DailyMail Must Apologize and Provide Correction for Dangerous ADHD Misinformation Article

May 13, 2025

On May 5th an article that ran on the Daily.mail.co.uk website for nearly a week and was so filled with misinformation about the alleged psychiatric disorder ADHD that AbleChild is calling out the writer and asking the publishers to print an apology and a correction.

The article written by Cassidy Morrison (Senior Health Reporter) titled “I learned the horrifying risks of ‘miracle’ ADHD drugs and stopped taking them…but it was too late,” provides information about the alleged ADHD disorder and its alleged treatment. The problem, though, is that Morrison is just wrong on both counts. Too often the press gets away with writing information about mental health diagnosing and drugs that simply is not based in science. Enough is enough. The misinformation must stop.

Morrison’s article focuses on a woman who reportedly did not have the alleged ADHD disorder but took ADHD drugs like Ritalin, Adderall, and Vyvanse and later regretted taking the drugs as the subject of the article believed the drugs caused her heart damage.  Fine. But the problem isn’t with the subject of the article. The problem is with author Morrison’s explanations of ADHD and its alleged drug “treatments.”

Let’s begin with Morrison’s completely unsubstantiated tidbit about ADHD drug treatments reporting “for people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), they can be valuable tools as they simply replenish depleted levels of chemicals in the brain that help patients concentrate.” Really? Who says so? What peer reviewed paper can Morrison provide that definitively reveals what chemical abnormality exists that is corrected by simply replenishing the depleted drug levels?  The fact is, there is no science to support this chemical imbalance theory that in 2022 was completely debunked by Professor Joanna Moncrieff.

In fact, the nation’s premier mental health research agency, the National Institute of Mental Health, (NIMH) is clueless about what causes the alleged psychiatric disorder and explains that “NIMH supports research into the possible causes of ADHD. Researchers are investigating factors such as genes, hormones and other molecules, brain structure and activity, and prenatal and early life exposures.” So, what does author Morrison know about ADHD that the deep thinkers at NIMH are unaware of? 

Or, if anyone questions the federal government, let’s see what the leading private ADHD organization has to say. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reports “there are several factors believed to contribute to ADHD: Research shows that genes may be a large contributor to ADHD. ADHD often runs in families and some trends in specific brain areas contribute to attention. Studies show a link between cigarette smoking and alcohol use during pregnancy and children who have ADHD. Exposure to lead as a child has also been shown to increase the likelihood of ADHD in children.” Clueless.

As anyone who bothers to research alleged psychiatric disorders knows, the medical and scientific communities are just clueless about what causes the alleged ADHD, making Morrison’s claims complete misinformation and dangerous. “Think” and “believe” is what science has to offer about the causes of the alleged ADHD. 

Now, let’s consider Morrison’s misinformation about the alleged “treatments” for ADHD. According to Morrison “Adderall and similar drugs boost concentration by increasing dopamine (motivation, focus, and reward) and norepinephrine (alertness and attention), helping the brain prioritize tasks and ignore distractions.” Really? Wow! Wrong.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which approves the amphetamine Adderall has this to say about how Adderall “works,” “The mode of therapeutic action in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is not known. Amphetamines are thought to block the reuptake of norepinephrine and dopamine into the presynaptic neuron and increase the release of these monoamines into the extraneuronal space.” The same is written for Ritalin (methylphenidate) and Vyvanse – all stimulants. 

The makers of the ADHD “treatments” don’t know how the drugs work in the brain for any psychiatric condition, least of all the alleged ADHD. The makers “think” but don’t know, and Morrison should have explained that science is clueless about the very dangerous drugs and, hence, the entire reason for the article.

Finally, Morrison, who clearly demonstrated throughout the article her lack of understanding about the known science of the alleged ADHD further reports that “for those who don’t have the disorder, they overstimulate the brain with pleasure, leading to performance-enhancing effects and an addictive euphoric high that can prove dangerous.” 

So, Morrison who has no clue that science does not know what causes the alleged ADHD or how the drug “treatments” work in the brain apparently knows how the drugs work for those who don’t have the alleged disorder?  This is just really bad reporting. And it is dangerous.

And, most importantly, regardless of the misinformation Morrison provided, the public must know that the drug “treatments” will affect those who are diagnosed with the alleged ADHD the same way as those who are not diagnosed with the alleged ADHD. 

The DailyMail.co.uk needs to apologize for this “reporting” and run a correction. Too many people could read this article and wrongly believe that there is a known brain abnormality that is the alleged ADHD that can be “treated” with very serious, life-threatening, addictive drugs.
Photo Credit: DailyMail

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