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Peter Roger Breggin
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The Ritalin Fact Book: What Your Doctor Won't Tell You Paperback – August 1, 2002

by Peter Breggin (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 27 ratings
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Known as the "Ralph Nader of psychiatry," Peter Breggin has been the medical expert in countless civil and criminal cases involving the use or misuse of psychoactive medications. This unusual position has given him unprecedented access to private pharmaceutical research and correspondence files, access that informs this straight-talking guide to the most-prescribed and controversial class of psychoactive medications prescribed for children. From how these drugs work in the brain to documented side and withdrawal effects, The Ritalin Fact Book is up-to-the-minute and easy-to-access. With its suggestions for non-prescriptive ways to treat ADD and ADHD, it is essential reading for every parent whose child is on or who has been recommended psychoactive medication.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    208 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    August 1, 2002
  4. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.59 x 8.3 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    0738204501
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0738204505
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Author Peter Breggin doesn't try to hide his opinion: the introduction to The Ritalin Fact Book clearly states, "This book is written from a viewpoint that is critical of stimulant drugs and their prescription for "attention deficit hyperactive disorder." As a medical expert in legal cases against pharmaceutical companies, Breggin has access to information many doctors have never seen, and what he presents is frightening.

After a vivid and harrowing tale of a young man placed on numerous medications that only compounded his problems, Breggin dives into several fairly technical chapters concerning the effects of stimulating drugs on children and how they can actually cause psychiatric disorders. He repeatedly insists that ADHD, which he refers to in quotation marks as "ADHD," can be corrected by improved parenting and teaching styles, and assures readers that a biochemical basis for the disorder is "simply nonsense." For many children this may be true, but the book will be frustrating reading for parents who have been exploring therapy and self-control training for years without positive effects.

While many of Breggin's detailed explanations of chemistry and character are important for navigating the maze of pediatric mental health, his explosively negative style could do as much harm as good. --Jill Lightner

About the Author

Peter R. Breggin, M.D., is the author of a dozen books, including Talking Back to Prozac and The Antidepressant Factbook. He lives in Ithaca, New York.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Da Capo Lifelong Books; First Edition (August 1, 2002)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 208 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0738204501
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0738204505
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.1 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.59 x 8.3 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 27 ratings

About the author

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Peter Roger Breggin

Peter Roger Breggin

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Peter R. Breggin MD is known as “The Conscience of Psychiatry” for his many decades of successful reform work in the mental health field, but has now turned his attention to the misuse of science surrounding COVID-19 and its origins in what he and his coauthor Ginger Breggin are calling "global predators." He is currently the medical and psychiatric expert for an injunction against the governor of Ohio for oppressing the citizens with unending emergency decrees related to COVID-19. Dr. Breggin and his wife Ginger R. Breggin have written COVID-19 and the Global Predators: We are the Prey.

Dr. Breggin is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist and former full-time Consultant at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and part-time for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). He has been approved as a medical expert in over 100 legal cases in state and federal courts on issues relating to adverse drug effects, drug approval, the pharmaceutical industry, and the FDA. He is the author of two dozen medical, scientific, and best-selling popular books, as well as dozens of scientific articles.

