Generation Rx Film Review

What is the main thesis of this film?

What appears to be the main thesis of the film is that the prescription drug companies have created an epidemic of ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, and depression in school aged children, and that medication is the only answer. This is done only to gain a profit for the drug companies at a disregard for the effects, both short and long term, that they may have on the children.

Taken From http://forum.baby-gaga.com/about1937535.html

What were the main arguments in support of the thesis?

The main arguments that were in support of this thesis were that there has been an increasing amount of children that have been diagnosed with the aforementioned conditions and received psycho stimulant drugs to help treat their conditions. These drugs alter the brain and can cause a developing brain to develop in a different way than it normally would. On top of this, there is some evidence that the FDA not only failed to acknowledge dangerous side effects, but many people in the FDA also stood to benefit from profits made by these drugs.

How does the thesis of this film relate to the course?

This thesis relates to the theme of the class by showing that almost everything we know or believe is the result of a social construction. This not only addresses how certain actions that many used to attribute to great thinker that made great breakthroughs in many fields of study have become deviant illnesses, like described in “The Frowners”, but also the accepted treatments can vary by time, place, and context. 

Taken From http://dabacon.org/pontiff/?p=6084

Which arguments/points did you find the most convincing?

What I found most convincing was the effects that the drugs can have on still developing brains. I took bio psychopharmacology last year and learned how substances can actually change a brain, and this happening to a still growing brain can have very extreme effects. These changes can then have very dangerous side effects of violence towards others or towards one’s self.

Which arguments/points did you find the least convincing?

It was hard to find something that I did not see as convincing in this film, but it does seem to focus a decent amount of time in the beginning of the film towards school shootings. The film seemed to really attribute these actions to the side effects of the prescription drugs these kids were taking. This is a bit of a different approach than what was talked about with masculinity in class, and Michael Kimmel’s “What Triggers School Shootings?” with it being a result to boys having their status of masculinity being challenged.

Research Study:

If I was to conduct a study based off of some of the facts that were presented in this film, I would want to study how the definitions of ADHD vary between the US and other western nations. I would want to see which countries have the broadest definition for what behaviors constitute having the disorder. I would then want to compare the countries with the broadest and narrowest definitions with the amount of the diagnosed populations that are receiving medication. This would be done in an attempt to see if people’s diagnosis is based on receiving a profit from prescribed medications.