ADHD and Pregnancy Outcomes

Women with ADHD may be more likely to have some adverse outcomes during pregnancy, new research suggests – but medication may not be the cause. A study led by researchers from the University of Sydney and published in CNS Drugs aimed to determine whether ADHD, its treatment with stimulant medication, or both might adversely affect…

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A New Documentary About Adults On Adderall — And Not Just For ADHD

Stimulant drugs like Adderall and Ritalin are commonly prescribed to kids with what’s known as ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. But recently, adults became the biggest users of these drugs…the new Netflix documentary Take Your Pills focuses on the use of these drugs to boost cognitive performance in college classrooms and the workplace.

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The Difference Between Being Distracted & Having ADHD

The understanding that high-achieving students turn to drugs like Adderall and Ritalin to get ahead academically is so well-documented that the stereotype has made its way onto TV shows like Riverdale and Pretty Little Liars. You get the idea: A smart student uses Adderall as a secret weapon to focus during a tough homework assignment…

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In Praise of A.D.H.D.

Ten years ago, when my son Nicolai was 11, his doctor wanted to put him on medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. “It would make him less wild,” I explained to my mother, who was then 85. “It would slow him down a bit.” My mother grumbled. “Look around you,” she said in Yiddish. “Look…

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Prevalence of ADHD Relatively Stable Over Time Despite Increase in Diagnoses

The actual prevalence of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) remained relatively stable over the course of a decade, even in the face of increases in clinical diagnoses, according to researchers who published their findings in The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry…Data on 19,271 9-year old twins (50.6% boys) were extracted between 2004 and 2014 from the…

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Why is ADHD more common in boys than girls?

About one in 20 children are diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at some point during their school life. Interestingly, for every girl diagnosed, there are between three and seven boys who receive an ADHD diagnosis…Together with a large international team of researchers, I have been investigating the possible explanations for the childhood gender…

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ADHD Meds May Improve Mood in Healthy Humans

New research finds that when healthy people take attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) drugs, the medication stimulates the release of a chemical in the brain associated with positive emotion. ADHD medications cause a surge in the neurotransmitter glutamate in key parts of the brain. Subsequently, this increase is associated with changes in positive emotion.

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Parting With Pills: Why Students with ADHD “Share” Medication With Peers

Researchers with Trinity College and Texas State University completed a study to determine not only why emerging adults (EAs) with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) choose to “”share”” prescription stimulants with peers, but also how, and to what effect, EAs with ADHD are approached. The study of 149 EAs with ADHD determined several “”predictors”” to diversion of…

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Scientists call BPA exposure ‘presumed health hazard’ for hyperactivity

Bisphenol-A, widely used in plastics, receipt paper and canned food linings, is a culprit in some children developing hyperactivity, researchers say, even as federal regulators insist on its safety. A review of more than 30 scientific studies concludes early life exposure to the endocrine disrupting chemical BPA leaves children more susceptible to hyperactivity later in…

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Exposure to childhood violence linked to psychiatric disorders

Investing in diminishing socioeconomic status inequalities and in preventing violent events during childhood may improve the mental health of youths from low socioeconomic status backgrounds. The results showed that having experienced any traumatic event and low socioeconomic status were associated with an internalizing disorder such as depression and anxiety and an externalizing disorder including attention-deficit…

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