Side effects of ADHD medications can include sleep problems, decreased appetite, delayed growth, headaches and nausea, tics, moodiness, and rebound (irritability when the medication wears off). Most side effects of ADHD medication can be managed by adjusting the dosage and/or schedule of the medicine.
ADHD medications, such as Adderall and Ritalin, work by raising the level of dopamine in the brain to where it would be for someone without ADHD. Dopamine helps with attention and focus. The brains of children with ADHD have issues producing and using dopamine.
Side Effect: Emotional Problems
When the dosage is too high, stimulants can cause children or even adults to seem “spacey” or “zombie-like,” or to be uncharacteristically tearful or irritable (a condition known as emotional lability). In general, the best way to rein in these side effects is simply to lower the dosage.
Findings from a new study published by the Journal of Neural Transmission suggest that the use of Ritalin without a prescription can alter brain chemistry. These changes can affect risk-taking behavior, sleep disruption, and elicit other side effects.
Your child may need to take methylphenidate for several months or even years. They will not usually need to take it for the rest of their life. Your child will have regular check-ups, usually every 6 months or so. Your doctor may recommend stopping methylphenidate for a while, or reducing the dose.
Due to Ritalin's stimulant effects, when the abuse first begins and is being taken recreationally, the person may show personality changes like higher self-confidence, more talkative, and much more emotional. The changes are much more noticeable when the person was the complete opposite before taking the drug.
Increased anxiety can be a side effect of stimulant medication for ADHD, like Ritalin. So it could be making your child more anxious.
Orofacial dyskinesia and choreoathetosis are very rare neurological adverse effects of methylphenidate. Widespread use of methylphenidate may mean these adverse effects are seen more frequently. Neurological adverse effects may occur at recommended doses.
Mental health risks
Stimulant drugs, like methylphenidate and the methylphenidate-based drugs, can make you feel overconfident and disinhibited, induce feelings of anxiety, panic, confusion, paranoia, and even cause psychosis, which can lead you to put your own safety at risk.
Do not take methylphenidate if you are taking antidepressants called monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), or if you've stopped taking them in the last 14 days. Taking methylphenidate with these medicines can cause a sudden increase in your blood pressure. This could be dangerous.
For people without ADHD, who may be tempted to take Ritalin or Adderall as a study drug, this can end up making them feel jittery and anxious, causing them to focus too much on smaller, less-important details, while losing the bigger picture.
Clinicians, the AAP adds, may consider prescribing methylphenidate to a preschool-aged child with ADHD if symptoms do not improve under behavior therapy “and there is moderate-to-severe continued disturbance in the 4- through 5-year-old child's functioning.” For children 6 and older, the AAP recommends ADHD medication ...
Long-term studies have demonstrated that methylphenidate is safe and effective, so these medications are popular choices. Methylphenidate is used in a range of different long-acting medications.
A study done almost twenty years ago suggested that Ritalin might suppress growth hormone and inhibit growth. However, several major studies done since then show this not to be the case. Ritalin can reduce appetite and result in loss of body mass, but there is no concern that it will inhibit growth in children.
Studies following children with ADHD for long periods of time have found that these medications are safe to take long-term. If you're concerned that the stimulant medication will make your child eat less and not grow as much, that might be true during the first few years.
ADHD stimulant medication may impact growth slightly, but not in a way that negatively affects a child's overall health and happiness—or that's even noticeable. With additional monitoring between you and your child's doctor, the risk can be reduced.
For older children, the best treatment is often a combination of behavior therapy and medication. But for children under 6 years of age, experts recommend that ADHD be treated with behavior therapy first, before trying medication. Behavior therapy is the recommended treatment for ADHD in children under 6 years of age.
Clinicians, the AAP adds, may consider prescribing methylphenidate to a preschool-aged child with ADHD if symptoms do not improve under behavior therapy “and there is moderate-to-severe continued disturbance in the 4- through 5-year-old child's functioning.” For children 6 and older, the AAP recommends ADHD medication ...
For adolescents and adults, whose attention and performance requirements remain constant through most of their waking hours, two or three daily doses are the norm. From a strictly physical standpoint, it appears Ritalin can be taken safely every day.
Conclusions: Methylphenidate can enhance cognitive performance in ADHD patients thus evaluating their IQ scores, although the effect size seems to be relatively small. The result should not be indicated as an increase in intelligence.
Methylphenidate is usually prescribed to people who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Indeed, this drug can have positive effects on memory performance. However, if methylphenidate can help with other important areas of cognitive performance, for example attention and learning, isn't clear yet.