I have been told by many people, that weight is a factor when distributing ADHD medication. I have heard some people say no, weight has nothing to do with it. I need someone who knows for a fact, if they basing dosage on weight or not.

I have always had a high tolerance for medication. This year I have gained some weight so I don't know if I am not really feeling the effects of my meds due to my typical high tolerance or if in fact it is because I am over weight right now. I don't see why a medication that is for your brain would be based on body weight. It doesn't make sense to me. Plus my doctor didn't even weigh me, he looked at me and guessed how much he thought I weighed and wrote it down. (snuck a peak at what he thought I weighed and he guessed a good 35-40 pounds less than what I actually weigh! I guess I hide it well. lol Now I hope to God they never really weight me and see how much I am!!)

my doc uses my weight when prescribing my ritalin, when he switched me to adderall he didnt ,he started me on half of my highest ritalin dose
120mg ritalin changed to 60mg adderall
I hope that helps you

Weight really isn't a factor (or if it is, it's a very small one).

It's a question of therapeutic dosage and drug metabolism.

Two people with the same weight may require very different doses. Or, a smaller person may actually require significantly more and a larger person may require less. The degree that side effects occur will generally be independent of weight as well.

But you can't just think that the right dosage is a static number for any single person - health, diet, exercise and other factors will have a bearing. Weight can be indicative of health to some degree (that is, is the person a bit underweight or a bit over-weight) but it isn't really an independent (isolated) factor.

hi Howard C
I hope I explained my post properly. I was only relating my experience with wt and dosage:)

Oh yeah, I thought your post was good. :)

But I guess your Dr was thinking more about your prior Ritalin script than your weight...when he/she started you off at 60mg.

Is there a way to find out your drug metabolism? What factors go into drug metabolism? since it seems if I read the postings correctly that weight is not one of the factors or is a minor one.

What if you have liver problems like a scholosis (wrong spelling) or fatty liver would that effect the drug's metabolism?

No, stim doses can't really be assumed by weight. It's kinda trial and error and titrating up until you find what works.

For example, I'm not a small gal (luckily I get guessed for 30-40lbs less too ;) ) but I'm fairly sensitive to stimulants and require a lower dose of these meds than many small children.
On the other hand, I metabolize them fairly rapidly so I get an hour or so less out of an IR dose than is considered average.

And oddly, I have a pretty high tolerance for other types of meds.

It's hard to predict. I think it's best to "start low and go up slow" until you find your optimal dosing. This seems to lessen the initial side effects and help you adjust to the meds better.

My doc used wt when he prescribed my Adderall XR as far as what the MAX dose I can go up to. He said it's 1mg/kg. I'm on 20mg/day, which works well for me. But, if someday I need to increase it, I can't go past 60mg/day (I'm 60kg). Hopefully, I won't have to go that high.

hi ms ladybug, thats the formula my therapist uses for my meds, when I was taking adderall I was on 20/20/20 ir but I had to many side effects. So now Im back to ritalin
good luck:)