Generics - effects consistent? | ADHD Information

I've just started taking ritalin.  The first type I got was generic, 5mg pills.  They were okay, but gave me intense side effects (very sleepy, headachy, etc.).  Now I have Ritalin LA 10mg, the non-generic kind.  It works so much better with virtually no side effects.  I don't know if this is because it is the long acting kind, or because it isn't generic.  I used to take celexa and when it became available in generic, my doctor switched me to that.  It was really different and the side effects were worse.  I have no way of proving it, but i definately think that the generics are less effective than the brand names, at least in my experience.My meds sometimes help but, at other times, have minimal effect on my symptoms.  Brand-name are too expensive and my pharmacy only carries one company's generic form.  I've even wondered if I'm getting placebos - or if the active ingredients are reduced from the original formula.  Unless there are numerous complaints, this isn't monitored by the FDA.  I take them correctly and there's no plausible explanation for why my response varies.  Anyone else had this?i've read in a few add books that brand name drugs work better, they're usually more expensive or not covered by prescription plans (like mine!) but if they work better i think it's worth the dough.  you could always set up a flexible spending account and use that pre-tax money to pay for 'em.  i'm not sure why generics don't work as well, maybe the fda allows some "wiggle room" for how much of the actual drug they have to have in them, i don't think you're getting placebo-they can't sell drugs that don't have the drug in them, that's only what happens in research studies, but still interesting nonetheless.

I've noticed great variability in effect of generic adderall made by different manufacturers.  Plus, I notice a great difference between the effect of Adderall XR and these generic IR facsimiles.  The real Adderall works sooo much better!

Somewhere I read that differences in generics, in additon to what the pharmacists said as reported above, is that generic brands also have a much wider lattitue in allowable potentcy--the allowable range of active ingredient is something like 30% + or - the amount of active ingredient in the brand name.  Seein' how there's only about 12 mg. of amphetamine in 20 mg. Adderall, that means there could be as little as 8 mg. of amphetamine in the generic (if 30% is the allowable deviation range).  That could make quite a difference in performance!!

 

After discussing the same issue with my pharmacist regarding generic vs.
non-generic Adderall IR, I have found that they are different. She said that
people talk about the differences all the time. My pharmacist said that the
companies use different types of starch complexes to make the pills. These
different starches are absorbed into the body in very different ways and they
interact with the drugs very differently. I am trying to find a different
medication because the brand name Adderall costs 6 with my insurance
for a month's supply vs. for the generic. The generic form does not do
anything for me except give me bad side effects such as worsened OCD and
actually seems to make my ADHD worse. My pharmacist said that many
people can not even take the generic forms because of these same reasons.