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Antipsychotics Have Dramatic Consequences in Kids, Study Shows
Filed under: In The News, Alcohol & Drugs, Health
Children can experience dramatic weight gain and insulin resistance just weeks after taking the drugs for the first time. Credit: Getty Images
Doling out antipsychotic to kids for the first time can be a case of the cure being worse than the disease.
Researchers found children can experience dramatic weight gain and insulin resistance just weeks after taking the drugs for the first time, Medscape.com reports.
Lead researcher, John W. Newcomer, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Miami, tells Medscape that prescribing antipsychotics has become trendy in the past 15 years or so -- even though there is no sudden epidemic of schizophrenia in children.
"The increase was due to the rising use of antipsychotics for disruptive behavior disorders," he says.
In other words, your kid acting a little hyper? Bomb him with meds.
Newcomer led the study while he was at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo. Researchers studied 125 kids who were prescribed Aripiprazole, Risperidone or Olanzapine for behavior problem. Newcomer admitted kids were less aggressive and irritable on the drugs.
"They got a lot better," Newcomer tells Medscape. "I was actually stunned at how much better they got. It gave me some margin of sympathy that I didn't have before for why the child psychiatrists and the pediatricians are using so much of these drugs."
But at what cost?
Kids who participated in the study showed significant weight gain and their bodies became less receptive to insulin. Their body fat shot up an average of 8.98 percent while their sensitivity to insulin decreased by an average of 3 percent.
"There was quite a bit of variability among the treatments in terms of increased fat, but just about everybody sloped upwards," Newcomer tells Medscape.
Kids on Olanzapine plumped out the most, he adds. The weight gain with Risperidone and Aripiprazole was much less.
The moral of the story for parents?
"If you have to use antipsychotics, with the emphasis on the 'have to,' then you want to pick the agents with the lower risk for metabolic outcomes," Newcomer recommends.
To view the original article on Medscape, click here to login.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 2)
6-22-2011 @ 3:04AM
Danny Haszard said...Eli Lilly Zyprexa can cause diabetes I took Zyprexa a powerful Lilly schizophrenic drug for 4 years it was prescribed to me off-label for post traumatic stress disorder was ineffective costly and gave me diabetes.
This is a powerful drug that can damage a young person physiologically for life. Please take with caution and learn as much as you can about side effects. Eli Lilly's #1 cash cow Zyprexa drug sale $40 billion dollars so far,has a ten times greater risk of causing type 2 diabetes over the non-user of Zyprexa. So,here we have a conflict of interest that this same company also is a big profiteer of diabetes treatment.
FIVE at FIVE
The Zyprexa antipsychotic drug,whose side effects can include weight gain and diabetes, was sold for "children in foster care, people who have trouble sleeping, elderly in nursing homes."
Five at Five was the Zyprexa sales rep slogan, meaning 5mg dispensed at 5pm would keep patients quiet.
Google * Eli Lilly Zyprexa * and read the links. I took Zyprexa it gave me diabetes and was as addictive as tobacco.How so? Because withdrawal is accompanied by severe insomnia for 6 weeks.
-- Daniel Haszard Zyprexa Whistle-blower
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6-22-2011 @ 6:51AM
Char said...I had been on Risperidone since I was 15, since I have Asperger's and was displaying self destructive urges, and couldn't sleep. I had some strange symptoms besides weight gain, but thought nothing of it. At 22, I noticed my period was becoming even more abnormal (missing or delayed), and my psychiatrist immediately ordered a blood test. Sure enough, I had Prolactinemia, with double the normal prolactin level in my blood. I was taken off the medicine, and had two months of withdrawal. That said, use caution and monitor your children/young adults! Take their complaints seriously.
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6-22-2011 @ 7:03AM
Heather said...Are you kidding me, ParentDish.com?! How irresponsible of you: Care with the crazy pills. This is terribly offensive. I do not take anti-psychotics but even I find this a disgusting statement from a seemingly professional forum. This needs to be removed and the author disciplined.
