U.S. children on mind-altering drugs more than Dutch, German

William Atkins
Saturday, 27 September 2008 21:39

Science - Health

A comprehensive study found that American children are much more likely to be given antidepressents, stimulants, and other psychoactive drugs (to alter the brain or mood) than children in the Netherlands or Germany.


Psychoactive drugs (psychotropic substances) are chemical substances that act mainly on the central nervous system.

They alter brain function by changing a person’s perception, consciousness, behavior, or mood.

Painkillers, narcotics, sedatives, stimulants, and antidepressants are all types of psychoactive drugs.

The conclusion of the study was published in the journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health on September 25, 2008. Its title is “A three-country comparison of psychotropic medication prevalence in youth.”

Its authors are from the United States, Germany, and the Netherlands.

The authors studied health records, from the year 2000, of children from the United States, Germany, and the Netherlands.

In all, 594,621 children (110,944 from the Netherlands, 356,520 from Germany, and 127,157 from the United States) with health insurance were analyzed between the ages of birth and 19 years.

Specifically, they were divided into age groups of 0-4 years, 5-9 years, 10-14 years, and 15-19 years. They were also divided by gender, drug patterns, and other such related factors.

What did the study conclude specifically about medication in children of these three countries? Please read on.