EXPERTS in the region have warned the parents of hyperactive children to be cautious over claims being made for a new drug.

Amoxetine, or Strattera, has been licensed to treat ADHD attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in the UK.

With about one in 20 children in the UK thought to be affected by ADHD, the drug is expected to be widely prescribed as an alternative to the controverisal drug Ritalin.

The National Attention Deficit Disorder Information and Support Service said Strattera offered a treatment option for children who did not respond to Ritalin.

But experts from the North-East who have built up a national reputation for management of hyperactive children, say the new drug should only be tried as a last resort and parents would do better to look at diet and behaviour.

Dave Woodhouse, director of the Cactus Clinic, at Teesside University, a unit set up to help wean children off Ritalin and on to a programme of improved nutrition and behavioural therapy, said: "Drugs should be the last resort not the first resort for parents. We may be replacing one problem with another."

Mr Woodhouse said colleagues in the US, where the drug has been used on children for 18 months, had reported mood swings, increased aggression, appetite suppression and growth inhibition.

Dr Madelaine Portwood, an educational psychologist with Durham County Council and an advocate of food supplements containing very pure fish and evening primrose oil to treat hyperactivity, said: "Parents should try other things first because it is a very serious decision to follow the medication route."

Last year, a study by Dr Portwood in County Durham junior schools showed the behaviour and concentration of pupils was dramatically improved by food supplements containing Omega three and Omega six fatty acids.