ADHD Medications Don't Lead To Drug Or Alcohol Abuse

ADHD Medications Don't Lead To Drug Or Alcohol Abuse30 May 2013-nbsp;-nbsp;-nbsp;

Children who are on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications are not at an increased risk of drug addiction or abuse later on, says a new study published in JAMA Psychiatry.

For a while now, researchers haven not been sure whether medications such as Ritalin or Adderall can increase the risk of children becoming addicted to substances such as alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, tobacco, etc.

Previously, researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) had found that treatment with stimulant drugs does not increase and significantly decreases the risk that girls with ADHD will begin smoking cigarettes or using alcohol or drugs.

However, by thoroughly analyzing 15 long-term studies which tracked drug abuse among a total of 2,565 children diagnosed with ADHD between 1980 and 2012, the authors were able to come to a more concrete conclusion as to its effects on drug/substance abuse.

The results were somewhat surprising. Two of the studies revealed that children on stimulant medication were at a lower the risk of alcohol abuse, while another said they were at a higher risk.

Study author Kathryn Humphreys, a doctoral student in psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles, said that previously "there was evidence for both increased risk and decreased risk for substance problems related to stimulant medication in the treatment of ADHD."

However, this new study indicates that, for the most part, children "who received stimulant medication treatment for ADHD are at no differential risk for these substance outcomes than their counterparts who did not receive medication treatment."

It is important for parents and pediatricians to be aware of all the benefits and risks of treating children with stimulant medication.

Kathryn added:

"Pediatricians and child psychiatrists also must weigh the potential costs and benefits of various treatment options. Our study provides an important update to clinicians.
Particularly for those who are concerned that stimulant medication is a 'gateway' drug or increases the risk for later substance use, there is no evidence at the group level for this hypothesis."

In fact, a previous study suggested that there is a protective effect from stimulants that helps lower the risk of children diagnosed with ADHD taking drugs.

Dr. Andrew Adesman, chief of developmental - behavioral pediatrics at the Steven - Alexandra Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York in New Hyde Park, said the finding "was accepted as gospel, and pediatricians had taken comfort in that there was a secondary benefit to treating patients with stimulant medications."

Analysis of data from two long-term studies of the impact of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) on the development of psychiatric disorders in young adults confirms that ADHD alone significantly increases the risk of cigarette smoking and substance abuse in both boys and girls, this finding was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child - Adolescent Psychiatry.

Dr. Adesman added that although children with ADHD are at a higher risk of drug dependency later in life, it is likely due to the nature of the condition itself and not because they took stimulant medications.

There is no evidence to say that ADHD medicines are 'gateway' drugs'.
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Dr. Rani Gereige, a professor of pediatrics and director of medical education at Miami Children's Hospital, agreed with the other researchers, adding that:

"This is a finding that will reassure families that there is no worry later on of the risk of drug abuse. This worry should not be an issue [for parents] in deciding whether or not to put their child on stimulant medication."

In conclusion, the authors said that ADHD medication doesn't increase the risk of substance abuse.

The researchers said the finding will "provide an important update and suggest that treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder with stimulant medication neither protects nor increases the risk of later substance use disorders."

A previous study, published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, similarly found that the use of stimulant drugs to treat children with ADHD has no effect on their future risk of substance abuse.


Written by Joseph Nordqvist
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