My son, age 9 (3'11" and 50 lbs.), who has been on meds for about 18 months now only grew 1 1/2 inches and gained 2 lbs. this past year (Jan. to Jan.). But, his growth pattern has been like this his whole life. I have heard of some parents who put their children on drug holidays when they are out of school for the summer to allow for growth. I don't know if that would work in your situation. Some people see a difference almost immediately. I wonder if it's not just a coincidence and they would have had a growth spurt anyway.
I have heard the agrument both ways regarding ADHD meds causing/not causing slowed growth. Since my son has always been on the small side I am not to concerned.
Feel a little desperate, so I am going to post again. Daughter has been on Ritilan LA for about a year and 3 months. We have had great success with Ritilan as far as school and behavior goes. She was failing the 3rd grade and by the end of the school year she was two points away from AB honor roll. Now in the 4th grade, and has been AB since school started. On the days we forget to give meds, get notes back from teacher like " Couldn't sit still today" or "not focusing today, something going on at home?" etc. Here's our problem. She has only gained 2 pounds, and grown 1inch since starting Ritilan. Dr now wanting us to do some testing as she is considered a "failure to thrive". She is eating, sleeping etc. Asked yesterday if we could try Strattera...got a trial which I am to start today. Just looking for some thoughts...has anyone else seen growth stunting on meds? Is switching meds even the answer? At this point I would like to just stop all the meds and see if she grows...but school still has two and a half months to go, and her education is so important.
Thanks for any thoughts, Hope5
You may want to browse the entire site, but here is an interesting article :
http://www.fightforkids.com/psychiatric_drugs_and_the_body.h tml
You also may be VERY interested in reading a number of the reports posted on the AHRP (Alliance for Human Research Protection) web site
Namely its findings on Ritalin Chromosome Abnormalities
Doran38441.3425925926My 12 year old has been on Adderallxr since third grade. Long story short, after being unable to increase dose(saw snakes) she stayed on 10mg for a while but while school noticed a difference in her span,she is still very forgetful, unorganized etc. couldn't lower dose cause it was ineffective so...This leads us to the recent headaches(always felt sick on med anyway). I stopped the med this past Dec to place her in a sensory intregration program for thirty days she is at halfway point. I almost immed. got complaints from teachers about her declining grades and lack of focus. The main reason I stopped the med is her growth. She looks like a nine year old. Her Dr. finally agreed she probably should have grown a little more and we are due to go back in April for testing. I cannot find much on growth stunting from these meds but I feel strongly I should find an alternative treatment especially as her body is trying to reach puberty. Her appetite stinks! Dinner is still a fight but better.I am really concerned about these stimulants at least where my child is concerned. I realize they work for some. I just started asking myself am I doing the best if it makes her sick, unstable emotionally and she begs me not to make her take it. I am currently seeking another form of treatment and hope I never see another prescription with her name on it again.(I pray alot too !)my son is 5 1/2 ,he is on ritalin twice daily,he weighs 36 lbs,if i don't buy slim clothes for him,they fall off(pants),but he was this way his whole life. even as a baby he did'nt finish a bottle.the drs had always said the failure to thrive thing,as if it was my fault but other than hold his mouth open and make him eat,i tried everything, shakes,fatty high calorie foods but nothing would make him gain weight.i read somewhere recently that people who fidget alot lose weight so i think that explains alot for the adhd child, what we can get in gets burned up so fast it does'nt have time to turn into weight. i hope my son as a teenager will slow down and hopefully not need meds so he will atleast have some height.From the age of 12, after my growth spurt started, I've been pretty slender onward. I've always been able to eat anything, and not gain anything; I guess that's where my fast metabolism kicked in. I am now 17 years old, and I started taking Adderall 4 months ago. I was warned about the loss of appetite, and as a result, when it was time for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I forced myself to eat, even though I wasn't hungry. I agree with skipshark on doing something after school, as I have been weightlifting the last 5 months, which just seems to bring on the munchies for me. I will admit that I do struggle to keep a constant weight. During the week when I take my medicine, I roughly drop 3-5pounds, and on the weekends/holidays when im not medicated, I try to catch up on the lost weight. My brother, age 15, refuses to take his medicine some days. He wants to be able to talk, and be the class clown, and unfortunately he can't when he takes it. I on the other hand, really like what the medicine does for me. I can learn so much better, and i'm a lot more comfortable in social situations. I have noticed when I don't take the medicine, I am a lot more hyperactive than I used to be before I started the medicine.
My 11 year old who is on concerta, has just finally gotten out of his 8 slims, he now wears 8 regulars, i made a big deal out of this for him, he also has a few pair of 10's that he can wear without a belt. He is going between 61, and 62 lbs., he needs to be 65 by Aug. 8 for football so hopefully his shakes will help him gain weight.Yes, I've experienced the stunted growth. I'm 5'7", and 20 years old. I'm not sure if my growth spurt was cut short or if it was merely paused, but for a long time in middle school I was about 4'2 and 60lbs. It's because I did not eat at school. My parents took me off of ritalin and put me on adderall somewhere in between my 8th and 9th grade years and by the time I started my freshman year of high school, I was 90lbs and 5'0. The same time the next year I took weightlifting - I have found that weightlifting and sports like wrestling or football in the afternoon help a person overcome the appetite loss- I was around 118. Now, 5 years later, I'm 145 and 5'7, so adderall, while still decreasing my appetite, helped a little, in my case. It may be different for your child. The key, however, is to make sure that the child eats and exercises. Otherwise they won't grow.