What do you think?
Rate this book
ADHD Nation: The disorder. The drugs. The inside story.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) will soon be the most frequently diagnosed chronic condition among children, surpassing asthma. Yet research shows that ADHD can't be that prevalent. ADHD, a problem once thought to affect a small percentage of children, has exploded into one of the most misdiagnosed psychiatric conditions. Now doctors and Big Pharma are targeting children and adults worldwide to get the diagnosis and take medications that will, they say, transform their lives. In ADHD Nation , acclaimed New York Times journalist Alan Schwarz takes readers behind the scenes to tell the full story of this billion-dollar industry. There's the father of ADHD, Dr Keith Conners, who spent fifty years promoting the disorder in the US and pills like Ritalin before realising just what he had wrought; a troubled young girl and studious, teenage boy who get entangled in the ADHD machine and are prescribed medications that lead to serious problems; and the pharmaceutical industry that promoted the disorder and continues to earn billions from the rampant mishandling of ADHD. An investigation of how Big Pharma and medical professionals are complicit in the creation, maintenance and continuing expansion of the ADHD industry, this book sounds the alarm for UK readers and demands we wake up to the problem that we too could face in the future.
352 pages, Paperback
Published September 6, 2016
13 people are currently reading
138 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 14, 2018
On the one hand, it's nice that this book didn't manufacture a happy ending and did shed a light on a serious issue and the questionable marketing of drugs companies. On the other hand, I just didn't find this so interesting that I'm glad I read a book on it rather than just a feature-length article.
It's also clear that this is mostly an issue for the USA, as the author notes diagnoses are much lower in other countries, and I am very glad I don't live in a country with only private healthcare. Whether I'd have found it more interesting if it was more relevant is up for debate, but a lot of it was quite repetitive for the layperson, with doctors keen to prescribe Ritalin and other drugs at many points. Schwarz made it clear that ADHD was an issue, just not at the prescribed level, which was a balanced distinction, and his chief witness echoed this, meaning it was not anti-ADHD. However, nothing really happened from start to finish of the book, ADHD was still over diagnosed at the end and Big Pharma still has free reign to persuade people to take their drugs. Dispiriting, but I had that feeling 50 pages in.
It's also clear that this is mostly an issue for the USA, as the author notes diagnoses are much lower in other countries, and I am very glad I don't live in a country with only private healthcare. Whether I'd have found it more interesting if it was more relevant is up for debate, but a lot of it was quite repetitive for the layperson, with doctors keen to prescribe Ritalin and other drugs at many points. Schwarz made it clear that ADHD was an issue, just not at the prescribed level, which was a balanced distinction, and his chief witness echoed this, meaning it was not anti-ADHD. However, nothing really happened from start to finish of the book, ADHD was still over diagnosed at the end and Big Pharma still has free reign to persuade people to take their drugs. Dispiriting, but I had that feeling 50 pages in.
April 12, 2019
It's not really about the disorder but the politics of Big Pharma. I read this hoping it would be the other way around. Still a good, thought provoking read, but not really specific to the symptoms of the disorder itself.
April 8, 2020
I picked this book up from the store because it’s a topic that has weighed on my mind since I was a teenager. This book is extremely concise nonfiction that helped someone like myself, who has difficulty finishing books, read in just about four days. The timeline was extremely interesting and kept your attention through other smaller stories throughout the book to keep up with.
A little insight: I had behavioral problems as a child that drove my parents and teachers wild, but I always did very well in school, however hyperactive. It wasn’t until 6th grade a teacher told my parents to consider medication for me that my parents for the first tome took my side and were upset with the teacher instead of me. I held onto that, that I didn’t have a disorder. Fast forward, my psychiatrist, whom spent all but 45 minutes with me talk to her about my substance abuse and anxiety and depression, suggest that I get tested for ADHD at 26 years old. I told her I had abused these in the past to study and they made me anxious, but she said with a regimen it would be safe. It all didn’t sit well with me and I asked for perhaps something to instead help me with my depressive state. It also left me wondering, do I have a brain disorder? This book helped me educate myself more on a topic that has directly affected me, while also helping me relieve myself of the thought that the diagnoses was simply a farce. It brought to mind the epidemic we have with opiates, in a way. While there are people who should never be left to suffer in real and debilitating pain, there is much more to uncover with the whole story of misuse at the hands of the professionals that are responsible in keeping us safe.
