Children and Brain Imbalances

Have you ever heard of "conduct disorder"? Well, in case you haven't, you might like to know that it's one of more than 120 disorders listed at depression-guide.com.

If you are anxious, shy, or not focused, these are also disorders. Just about every emotion is today considered by the pharmaceutical industry as some kind of disorder that needs to be treated with medication.

The consequence is that many of our children are on drugs that may have serious negative effects. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that in the United States, prescription drug use continues to increase, so that by 2008, one out of every five children was on a drug.

The growing use of medication is upwardly mushrooming. In December 2010, the Wall Street Journal reported that one in four children aged between birth and nine, and 30% of teenagers between the ages of 10 and 19, are now taking medications for some kind of chronic condition, with close to 7% on more than one medication.

The drugs used by children between birth and age 19 span the range of antibiotics, drugs for asthma and allergies, antidepressants, and stimulants for attention deficit disorder. Central nervous system stimulants for adolescents between the ages of 12 and 19 are now among the most commonly prescribed of all drugs.

Between birth and the age of nine, over seven million children are on ADHD drugs, with more than a million on antidepressants, a million and a third on antipsychotics, and almost two million on high blood pressure medication.

The numbers rise dramatically in the teens, with more than 17 million on ADHD drugs, almost nine million on antidepressants, over five million on antipsychotics, and close to three and a half million on blood pressure medication.

These are children we are talking about.

One of the problems with the early prescription of so many drugs is that taking pharmaceuticals easily becomes a lifelong habit. By 2008, 48% of Americans were taking at least one prescription drug. The U.S. spent over $234 billion on prescription drugs that year, double what was spent a decade earlier in 1999. Over the previous decade, use of multiple prescription drugs increased by 20%, while the use of five or more drugs increased by 70%. By the age of 60, nine out of ten people are on medications.

In my book Limitless You—The Infinite Possibilities of a Balanced Brain, I show how, whether we are talking about our mental or physical wellbeing, pharmaceuticals can compound a problem, because the problem may well originate from an imbalance in the brain—and pharmaceuticals can increase this imbalance. This is why the current advice is that certain antidepressants, for example, shouldn't be given to teens, since the medication can push them over the edge into suicide.

Another problem with pharmaceuticals is that they rarely target the specific issue. For example, as I show in Limitless You, "depressio
" is a broad category, and no antidepressant can address all the specific causes. I explain, "When an antidepressant affects all areas of the brain in the same way, it can reduce the effectiveness of those areas that don't need dealing with in this way." Thus even more pharmaceuticals become necessary as the imbalance increases.

The wonderful thing about Brainwave Optimization is that it's far more specific. The brain knows precisely what's out of balance. When shown a mirror of its naturally state, it's able to correct its own imbalances. The system works because of the infinite plasticity of the brain, which allows it to create new pathways and dismantle old pathways.

In children, far less pathways have become established at their young age, which means that Brainwave Optimization is likely to be tremendously effective. Correcting imbalances early in life sets a child up to develop a neural network optimized for health and wellbeing, which is a powerful steppingstone to their future success.