An “alarming” number of pre-school children are being prescribed drugs to treat hyperactivity – contrary to medical guidelines that say they should not be used on children under six – because overstretched health workers go straight to medication rather than offering psychological interventions.
More than a fifth of educational psychologists say they know of preschool children who are being given medication such as Ritalin even though the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) recommends psychological interventions should be tried first.
Ritalin, which is the most commonly used trade name for methylphenidate, is a central nervous system stimulant which is used to treat attention deficit disorder (ADD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
“Multiple systemic factors” were creating a “pressure for increasing rates of diagnosis and medication”.
The Nice guidelines, which were amended in 2013, state: “Parent-training/education programmes are the first-line treatment for parents or carers of pre-school children … Drug treatment is not recommended for pre-school children with ADHD.”
