Ritalin and other drugs are mind-altering and will affect the behavior of ANYONE WHO TAKES THEM. Do not mistake this as proof that a condition actually exists.
Which is exactly what the drug is supposed to do.
Lot's of drugs are "mind-altering" including Tylenol with Codeine, Aleve, Aspirin, etc. etc. etc.
I will trust my Physicians long before I will take advice from rampaging folks with pitchforks in hand on the crusade to "save the kids" from "government programs."
Trust me when I saw I used to think much of the same...just not to your extreme. In fact, I argued with both the psychologist and physician about the very things brought up and guess what, after a thorough reading ON MY OWN about the subject, the drugs, the effect and symptoms, I decided to support a trial of the meds to see the effects.
That trial has significantly IMPROVED the life of my son, my wife and the rest of my family.
And just to blow all the other totally inappropriate generalities in the posts here, my son is a great athlete with less that 7% body fat, exercises all the time, doesn't and isn't ALLOWED to play games or sit in front of the TV for extended durations. He's not unruly or out of control. He's been disciplined his whole life including limited use of spanking.