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6-22-2011 @ 9:38AM
Teresa said...Thanks for saying exactly what I was thinking. I don't doubt these drugs are sometimes misused but to say 'crazy pills' is insulting to anyone who truly needs them.
6-22-2011 @ 12:51PM
cara carnevale said...CONCUR!!!!! Absolutely irresponsible, insensitive, and self indulgent of the writer to include this snarky little bit in there just for his own amusement. Usually I don't get fired up about things, but this just struck a nerve with me.
6-22-2011 @ 5:05PM
isisreptiles said...I have never taken antipsychotic drugs but to refer to them as "crazy pills" is very disrespectful to those with mental health issues who do take these drugs. Mental illness isn't something to make jokes about.
6-22-2011 @ 8:14AM
Rebecca said...I wish the author would understand what it's like having a child with a psychiatric disorder. It is draining, difficult, sad, stressful, and the same for the child with the disorder. My son, from infancy, had severe behavior problems, was very aggressive (mood would switch on a dime), and could not function in a daycare or school setting. His outbursts were extremely intense. I followed the best parenting advice from experts, but received frequent criticism from other parents and school staff who assumed I wasn't doing enough. One mom actually threatened to kick my a**. All my son wanted is to be like the other kids, to feel "normal." He couldn't control it. It was heartbreaking. He has been on Risperdal for about 4 years now, and it has literally saved him. He is doing very well now, and is so much happier in the world and in himself. Shame on the author for further stigmatizing families dealing with mental health issues by writing things like "crazy pills" and "In other words, your kid acting a little hyper? Bomb him with meds." A "little hyper" would not warrant these drugs. Have some compassion and educate yourself on the issue.
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6-22-2011 @ 8:46AM
Yroarrah900 said...Agree with you Rebecca-my son has had severe OCD and they have constantly monitored him for shizophrenia since he was 12. Paxil is the only drug that helps him. This year they wanted to add an antipsychotic (he is 30) but I fought the doctor about it. Unfortunately, they had stopped his Paxil; I finally got him back off all the meds the doc had him on and back on Paxil, he is himself again. He's back at work. People do not understand that when you have an adolescent male who flips out on you, maybe gets physical, it can be frightening. His first doctor went way out on a limb to prescribe the Paxil for him; it was not approved for kids his age, but it was the only thing that worked! Good luck, and go with your instincts- you know your child better than anyone!
6-22-2011 @ 1:05PM
Roz said...Amen, Rebecca!
6-22-2011 @ 1:28PM
Kaytee said...Had the same type of problems with #1 son-- except, it was probably his primary med (Dexedrine) was causing psychosis. Risperdal caused an almost immediate weight gain-- over 20 pounds in 2 months on a then small middle schooler, so he was "weaned off", and started on something else (Welbutrin?... I forget, he went through several) which was not as effective as a "patch" for the psychosis. In his last year of high school, he went through a 10 month withdrawal/rehab program for all his meds. He stopped the stimulant (then Aderall) immediately, then was more slowly withdrawn form the other 3 meds he was taking, while being supported with 24h "therapy". He lost about 30 #s in his last 2 months in the program (with no meds), and another 20 #s after he was back home and exercising again.
6-22-2011 @ 9:20AM
Nancy said...Crazy pills? How freaking insensitive are you to the many families who have no choice but to medicate their children.
You're a skank.
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6-22-2011 @ 9:36AM
Lindsey said...I really wish this was known when I was in high-school, it would have saved a lot of frustratation -- medication is a slippery slope with kids. I started off on a low dose of Paxil for depression and anxiety when I was 15 -- a year later, it snowballed into so many different med's that I was MORE suicidal, MORE depressed, and MORE aggressive...before these meds, I was shy, laid-back, in the honors program, and into sports. They had me on Zyprexa, Risperdal, Klonpin, Paxil, Neurontin, and Seroquel all at the same time -- I ended up gaining 50lbs in a little over a month (50lbs!!!!!!!!). I was taken out of my high-school and placed in a day treatment for kids with behavioral problems -- I almost had to go into residential treatment. I developed a severe case of pneumonia that left me hospitalized for a month, I needed 2 lung surgeries to repair a collapsed lung, and nearly died. The symptoms of the pneumonia were missed because my frequent vomiting and general malease went unnoticed for several months with the doctors chalking it up to medication side effects. Once I was finally off the meds, I have never had an issue since -- and I will NEVER, EVER go back on anything EVER again. Now that I'm 28 and put myself through college and law school, I can look back and say those medications were never needed in the first place.
