Generation Rx Film Review

The main thesis of the film “Generation R­_x­” was that psychotropic drugs such as methylphenidate, also known as Ritalin, are being extremely over prescribed and used in the United States due to an overbearing pharmaceutical industry, despite dangerous side effects. According to the film a “fraud” has been perpetrated on the American public. Despite the obvious risks of suicide in pre-trials the FDA allowed these drugs to be sold to consumers. “Generation R_x” claims this is due to panel member’s financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry. Apparently, 100% of the members on the panel’s that make decisions about mood and psychotropic drugs have investments in the pharmaceutical industry. Which would appear to be a significant conflict of interest. The concept or line from the film that hit home most for me was a fairly simple point. That is the idea that some “double digit” percentage of kids in America have a “mental defect” like ADD or ADHD is like “spitting in Mother Nature’s face.” The film points to the pharmaceutical industry giving incentives to doctors to prescribe certain medications and the heavy advertising campaign like the Zoloft “happy rock” commercial as causes for the wanton abuse of mind altering drugs in the U.S. And to me it would seem that the idea that all of the sudden starting in the 1990’s children are too out of control and have to be sedated with drugs like Ritalin and Prozac does seem incredulous. One R_x proponent equivocated this extreme rise in psychotropic drug use in children to a successful add campaign like that of the Coca Cola polar bears. The RSA animate clip we watched featuring Sir Ken Robinson had some good points to support this idea. Specifically that modern times are the most stimulating in world history, there are simply so many things vying for kid’s interests, like video games, social media, the internet etc. we should be surprised that children don’t want to pay attention in school and medicating them is hardly a solution.