Prescriptions have jumped 700% among US women in their late 20s, raising concerns amid questions over drugs’ safety during pregnancy

Prescriptions for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medications have increased 700% among US women in their late 20s since 2003, according to new research by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



Researchers raised alarms about the increase because “little information is available about the safety of taking ADHD medication during pregnancy”.

The second largest increase, of 560%, was among women between 30 and 34 years old. The most common medications prescribed for ADHD are stimulants, such as methylphenidate, a medication known best by its brand name, Ritalin. Increases among women of childbearing age represent the latest data on the fivefold increase in stimulant prescriptions that has taken place since the early 2000s.

While there are non-stimulant medications to treat ADHD, use of those medications has remained level over the last decade, as amphetamine-based prescriptions increased dramatically.

While the largest increases in ADHD prescriptions were among women in their 20s, prescriptions among all women between 15 and 44 rose 344%. The large increase among women in their 20s and 30s, considered the optimal age for having children, raised concern among physicians.

“Half of all pregnancies in the United States are unplanned, and women may be taking prescription medicine early in pregnancy before they know they are pregnant,” said Coleen Boyle, director of the CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities.

“Early pregnancy is a critical time for the developing baby. We need to better understand the safest ways to treat ADHD before and during pregnancy.”

The new research examined private insurance claims between 2003 and 2015 of up to 6.8 million women. About 68% of women in the United States get insurance through a private company, according to health policy experts at Kaiser Family Foundation.

The dramatic increases mean that the proportion of all women in this age group who took ADHD medication rose from 1% in 2003 to 4% in 2015. Studies suggest about 4% of adults have ADHD, but those numbers have increased over time, as awareness of the diagnosis has grown.

“If a woman is pregnant or thinking about becoming pregnant, she should talk to her healthcare provider about all medicines she is taking,” Boyle said. “Pregnant women should also talk to their doctor before stopping or starting any medicine.”