Interview with Dr. Bennett Sherman

Q: What type of doctor are you?
Dr. Sherman: Pediatrician. I take care of all the problems that little children have from birth to sometimes high school and college.

Q: How long have you practiced medicine?
Dr. Sherman: I practiced from the time I was an intern in 1946, and then I went in the army and I was an army doctor. Before that I interned and I was a resident in pediatrics taking care of children. When I was in the army all the army people who had children would come and see me. Then I came out into practice seeing children who were private patients of mine. That was in 1952, so actually I've been a doctor with children since 1946, about 57 years. I was in my own practice with children since 1952 until November of 2002, 50 years. That's a long time.

Q: What changes have you seen in kids' use of drugs and alcohol from the time that you began practicing medicine?
Dr. Sherman: When I first started, it was very rare for children to take any medicines that were not prescribed by doctors. A few naughty children that came from bad homes or homes where the parents didn't take care of them, got wild and would play with other kids that got wild and didn't have any control by their parents and did a lot of naughty things just to have fun. They thought they couldn't hurt anybody. They ended up hurting themselves and they ended up hurting other people and they ended up hurting their parents. When I first started it was very rare for children to be drinking or taking any drugs that weren't prescribed by doctors. There was very little smoking, because we kind of knew that it wasn't a very good thing to do.

Q: Do you think the percentage has gone up?
Dr. Sherman: Oh, yes. I would say that when I went to college, you rarely ever saw a kid smoke a cigarette. In the 50's, 60's and 70's, a lot of the kids were smoking and drinking and taking a lot of bad drugs, just to have a good time and not thinking about what could happen to them. Their parents were kind of permissive. They didn't want to aggravate the children or they thought the children wouldn't love them if they became strict parents.

Nowadays you are seeing a lot more children doing things on their own, as if they are really their own bosses. Really they are not thinking of what's happening in society. The society frowns on kids that are not living up to the law and living up to their potential and living up to what their parents and teachers would like them to do. They just don't have the responsibility in many cases, and the parents are very permissive. Permissive means letting a child do anything. Many parents are afraid to try and control their children. They are afraid that if they try to control them too much, the child will run away or just won't listen and will do the things that will get them in trouble. There is a lot more drinking and drugs now.

Q: What would you tell kids who think drinking or taking drugs like cocaine, marijuana, or heroin is not very harmful?
Dr. Sherman: I would try to show them the bad effects by showing them some movies about what drugs do. Then I would also show them what happens to kids who have taken drugs. I would show them some of the pictures of what these kids end up doing by driving a car when they are drunk and killing somebody. Getting a gun and not realizing how powerful a gun is or how a drink or drugs can destroy your body is something else to discuss. The drugs you are taking make you lose your good judgment.

If you take a drink, after awhile, you suddenly get very dizzy and then you get light-headed and you think, "Oh, there's nothing to worry about" and maybe take another drink. Before you know it, you've taken too many drinks and you can become unconscious or even die. The same with all drugs. So, I would talk to them first, but then I would show them some movies of what the effect would be by taking drugs incorrectly.

Q: Kids use a lot of caffeine to keep up with hectic schedules. What would you tell kids about the effects of caffeine?Dr. Sherman: Again, it's like another drug. It's a stimulant and keeps you up. A lot of kids think they have to take it to study, like if they have an exam they will study all night and drink caffeine all night. Then they get the rebound of the caffeine and when they take the exam they are so nervous they can't even think straight and so I don't think it's wise to drink a caffeine drink. Again, I would show them an animal experience...what happens when animals take too much caffeine and what it does to their heart and their lungs and to their brain. I would tell them that if you study correctly and you get your rest when you should, and you study every day and you do your work every day, then you don't have to take caffeine for two days before an exam, so you can learn it all in a real short time. You will forget it if you use caffeine to learn that way. Caffeine is not the best drug to take.

Q: What are some other health issues you think that kids face?
Dr Sherman: I think they have to appreciate that their body is the most important thing in their existence. Your family has a car, and if they want that machine to work it has to be kept in good condition. A person has a body and it has to be taken care of with good nutrition, good food, and if you don't take care of that body, it starts breaking down, just like a car.

Your body needs good fluids, protein, minerals, vitamins, and carbohydrates and some fatty materials. If you don't do that, you don't reach your potential as far as your brain is concerned. People should eat properly, they should have enough calories in a day. They shouldn't starve themselves just to be skinny, and they shouldn't eat too much so they get fat and then they are unhappy with themselves.

Q: Is there anything else you would like to tell kids about drugs or alcohol that you didn't mention already?
Dr. Sherman: Only that children should realize that they are responsible for their body. They can blame their parents and they can blame everybody else, but if they take the drugs and they've been shown not to, then they are going to have to pay the penalty of what happens to them. A lot of kids do it and then they cry to their parents for help, but they need to realize that it was their fault to begin with and they've got to change their behavior.

Q: Thank you for talking with me, Dr. Sherman.