A new study led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine suggests that what we thought ADHD meds did for kids may not be quite true. For years doctors have thought that Attention Deficity Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) medications like Ritalin and Adderal sharpen a kid’s attention. But results of the new study makes this idea, well, fuzzy.
It’s More About Controlling Wakefulness and Rewards Than Attention
The study, published in Cell, analyzes brain scans of nearly 6,000 kids ages 8 – 11. Researches compared scans from 337 children who took stimulant medications on the day of their scan to those who did not. It turns out, rather than sharpening attention itself, stimulants appear to help kids with ADHD feel more awake, care more about what they’re doing and stick with it by impacting other brain areas.
“We think it’s a combination of both arousal and reward, that kind of one-two punch, that really helps kids with ADHD when they take this medication,” says Dr. Benjamin Kay, a pediatric neurologist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the study’s lead author.
About 3.5 million children in the U.S. take an ADHD medication, and the number is rising. The findings suggest that ADHD hyperactivity may be less about excess movement and more about seeking reward.
To learn more, see the study results here.
