A study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine found that children with ADHD used drugs or illicit substances at earlier ages on average than those not diagnosed with the condition. On average, children with ADHD also had higher rates of smoking marijuana and cigarettes and were more likely to carry those…

Children of women who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) than children of nonsmoking mothers, according to the first study to investigate the association between smoking and ADHD based on nicotine serum biomarker levels rather than self-reported smoking. Further, the investigation found that as the amount of smoking increases, so…

“In contrast to what may be expected, we observed that a poor diet does not predict the level of ADHD symptoms in children, either diagnosed or not. So, based on our study, dietary changes may not prevent or reduce ADHD symptoms,” said study author Trudy Voortman. She’s an assistant professor of nutritional epidemiology at Erasmus…

From kindergarten to fourth grade, kids with diagnosed ADHD had almost four times the odds of having a short stature (height <3rd percentile) versus kids without ADHD (odds ratio 3.88, 95% CI 1.69-8.88, P<0.01) after adjusting for sex, parental education, and family income, reported Ladan Davallow Ghajar, MD, of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville,…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the first medical device of its kind to treat ADHD in children between the ages of 7 and 12 years-old is being met with “cautious optimism” by parents and advocates. The new device known as the Monarch eTNS system will cost parents about $1,000 and isn’t yet…

The off-label use of high-dose antipsychotics for conditions such as attention deficit–hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) appears to significantly increase the risk of unexpected death in children and young adults, according to a recent retrospective study.

The vast and growing volume of diversions that pepper our modern world appears to be taking a toll on our attention spans as people hop to the next trending topic faster and faster, European researchers report this week…The findings, published Monday in the research journal Nature Communications, were the result of nearly 2 years of…

A study by the UC Davis Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders Institute will test whether VR technology can help kids with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder reduce their sensitivity to distractions, according to a Tuesday press release.

Dear Mayo Clinic: As the mom of an elementary schoolboy, I hear a lot of talk about ADHD. But what is it exactly? How do you tell the difference between a kid who just has a ton of energy and one who has a problem that needs to be addressed? Are there things that put…

Dr. Buchanan: Most child psychiatrists, including myself, consider stimulants first-line. I view alpha-agonists as second-line, or sometimes I use them as augmenters to a stimulant, such as when we see only a partial response from a stimulant or when we are limited in dosing due to side effects. Agents such as Strattera (atomoxetine) and Wellbutrin…

“If you look at the peer-reviewed evidence, we cannot say sugar absolutely makes kids hyper; however, you can’t discount that sugar may have a slight effect” on behavior, said Kristi L. King, senior pediatric dietitian at Texas Children’s Hospital and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

A new study out of the University of Alberta has found that by the age of 5, children who spent two hours or more looking at a screen each day were 7.7 times more likely to meet the criteria for a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) when compared to children who spent 30…