08 November 2008

More children being prescribed drugs for obesity-related health problems

Supports pretty much the whole of Trick and Treat!

A new study of chronic medication use in children aged 5 to 19 revealed that the number of prescriptions issued for type 2 diabetes medications more than doubled between 2002 and 2005. In the same period the number of prescriptions for type 2 diabetes medications issued to girls aged 10 to 14 rose by 166%. The use of cholesterol-lowering and anti-hypertensive medications rose by 15% and 1.8%, respectively.

Co-author of the study, Donna R. Halloran, an assistant professor at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, said that the increasing use of chronic medication is mainly due to the increasing prevalence of childhood obesity. She added that the study findings also showed that more children are being diagnosed with chronic conditions, and doctors are increasingly using medication to treat these conditions.

Comment
But these drugs only mitigate and mask the symptoms of these conditions; they do absolutely nothing to stop the causes. As\Trick and Treat shows very clearly, our ‘healthy’ diet is a major contributor to these conditions. That is why they are in creasing at such an alarming rate.

Cox ER, Halloran DR, Homan SM, Welliver S, Mager DE. Trends in the prevalence of chronic medication use in children: 2002-2005. Pediatrics. 2008;122(5):e1053.

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