Why French Kids Don't Have ADHD

CuteOldGuy's Avatar
Why do we medicate for everything? One would almost think that Big Pharma has too much control of our medical industry, aided and abetted by sympathetic government treatment, bought and paid for by lobbyists. A kid acts up in class? He must have ADHD. Here's a drug to control him.

How far do you think this will go? I hate to say it, but the French may have a better handle on how to handle children than the USA does.

From the article:

French child psychiatrists don't use the same system of classification of childhood emotional problems as American psychiatrists. They do not use the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or DSM.According to Sociologist Manuel Vallee, the French Federation of Psychiatry developed an alternative classification system as a resistance to the influence of the DSM-3. This alternative was the CFTMEA (Classification Française des Troubles Mentaux de L'Enfant et de L'Adolescent), first released in 1983, and updated in 1988 and 2000. The focus of CFTMEA is on identifying and addressing the underlying psychosocial causes of children's symptoms, not on finding the best pharmacological bandaids with which to mask symptoms.

To the extent that French clinicians are successful at finding and repairing what has gone awry in the child's social context, fewer children qualify for the ADHD diagnosis. Moreover, the definition of ADHD is not as broad as in the American system, which, in my view, tends to "pathologize" much of what is normal childhood behavior. The DSM specifically does not consider underlying causes. It thus leads clinicians to give the ADHD diagnosis to a much larger number of symptomatic children, while also encouraging them to treat those children with pharmaceuticals.


It's kind of a sad day when you learn the French have more on the ball than we do. I wonder why that is?

For the complete article, click here: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/...dont-have-adhd
Yssup Rider's Avatar
100% taxes... Of course!

Believe it or not Whiny, there are one or two other countries on Earth who have their shit together better than we do. Especially in health care.
CuteOldGuy's Avatar
Believe it or not Whiny, there are one or two other countries on Earth who have their shit together better than we do. Originally Posted by Yssup Rider
I'm glad you admitted that, Assup! You see, it wasn't always that way. America used to be the leader of the world in all those categories.

Then people like you came into power, and it all went down the shit hole.

But at least you are able to see it, now. That's encouraging!



Oh, and you might want to check with the mods. Something is acting up around here. Everytime I update my sig line, yours does the exact same thing! Who'd have thought? I'd hate for it to look like I was leading you around like a puppy. An ill-behaved puppy, with possible hydrophobia, but lead you around? As much as you want to be like me, Assup, you really need to work on your basic reasoning and comprehension skills before we can even begin that.
Yssup Rider's Avatar
People like me? Is that your point?

I thought you were pointing out that the French had figured out how to keep their kids from growing up to suck dicks in the Saliva bus station...

Please explain, and be vey specific how people like me ruined America for people like you.

I'm not sure what you're talking about regarding your sig, I say, sig line son. But I'm sure you'll get to the bottom of it soon.
jbravo_123's Avatar
I think part of it is that Americans really love simple solutions to things. If something requires greater focus and work, we're simply just not into it.

Our kid is acting up? Let's slap a label on it and pump him full of drugs.
Randy4Candy's Avatar
I think part of it is that Americans really love simple solutions to things. If something requires greater focus and work, we're simply just not into it.

Our kid is acting up? Let's slap a label on it and pump him full of drugs. Originally Posted by jbravo_123
No shit. Lots of them like to do that with ANY problem that required more than 15 seconds of focused thought - they're called Teawipes.
CJ7's Avatar
  • CJ7
  • 05-20-2013, 01:25 PM
easy to tell youre not French

Why French Kids Don't Have ADHD
Why do we medicate for everything? One would almost think that Big Pharma has too much control of our medical industry, aided and abetted by sympathetic government treatment, bought and paid for by lobbyists. A kid acts up in class? He must have ADHD. Here's a drug to control him.

How far do you think this will go? I hate to say it, but the French may have a better handle on how to handle children than the USA does.

From the article:

French child psychiatrists don't use the same system of classification of childhood emotional problems as American psychiatrists. They do not use the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or DSM.According to Sociologist Manuel Vallee, the French Federation of Psychiatry developed an alternative classification system as a resistance to the influence of the DSM-3. This alternative was the CFTMEA (Classification Française des Troubles Mentaux de L'Enfant et de L'Adolescent), first released in 1983, and updated in 1988 and 2000. The focus of CFTMEA is on identifying and addressing the underlying psychosocial causes of children's symptoms, not on finding the best pharmacological bandaids with which to mask symptoms.

To the extent that French clinicians are successful at finding and repairing what has gone awry in the child's social context, fewer children qualify for the ADHD diagnosis. Moreover, the definition of ADHD is not as broad as in the American system, which, in my view, tends to "pathologize" much of what is normal childhood behavior. The DSM specifically does not consider underlying causes. It thus leads clinicians to give the ADHD diagnosis to a much larger number of symptomatic children, while also encouraging them to treat those children with pharmaceuticals.

It's kind of a sad day when you learn the French have more on the ball than we do. I wonder why that is?

For the complete article, click here: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/...dont-have-adhd Originally Posted by CuteOldGuy


French start on wine at a early age. ...
Yssup Rider's Avatar
so did the Unaliar ... OH, you said WINE!

Never mind!
Old-T's Avatar
  • Old-T
  • 05-21-2013, 07:26 PM
Why do we medicate for everything? One would almost think that Big Pharma has too much control of our medical industry, aided and abetted by sympathetic government treatment, bought and paid for by lobbyists. A kid acts up in class? He must have ADHD. Here's a drug to control him.

How far do you think this will go? I hate to say it, but the French may have a better handle on how to handle children than the USA does. Originally Posted by CuteOldGuy
On this one you are dead on. And if one drug doesn't work, give them a handful. Whether they need them or not.