Speaking at the TUC conference, AEP general secretary Kate Fallon called for an urgent national review into the use of drugs such as Ritalin on school-aged children.
"We are concerned that not enough is known about the long-term effects of such powerful drugs on the development of children’s brains," she said.
"We have received increased numbers of reports from our members that children with behavioural difficulties are being prescribed drugs without full discussion with other professionals to see if other strategies or approaches could be used instead of, or at least alongside, the medication."
Fallon added that plans to adopt a new set of criteria for defining mental illness in the UK in 2013 will lead to many more children being diagnosed as mentally ill on the basis of their behaviour.
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