The Hyperactivity Hoax: How to Stop Drugging Your Child and Find Real Medical Help [Mass Market Paperback]

Dr. Sydney Walker M.D. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1999

Each year, millions of children take Ritalin, which means thousands of doctors are diagnosing them with hyperactivity or ADD. But what do these diagnoses mean? Are drugs the answer for these illnesses? And most importantly, is your child getting the proper treatment for his or her problem?

In The Hyperactivity Hoax, neuropsychiatrist Dr. Sydney Walker cogently explores the medical minefield of hyperactivity and helps parents arrive at safe, effective answers for their children, without unnecessarily drugging them with potentially dangerous mind-altering medicine. Included in his in-depth guide is:

* How to determine if your child needs medical help
* How to find a good doctor, a real diagnosis, and effective treatment
* How to assert yourself when talking to doctors and school officials
* How to evaluate both traditional and alternative approaches to treating hyperactivity and ADD
* And much more invaluable information in caring for your child's health.

A myth-shattering book no parent can afford to miss!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Walker, director of the Southern California Neuropsychiatric Institute, makes a dramatic case against the widespread use of the drug Ritalin to treat hyperactive children. Walker (A Dose of Sanity) points a finger at hurried doctors who treat symptoms without identifying underlying causes and blames managed health care (HMOs) for pressuring physicians into making hasty choices. Educators also get their share of Walker's criticism for attempting to push for the ADD (attention deficit disorder) or ADHD label (and the use of Ritalin) when kids are difficult in class (10 % of elementary school boys are on Ritalin, he notes). Rather than relying on easy labels, Walker urges parents to aggressively seek the root of their child's problem. To pinpoint the cause requires careful sleuthing and testing, which many physicians resist, Walker claims, choosing instead to "perpetrate the hoax" that hyperactivity is a disease instead of a symptom (of brain tumors, diabetes, allergies, to name a few). He exposes the possible side effects of Ritalin (potential addiction, psychotic reactions and cardiac arrhythmia), the more serious of which, according to the author, have been downplayed to benefit HMOs and pharmaceutical companies. This book is a disturbing but compelling must-read for any parent whose child shows signs of a hyperactivity disorder or is using Ritalin now.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

These three books explore the controversial phenomena of ADHD, which affects two million children in the United States, where about 80 percent of all Ritalin is consumed. Walker, a neurologist/psychiatrist, contends that parents are often intimidated into accepting Ritalin for their children before a complete diagnosis is made and more benign therapies tried. He posits many other causes of hyperactivity, evaluates nondrug therapies, and suggests ways parents can become advocates for their troubled children. Comparing Ritalin to cocaine, Walker classes it with other psychostimulants in terms of addiction and potentially lethal side effects. The broader field of child psychiatry is the domain of Wilens's book. A Harvard psychiatry professor, researcher, and clinician, he presents a valuable "insider's" guide to specific disorders (e.g., ADHD, depression, anxiety, autism). Filled with helpful tables and charts, definitions, commonly asked questions, and sources for further information and support, this book should empower parents to become collaborators in their children's care. Like Walker's compendium of responsible warnings, this user-friendly catalog of current drug information is recommended for public libraries. In contrast, DeGrandpre's (psychology, St. Michael's Coll., VT) scholarly work ventures beyond simple skepticism and quibbling about overdiagnosis to question psychiatry's identification of ADHD as a biologically based brain disease. He argues that societal adjustments and a change in human consciousness are the real antidotes for this development disorder. Viewing hyperactivity in a multidisciplinary context, Ritalin Nation is richly referenced and offers a critical perspective suited to academic and specialized collections. [See also "Paying Attention to Attention Deficit Disorders," LJ 1/99, p. 59-62.]?Antoinette Brinkman, Southwest Indiana Mental Health Ctr. Lib., Evansvill.
-?Antoinette Brinkman, Southwest Indiana Mental Health Ctr. Lib., Evansville
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks; 1st edition (October 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312970986
• ISBN-13: 978-0312970987
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,216,923 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #55 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Personal Health > Children's Health > Learning Disorders
  • #99 in Books > Parenting & Relationships > Special Needs > Hyperactivity

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I was his patient as a child., April 4, 2002

By 

John P. Hynds "Elisa Hynds" (Washougal, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Hyperactivity Hoax: How to Stop Drugging Your Child and Find Real Medical Help (Mass Market Paperback)

After years of unsuccessful psychiatric work, school problems, and Ritalin, my parents found Dr. Walker. I was eight, and my parents and teachers were at a point where I was probably no longer going to be able to attend school and there was a possibility of being institutionalized. The rages that I would fly into would take a room apart. The animals and three other siblings in my family were continually terrorized. Babysitters refused to stay with us.

