMOA

Another one champing at the bit to tear the study to smithereens before it
is even published, eh?

Cant you at least await it's publication...before attempting to discredit
it?

The study by Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in
Boston will be published in 5 days...in the dec. 15 2003 issue of Journal
of
Biological Psychitry.

But obviously, the study has been released to the press, either by the folks
at the BMS (best medical school -- see the book House of God) or the journal
released the article early. It is quite common. For example, the articles in
the Journal of the American Medical Association are released a few days
early to the press, so that they can gather more information about the
articles so they can have, in theory, more accurate reports in the press. As
we see here, it does not always work out.

Jeff

"Joe Parsons" wrote in message
...

Typically, there's some, uh...creative...editing at work here.

The article, as more widely published, carries the title, "Early Exposure
to
Ritalin May Blunt Desire for Cocaine Later in Life."

Yes, but maybe he thinks that without cocaine life is not worth living.

--
CBI

"Jeff" wrote in message
...

"Joe Parsons" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 09 Dec 2003 13:12:57 GMT, "Linda Gore" wrote:

http://www.forbes.com/business/newsw...tr1172286.html

Attention deficit drugs may have long-term effects
Reuters, 12.08.03, 12:00 AM ET

WASHINGTON(Reuters) -

Key points (see link for entire story)

"Several studies published Monday show that rats given a popular ADHD
drug
.... often acted clinically depressed and behaved differently from rats
give
dummy injections.

William Carlezon of McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School in
Boston
and
colleagues raised two groups of rats. One was given Ritalin, known
generically as methylphenidate, during the rat equivalent of
pre-adolescence, while the other was given a salt water injection.

When they matured, the rats were tested for "learned helplessness" --
how
quickly they gave up on behavioral tasks under stress.

"Rats exposed to Ritalin as juveniles showed large increases in
learned-helplessness behavior during adulthood, suggesting a tendency
toward
depression," Carlezon said in a statement.

Typically, there's some, uh...creative...editing at work here.

The article, as more widely published, carries the title, "Early
Exposure
to
Ritalin May Blunt Desire for Cocaine Later in Life."

Another little detail is the dosage administered to the rats in the
study.
We
know the methylphenidate was administered to the study animals by
injection--but
what was the dosage?

Administering methylphenidate by injection is a lot different than taking
methylphenidate (MPH) orally. Orally, MPH is absorbed and begins to work
rather slowly (over an hour or so). When injected, it reaches the brain
almost immediately. So this is comparing apples to oranges. That makes me
wonder about all the conclusions of the study. Unfortunately, the computer
geeks at the journal have not updated the web pages with articles after
Oct.
2003.

Thanks for pointing this out Joe. It is not a minor detail by any means.

It is a point that has been made to the anti-meds numerous times. The
difference in effect as you describe has been documented by Volkow when she
was at SUNY StonyBrook and BNL. She now heads NIDA and is probably the
leading expert in the physiciology of the brain wrt to drug dependence and
use. I posted the link to the original press release where she is quoted.

Just to put this into perspective, there was a study done
for the FDA a few years ago, regarding any possible carcinogenic
properties of
methylphenidate (Ritalin). Some of the rats in the study developed a
rare
type
of non-fatal liver cancer. This, predictably, led to lurid claims from
the
ignorant that "Ritalin Causes Cancer!!"

Apart from the FDA's statement--that the findings provided a "weak
signal," and
that they considered methylphenidate to be a safe and effective
treatment,
there
was the matter of the dosages administered to the rats in the study.

It was as high as 4,000 ppm per day over the term of the study--that's
200
mg/kg
per day. Do the math: a 75 pound kid (34 kg) would be taking 6,800 mg
per
day,
instead of the typical rate of 15-60 mg per day.

Maybe they were trying to get a year's worth of Ritalin each day?

Joe negelected to point out that the study also showed that MPH seemed to
have a somewhat protective effect for certain types of breat tumors.

But those kinds of facts just don't "sell" on Usenet, do they?

Apparently they don't sell in the press either.

Thanks.

Jeff

Joe Parsons


http://www.mclean.org/PublicAffairs/...lincocaine.htm

snip...

Carlezon said he did not believe the effects were specific to Ritalin,
made
by Swiss drug giant Novartis. It could instead be a general effect of
stimulant drugs, many of which act by increasing the activity of a key
message-carrying chemical called dopamine.

Higher dopamine levels could affect the way brain cells cement their
connections during development, Carlezon wrote in the Dec. 15 issue of
the
journal Biological Psychiatry.

A team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
found that adult rats were less responsive to rewarding stimuli and
reacted