Peter R. Breggin, MD, is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist and former full-time consultant at NIMH. He is in private practice in Ithaca, New York, and is the author of dozens of scientific articles and more than twenty books. Some of his many books include Toxic Psychiatry, Talking Back to Ritalin, The Antidepressant Fact Book, and The Heart of Being Helpful: Empathy and the Creation of a Healing Presence, and, with co-author Ginger Breggin, Talking Back to Prozac. His most recent publications include Medication Madness: The Role of Psychiatric Drugs in Cases of Violence, Suicide, and Crime (2008) and Brain-Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry: Drugs, Electroshock and the Psychopharmaceutical Complex, Second Edition (SPC, 2008). His two newest psychiatric books are Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal: A Guide for Prescribers, Therapists, Patients and their Families (SPC, 2013) and Guilt, Shame, and Anxiety: Understanding and Overcoming Negative Emotions (Prometheus, 2014). Dr. Breggin is the founder and director of The Center for the Study of Empathic Therapy, Education and Living (www.EmpathicTherapy.org) His professional website is www.breggin.com.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
27 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Luane
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!
Reviewed in the United States on September 24, 2019
Verified Purchase
Easy to read and understand - a book full of wisdom and tried and tested knowledge. I would recommend this book to every teacher out there who has the interests and well-being of their pupils at heart. I would recommend this book to every child psychiatrist and psychologist who still think that drugging a child is harmless, and I would recommend this book to every parent who thinks they have a difficult child.
One person found this helpful
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MP
5.0 out of 5 stars The horrible truth
Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2013
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If you are not ready to hear the truth about these drugs do not buy this book. And only read it if you are prepared to hear about how corrupt our medical establishment has become. Children have become fodder for profit. Drug companies destroy lives and our society looks away. If this book doesn't make you angry you are either a doctor who has bought into the system or you work for big pharma selling this crap to children.
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Buster33
5.0 out of 5 stars it's good.
Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2014
Verified Purchase
His criticism of the pharmaceutical industry is right on. The whole industry of psychoactive drugs is wrapped up in making money and causing addiction, not healing. One of his most poignant observations is the fact is that FDA only requires a 6 week study to show if a drug is ok. These drugs are often used for years and few people are asking what the results are. Read the book and find out, it's good.
One person found this helpful
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Pamela L Chubbuck
5.0 out of 5 stars Parents, teachers, therapists, and doctors need to read this book!
Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2019
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Peter Breggin MD, Is one of the most conscious and Knowledgeable psychiatrists in the world. Parents, teachers, therapists, and doctors need to read this bookParents, teachers, therapists, and doctors need to read this book!
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Joy
5.0 out of 5 stars a really helpfullbook
Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2014
Verified Purchase
This is a bible! Finally a doctor who dared to talk about that drug. So many children are involved in this kind of easy medicine... so many parents lost in the drug s world being generated by those big companies . A wonderbook in sad world of children shrugs.
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driven
1.0 out of 5 stars More disinformation
Reviewed in the United States on April 22, 2011
I joined the group CHADD after reading one too many false or misleading stories about the FDA approved mediation, Ritalin and ADHD. My job requires hours of research and I love to research new topics. After a highly regarded doctor found that I had ADD, I started to research the available treatments.

There is a fantastic amount of disinformation regarding ADHD and ADD, and usually by people who will try to sell you something that will not work. First off, Ritalin is one of the safest medications ever approved by the FDA. In fact, in some countries Ritalin is available over the counter.

Second, a healthy diet and exercise helps everyone concentrate a bit better and many studies have shown a strong link between these factors. That said, these are NOT a replacement for medication.

Scientology and snake oil salesman/saleswoman have found a place where they can make money off selling books and herbal remedies that do not work. In fact, Congress formed a committee to research some of the studies and claims Scientology presented as fact. After some research into the studies and claims, the Congressional committee found so many issues they ended their research early and admonished Scientology for wasting their time.

Unfortunately, I cannot link this information but I encourage you to do your own research.
5 people found this helpful
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Mark Mills
3.0 out of 5 stars be prepared
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2006
Dr. Breggin simply dismisses the notion that ADHD, ADD and perhaps autism represent biological states. Instead, he asserts the labels ADD and ADHD are no more than convenient excuses for lazy teachers and parents to commit temporary lobotomies upon their children and/or students. Breggin suggests the ADHD issue can be resolved by simply changing the parent and teacher's behavior . This thesis occupies about 20% of the book.

The other 80% of the book reviews the horrific damage psycho-active drugs potentially cause children. Breggin recounts several cases where Ritalin is given to a normal healthy child who happens to act out at school one day. The drug causes more problems. Before you can say 1, 2, 3; the child is on 5 or 6 psychoactive drugs, displays involuntary ticks, and gets diagnosed with a bipolar disorder or acute early stage schizophrenia. Dr. Breggin saves the day by pulling the child off drugs. and allowing the normal child to reemerge.

Dr. Breggin's logic is hardly compelling, but every parent thinking about giving their child psychoactive medications should read this book very carefully. Breggin may not be much of a neuroscientist, but his warnings should not be ignored. If nothing else, he does a good job of making the warning labels an interesting read. Be prepared.
9 people found this helpful
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Snejana P. Slivova
4.0 out of 5 stars An eye opening book
Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2012
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This book takes a very different prospective to the stimulant medications. If your child is diagnosed with ADHD and you are pressed by school and public oppinion to medicate your child, this book will give you strength to resist the medicine.

Some of the ideas in the book seems too extreme for me but is general it's a great scientific prospective.
2 people found this helpful
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