Hey all. I was diagnosed with ADD a little over a month ago. I now take 54mg/day of Concerta, and usually 15mg/day (max) of Ritalin (depends on work load.)

I've looked everywhere and there seems to be many extremes to the viewpoints on long term side effects of these types of drugs, some saying there are no long term side effects, and others saying it changes brain functions and the effects are comparable to cocaine.

I realize that there really aren't any definitive answers out there on this subject right now, but everything I read seems to be extremely one sided. Another problem I have with the things I've read about long term side effects is that none of the ones saying there are significant negative side effects mention under what circumstances the experiments were done under (dosage, age when medicine was prescribed, etc.)

Does anybody here with more experience or research under their belt than I, have a knowledgeable conclusion they've come to (even if tentatively), about the long term risks of these drugs?