It is hard to talk about this stuff now, as I am a thirty-something adult with a very healthy and happy life. I have a wonderful husband, a 17-month-old daughter, and a baby on the way. Dr. Walker diagnosed me as being allergic to gluten and as being a borderline diabetic who with strict diet management would hopefully never have to take insulin. My diet went into effect when I was eight, immediately after my parents brought me home from Dr.Walker's multi-day visit. It worked. I don't know how long the diet took to work because I was so young, but my parents said that the change was like night and day. A normal, healthy, child without Ritalin. In adulthood I still do not need insulin.

It is not always easy to find out what the problem is. In fact, my parents probably spent hundreds if not thousands of dollars, many hours, and many trips to different doctors. (We visited Dr.Walker who practiced in CA, while we lived in AZ.) Boy do I owe my parents! But there can be reasons for such behavior that take some serious digging. Ritalin, often, is just a cover-up and a heck of a lot easier to do. But for sake of the health of the child please consider alternatives.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Some valid points, but...., June 1, 2002

By 

Ms Diva "cycworker" (Nanaimo, B.C. Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Hyperactivity Hoax: How to Stop Drugging Your Child and Find Real Medical Help (Mass Market Paperback)

overall the book isn't one that adds up. Walker seems to vacilate between suggesting ADHD simply doesn't exist -- that it is always the symptom of an underlying problem -- and saying that there may be something to it if no underlying disorder can be found, but Ritalin isn't the answer. I found myself getting confused in spots about what he really believes.

His points about Ritalin are well made. He's absolutely correct in stating that it can be a risky drug for children to be on, that we haven't done enough appropriate longitudinal research, and that the side effects for some children can be problematic, at best. The key words, however, are some children. I know children who are on the drug who aren't having any problems with it. The whole issue of what is a cause and what is an effect is a confusing one, and this book doesn't make it any clearer.

In terms of the safety of Ritalin, the research and studies Dr. Walker mentions are based on such small sample sizes that they can't be taken as proof. His writing suggested to me that he was attempting to suggest causal relationships when he only had enough evidence to point out a correlation.

Now, Dr. Walker's points about HMOs and the lack of proper diagnosis of children are ones I can completely agree with. It's in this area that his evidence and argument is the strongest. He does a good job of explaining the different possible non ADHD causes of hyperactive behaviour. I did find this part of the book a bit long, however.

The latter parts of the book, dealing with advocating for your child with medical and educational professionals, is the most effective and useful part of the book. I would give the book two stars simply for the chapter where he gives readers observation sheets to fill out and give to the doctor as a basis for a proper medical examination. His advice on dealing with these professionals is sound and easy to implement -- he takes alot of the mystery and fear out of working with doctors and teachers. I would have like to see him encourage readers more to press for wider societal change, such as loosening the grip of HMOs and relieving some of the pressure on our schools -- changes that can only occur on a legislative/cultural level -- rather than simply pitting parents against doctors and teachers, however.

This book is worth looking at if you know nothing other causes of hyperactive behavior. It's got some useful information, but I wouldn't make it the only book I read on the subject.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Somethings to concider., July 12, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Hyperactivity Hoax: How to Stop Drugging Your Child and Find Real Medical Help (Mass Market Paperback)

Dr. Walker's book brought out many things every parent should consider before they consider medication. Lead poisoning, mercury fillings, and worms are just a few. He also listed were these things may be found in our enviroments. This was paticularly helpful since we, my wife and I, did not take all of our activities into account when evaluating toxic substances. This book was easy to read and very informative. Thank you Dr. Walker.