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6-22-2011 @ 9:54AM
Dr and Mrs said...I am deeply offended by this article. As a physician, a psychiatrist and a mother, discussing medical interventions as "crazy pills" is cruel, harmful and insensitive. If this article were surrounding breast cancer, would the opening line be "no boobs for you?" If it was to discuss cardiovascular disease would it say "some hearts deserve to be broken?"
I believe that this article be removed and re-written without the harsh unnecessary snide comments. Information should be shared, but this article is far from an example of it being done in a responsible manner.
I do not understand the cavalier attitude that is taken with mental illness; however I do expect that parentdish and aol not serve as the venue for these horrifying actions.
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6-22-2011 @ 2:51PM
Roz said...Brava! May all who read this have eyes to see, and ears to hear.
Sign me: Mother of 7, all with ADD/ADHD, some polydiagnosed with depression, and two with anger management challenges.
6-22-2011 @ 10:25AM
Amy said...I was disturbed by the writer's insensitivity in this story! Antipsyshotic meds are usually prescribed for mental disorders. Mental disorders are very common even in children. Calling the meds "crazy pills" is not only inncorrect it is degrading and judgemental! It is not the writers place to insinuate that just because someone is on these meds they are crazy. Also, it would be more appropriate to say (gained weight) instead of "plumped up". This is an important artical, but should have been written more carefully.
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6-22-2011 @ 11:01AM
colleen said...Henderson--You should be ashamed of yourself....
'Careful with the crazy pills"
Why don't you write a story instead of creating one?
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7-12-2011 @ 6:32PM
CrazyPills..REALLY? said..."CRAZY PILLS"?
I didn't bother to read the rest of the article. There are many people and children who rely on medications for management of their mental illness.
There is enough stigma attached to mental illness and the use of the words, "Crazy Pills", just helps to reinforce that stigma.
Shame on Tom Henderson, for writing Crazy Pills as his first sentence.
With all due respect, Tom Henderson should apologize for such a bad choice of words.
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6-22-2011 @ 11:24AM
diane sauvageau said...The opening line " Careful with the Crazy Pills" is so inappropriate it isn't funny.
No one can help having mental illnesses. Children, are special little people, I'm offended by this sentence.
When you have time person that wrote this, try reading the book
" What is normal" ??????
Watch the wording. I have lived with being bi polar for 66yrs.
When people who you trust and tell about your problem are angry they get immature and really let you have it about your problem, so it doesn't help people that suffer from mental disabilities.
Thank you
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6-25-2011 @ 9:33PM
Rosie said...It is a consumer's responsibility to read the package inserts with each medication they or their children take. Not the information your pharmacy gives you - these are honed down to lessen the known impacts on the patient. Most clearly state weight gain as a side effect.
And Parent Dish - your "crazy pill" statement is appalling.
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6-22-2011 @ 11:31AM
trand1114 said...I used to be on Zyprexa, even the lowest dosage, and I was gaining 10 lbs per month. This medicine is the epitome of toxicity. I ballooned from 92 lbs to almost 200 within a year. It was extremely difficult to get off this "medication". Most medications, whether they treat mental or physical ailments, will affect one's biochemistry and alter it rendering the adaptation of significant weight gain. Zyprexa, is a type of medication that enables a ravenous appetite that aids to the drastic weight gain. Now, I must address Tom Henderson personally. You ARE offensive when you use the ignorant line, "Careful with the crazy pills". This is especially damaging to those who are newly diagnosed with mental illness, who are trying their best to get well, WITHOUT THE STIGMA OF ADDING FUEL TO THE FIRE. You have set many people back with your labeling words of contempt. Way to kick someone when they're down on their health.
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