My eight year old son, who has asthma and has been taking Singulair since he was three, has been off Singulair for four days and is becoming a completely different little boy! He has always been a "difficult child" with intense emotional reactions to things, anxiety, oppositional behavior, a short fuse and bad temper. He has also displayed obsessive/compulsive behavior. His father and I never thought that his behaviors and symptoms were caused by Singulair. His pediatrician never suggested it. With a family history of anxiety, we just assumed it was the way he was. At four, his preschool requested he be tested for ADHD. The testing revealed a short attention span but not a diagnosis of ADHD. As he got older his symptoms grew more intense. Last year we considered taking him to a psychiatrist but decided to "wait it out" one more year to see if maturity would bring an end to some of the behaviors. It didn't and in fact they grew worse. He became aggressive, explosive and depressed.
I recently began taking Singulair for another medical condition and had noticed that it made me a little moody. Last week, on the verge of making an appointment for my son with a psychiatrist, I started to wonder if maybe he was reacting in a similar, yet more intense way to the Singulair. I reviewed the patient information on line (I had read the patient info for Singulair when my son started taking it, but had not done so in years. I learned a tough lesson: check the information that accompanies prescriptions each and every time I get a refill.) When I read what the "less common side effects" were I was convinced that my son was reacting to his medicine. Then I found this website. We stopped his Singulair immediately and within two days began seeing a dramatic change in our son. He was less high strung, defiant, and explosive. Yesterday we had a cookout with some friends and he played with other kids all day without fighting for the first time in his life! He even cooperated when we asked him to help us get ready for company.
I strongly believe that this medicine should not be given to children and teens. I am so upset that when I asked my son's pediatricians about his behavior TWICE last year, they never mentioned that Singulair could be the problem. I called today to tell them he wasn't taking it anymore and the nurse said that she would note that he is "allergic" to it in his chart!
We are exploring alternate and natural ways to treat our son's asthma. I will NEVER give him Singulair again!
FYI: the labeling for his albuterol inhaler states that "safety and efficacy have not been established in patients under 12 years old". His pediatrician has been prescribing albuterol inhalers since he was three!
Does anyone have information about herbal inhalers and naturopathic treatment of asthma? If so I would like to hear.