The current generation has several health issues that affect their children. Therefore, they have developed various responses to address the present and emerging health issues. Notably, many children suffer various medical conditions that sometimes require their parents to put them on constant medical interventions. In response to the numerous health issues that affect various children, parents have decided to turn to medication for the sake of their young ones. Many people feel that medication is the best way to keep their children’s health in check. However, some people have argued that the current generation is over medicating children. This paper is an argumentative essay that discusses whether parents are over medicating children or not.
Various medical research studies concerned with pediatric issues have reported that the current generation children suffer from different heath issues. Notably, most children develop the relevant medical conditions during pregnancy, at birth or while undergoing various developmental stages (Insel). It is, therefore, normal for parents to want to medicate such issues to ensure that their children live healthy lives. They, therefore, have to put their children on different types of medication to help them. In this case, it is okay for such parent to medicate their children to ensure better growth and developmental processes. It cannot be said that parents who turn to medication as the only solution to their children’s health conditions are overmedicating their children.
Some children are born with life-threatening medical conditions such as sepsis. Some of them are lucky enough to get a proper medical intervention that clears the disease. However, some succumb to such conditions, and those who live with them have to depend on medication for a better life. In that case, most parents turn to medicating with the aim of saving their children’s lives. In such occasions, no one can argue that parents are overmedicating their children. A child who fully depends on medication to help deal with other issues such as hydrocephalus, asphyxia and other medical disorders cannot be said to be over medicated (Insel). This is because they have to take the prescribed medication as per the instructions to help save their lives. Before saying that such a parent overmedicates the child, people should take a minute to think of how the lives of these children would be without medication. It is obvious that most if not all of them would be dead and some of them would be living in immense pain that even an adult cannot bear.
Some parents also medicate their children so that they can improve their health. They have to do this because it is the only way they can ensure that their children live healthy lifestyles. Similarly, in such circumstances, parents cannot be blamed because they are overmedicating their children (Insel). Many parents understand that they should never self-medicate their own children. Therefore, they involve best practices before they can administer any medication to their young ones. This means that they have to consult a qualified physician, pediatrician, or any qualified health professional to diagnose the condition before they can give their children any type of medicine.
Children around the world suffer various medical conditions. Their parents must turn to the administration of various types of medications so that they can achieve different goals. Parents medicate their children to save their lives, improve their health, and to ensure that they stay healthy. In these circumstances, no one can argue that people are overmedicating their children. However, if a parent decides to give a child medication for the sake of it, then it can be said that they are wrongly medicating their children.
- Insel, Thomas. Director’s Blog: Are Children Overmedicated. 2014. Web. Dec 23 2015. http://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/director/2014/are-children-overmedicated.shtml