Thanks for your work, Alan.
A little insight: I had behavioral problems as a child that drove my parents and teachers wild, but I always did very well in school, however hyperactive. It wasn’t until 6th grade a teacher told my parents to consider medication for me that my parents for the first tome took my side and were upset with the teacher instead of me. I held onto that, that I didn’t have a disorder. Fast forward, my psychiatrist, whom spent all but 45 minutes with me talk to her about my substance abuse and anxiety and depression, suggest that I get tested for ADHD at 26 years old. I told her I had abused these in the past to study and they made me anxious, but she said with a regimen it would be safe. It all didn’t sit well with me and I asked for perhaps something to instead help me with my depressive state. It also left me wondering, do I have a brain disorder? This book helped me educate myself more on a topic that has directly affected me, while also helping me relieve myself of the thought that the diagnoses was simply a farce. It brought to mind the epidemic we have with opiates, in a way. While there are people who should never be left to suffer in real and debilitating pain, there is much more to uncover with the whole story of misuse at the hands of the professionals that are responsible in keeping us safe.
Thanks for your work, Alan.
June 3, 2024
4 weeks in psychiatry this semester gave me a little chance to come closer to a disorder that I have been curious about for quite some time.
I remember when I was 15-16, having precisely watched the Netflix movie "take your pills" that portrayed ambitious students cramming hours (while popping Adderal), and thinking, I ought to get my hands on some of those. Luckily, that did not happen !
I also remember in our 5th semester of school, reading the list of criteria for ADHD diagnosis and thinking, this could be me, or my brothers or frankly just about any kid: "fails to pay close attention to detail, fidgets with hands or feet, unable to play quietly" or one that I particularly resonate with "is often "on-the-go"".
To make complex psychiatric diagnosis is a fine skill, one that I have barely gotten closer to in almost five years of medical school.
15% of children in the US have been diagnosed with ADHD, and that number only seems to be growing. While there is a significant amount of distress for kids and their parents, slapping ADHD on just about anything is not a particularly great solution.
On Tik-Tok and other social media, videos of "5 signs that you have ADHD" have exploded, leading to an ever increasing wave of "self-diagnosis".
One should not forget the powers of Pharmaceutical companies in marketing products, and we ought to be both considerate and well-informed.
So read this book, if you would like to get a slightly clearer picture on ADHD and its implications for millions of kids and adults across the world :-)
I remember when I was 15-16, having precisely watched the Netflix movie "take your pills" that portrayed ambitious students cramming hours (while popping Adderal), and thinking, I ought to get my hands on some of those. Luckily, that did not happen !
I also remember in our 5th semester of school, reading the list of criteria for ADHD diagnosis and thinking, this could be me, or my brothers or frankly just about any kid: "fails to pay close attention to detail, fidgets with hands or feet, unable to play quietly" or one that I particularly resonate with "is often "on-the-go"".
To make complex psychiatric diagnosis is a fine skill, one that I have barely gotten closer to in almost five years of medical school.
15% of children in the US have been diagnosed with ADHD, and that number only seems to be growing. While there is a significant amount of distress for kids and their parents, slapping ADHD on just about anything is not a particularly great solution.
On Tik-Tok and other social media, videos of "5 signs that you have ADHD" have exploded, leading to an ever increasing wave of "self-diagnosis".
One should not forget the powers of Pharmaceutical companies in marketing products, and we ought to be both considerate and well-informed.
So read this book, if you would like to get a slightly clearer picture on ADHD and its implications for millions of kids and adults across the world :-)
April 17, 2023
Damn, this was a super interesting read. All I've ever heard about ADHD was that it was underdiagnosed (especially in women), but I didn't know it was so heavily overdiagnosed . It's absolutely insane how many kids are put on Ritalin or Adderall just because they're lively (like children usually are). When they started putting TODDLERS on Ritalin I frickin lost it. That's insane.
March 30, 2024
Great writing style. Smooth and informative. Has a good amount of humorous digs at the right subjects. A good book to read for those wanting to know about the wider picture of ADHD, not necessarily what it's like to have ADHD.
Read
July 21, 2022Very interesting look at big pharmaceutical and over prescribing ADHD medication...
December 1, 2016
Schwarz's book was an interesting read! It offered a moment to stop and reflect about the growing number of children who are diagnosed with ADHD and medicated. It's a must-read for any parent wondering about medication for their child.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews