KIDS WITH ADD DESERVE RITILIN, SPECIAL SUPPORT

I have to object to the article titled ``Thin Line Between Normal and
ADD Kids'' in the Health & Fitness section (Feb. 10). Author Sara
Solovitch writes that ADD kids are almost the same as normal kids.
This is impossible.

My son was diagnosed ADHD at age 3, and if it weren't for Ritilin, I
would not have had the patience to deal with this disorder. I joined
ChADD, which is a support group for parents with ADD children --
www.chadd.org. ChADD stands for Children with ADD. I attended weekly
meetings to learn how to deal with my hyperactive child, how to help
him succeed and disciplinary measures that are quite different than
those of a ``normal'' child.

Solovitch's child must be too borderline to be considered ADD or she
would have realized there is no other way to keep such a child focused
in school without Ritilin. My 11-year-old son has been on medication
since age 3 and still struggles.

A doctor once told me that to withhold Ritilin from a child truly in
need of it is comparable to withholding insulin from a diabetic child.
The child and everyone in his life will suffer. Why do you think we
have so many high school drop-outs? Many are probably borderline or
true ADD kids who never obtained the help they needed. Prisons are
full of unmedicated people with ADD.

ADD is a true biological disorder that most people never outgrow.
Ritilin is a godsend to my family and millions of others. Without it
there would be no hope for lots of kids and adults.

The most important thing this article omitted, and that any quality
health care professional or book will highlight, is that Ritilin must
not be used in and of itself for treating ADD. Psychological
counseling and consistent discipline from parents, along with raising
a child in a structured environment and giving him a chance to
succeed, all go along with the medication. Ritilin alone will not work.

As parents we must always look into the rights our ADD children
deserve -- as this is truly a disability that falls under the
Americans with Disabilities Act.

Suzanne Oliva
Milpitas