ADHD TIME LINE

• ADHD was first recognized as a disorder in 1902. A British doctor, Dr. Still, documented cases of impulsive behavior. He gave the disorder its first name, “Defect of Moral Control.” Despite this name, he believed that the disorder was a medical problem, not a spiritual defect.
• It was not until 1922 that ADHD symptoms were described and diagnosed as “Post-Encephalitic Behavior Disorder.”
• In 1937 stimulants were first used to treat children who exhibited signs of ADHD. This was introduced by one Dr. Charles Bradley.
• In 1956, Ritalin came on the market. It was used to treat children considered to be “hyperactive.”
• Throughout the 1960s, stimulants were increasingly used to treat hyperactive children. In the early part of the decade, the term “Minimal Brain Dysfunction” was used to describe the disorder, but this was changed to “Hyperkinetic Disorder of Childhood” in the later part of the decade.
• In the 1970s, more symptoms were recognized to go along with hyperactivity. These included impulsiveness, lack of focus, daydreaming, and other lack of focus type symptoms. “Impulsiveness” as a category was divided into three subtypes: verbal, cognitive, and motor impulsiveness.
• In 1980 the name “Attention Deficit Disorder” was invented by the American Psychiatric Association.
• In 1987, the name was revised to “Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder”.
• In 1996, Adderall was approved to treat ADHD.
• In 1998, the American Medical Association stated that ADHD was one of the most researched disorders, despite the fact that its cause is unknown.

ADHD Today

Research is still ongoing into ADHD. However, additional questions remain.

• No one knows what causes ADHD, and there is no cure.
• The long-term effects of stimulants on young children have not been fully studied, and many deaths associated with ADHD medications have not been satisfactorily explained.
• At least 10% of children with ADHD show no signs of improvement when given stimulants.
• Pharmaceutical companies are quick to dismiss alternative treatments, despite the fact that many of these treatments seem to work and there is no hard scientific evidence disproving them.

Alternative Treatments

Aside from dangerous stimulants, there are many treatments for ADHD. Stimulants have been known to cause serious problems in children, ranging from anxiety, insomnia, and tics to suicide, depression, heart problems, and in many cases, death. Before resorting to dangerous medications, research all the options.

Examples of alternative treatments are:

• Diet changes. Elimination of sugar from the diet, along with supplementation of high quality proteins have, in many cases, helped both adult and children ADHD sufferers.
• Behavioral therapy can also greatly improve behavior and eliminate some behavior problems.
• Counseling is also important. Many children are “acting out” due to some emotional disturbance in their life, and counseling can identify these disturbances.
• Family therapy can analyze the family dynamics at work. Some children are helped by improved relationships between them, their parents, and their siblings.
• Biofeedback is a promising new therapy for ADHD.

Sources

http://add.about.com/cs/addthebasics/a/history.htm