Increased Prescription Rate for Kids Due to Obesity

There has been an alarming increase in the number of children in the United States who are taking medication for chronic diseases. The growing problem of childhood obesity is apparently the culprit for health issues arising among the nation’s youngsters.
At the top of the list is the number of children who are now on medication for type 2 diabetes, a condition that has been linked to obesity. Six out of 10,000 children, a number that has more than doubled from 2002 to 2005, indicates that at a minimum of 23,000 privately insured children in the U.S. now take diabetes medications. In addition, there have been substantial increases in prescriptions for asthma and high cholesterol as well as for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Other medications on the rise for children include prescriptions for high blood pressure and depression. This shocking information comes from the results of new study published in the November issue of the journal Pediatrics.
Study co-author Dr. Donna Halloran, an assistant professor of pediatrics at St. Louis University stated, “Across all the medication classes we looked at, the rates of use increased—sometimes dramatically.” She went on to explain, “This is particularly concerning given that several of these diagnoses have been linked to obesity—diabetes, hypertension, depression, asthma.”
According to Emily Cox, study co-author and manager of outcomes research at Express Scripts Inc., in St. Louis, “We've got a lot of sick children.” She also said that although type 2 diabetes has been an adult onset in the past, children as young as the age of 5 are now being treated for the condition with prescription drugs.
The researchers analyzed the use of medication prescribed to almost 4 million U.S. children from 2002 to 2005. The information came from pharmacy claims and eligibility information for youngsters enrolled with Express Scripts, which serves thousands of client groups, employers, and insurance carriers, among others.
Significant increases were seen for prescriptions given to children between the ages of 5 and 19 over the four-year period. The doubling of the type 2 diabetes medication usage stemmed from a 166 percent increase in occurrences of the disease among girls ages 10 to 14 coupled with a 135 percent increase in occurrences among girls ages 15 to 19.
Other findings of the study included a 46.5 percent increase in the use of drugs to treat asthma, a 40.4 percent increase in the use of drugs to treat ADHD and a 15 percent increase in the number of prescriptions for cholesterol-lowering medications. In addition, the research team found moderate increases in the use of medications for high blood pressure and antidepressants.
The ratio of prescription increases was found to be much higher in girls than in boys with the use of drugs to treat type 2 diabetes increasing by 147 percent among girls, compared to only 39 percent among boys, while the use of drugs to treat ADHD increased 63 percent among girls and only 33 percent among boys. Similarly, the use of antidepressants rose 7 percent among girls with only a 4 percent increase among boys.
According to Cox, “Whether the increased use of medications is a good thing really depends on your perspective. Most people who would look at these numbers would indicate that these are worrisome trends.” She explained that there is a need to understand what is driving these increases, as they are only symptoms of underlying problems. Cox also noted that as the number of obese children increases, the number of children with chronic diseases is also increasing.
Both Cox and Halloran agree that although treatment for the medical conditions is a good thing, yet the concern is whether doctors are more likely to use drug therapy over diet and exercise. According to Cox, it is not known if there's a link between obesity and ADHD or asthma, but a tie-in between depression and obesity would make sense.
Halloran recommends that children eat more fresh fruit and avoid consuming salty fast foods and high-calorie sodas. In addition, children should increase their physical fitness activities. She also advises parents to talk more to teachers if they suspect their children have attention deficit or hyperactivity problems.