Here's some cheerful news about Ritalin:
An expert panel concluded between 2 and 5 percent of children on the ADHD drug Ritalin suffer from psychotic episodes if on the medication for over a year.
In these cases, children experienced hallucinations of feeling or seeing insects, snakes or worms.
That's 2 to 5 percent of the 2.5 million children who are prescribed Ritalin each year - that is one heck of a lot of insects, snakes and worms. The zoological hallucinations apparently vanish when use of the drug is discontinued. The FDA is in the midst of preparing recommendations for updating the warning language on the labels. (I don't think all 2 to 5 percent of those kids are actually hallucinating insects, snakes and worms; the article is a little slapdash in that regard.)
