Possible Causes
Out of all possibilities, the most believed one is that ADHD is genetic.
Possible Genetic Cause
Repeated research has shown that ADHD runs in families.In Pediatric Annals, it talks about how an adult
with ADHD gives their child a 25% chance of also having ADHD.There are indications that the ADHD type
that runs into adulthood is more highly genetic.
If there is a family history of alcoholism or other mood disorders, they are likely to be associated with an increased risk of ADHD.This could mean that there is some type of genetic commonality between these disorders.
Even though the real cause of ADHD is unknown, some researchers think it is due to many different things.Overall studies have shown that genetics explain the majority of children with ADHD-like behavior exhibited by kids, while environmental factors explain only approximately 20% of this behavior type.
Other Possible Causes
There have been different theories about how
parents are to blame in some way for their kid's
behavior.Some of the most common are:
- Food/Diet
- Too much television watching or video-game playing
- Hormones
- Poor Parenting
These things were thought to be causes of ADHD because they seemed to connect.Parents said that when they gave their kids sugar or certain other foods, they acted more hyper, and strict diets seemed to change the effect of hyperactivity.Professionals who witnessed the uncontrolled behavior said that there must be something wrong with the parenting methods.Kids with hyperactivity appear to watch more television and play more video games than other kids.It appeared possible that the emotion inherent in ADHD could come from some kind of hormonal imbalance, much like the moodiness of puberty.
Anyhow, intense studies have failed to show that any of these observed associations were causes of ADHD.They also couldn't modify the symptoms of ADHD by any of these factors.Example:in difference to parental beliefs, sugar didn't make kids significantly more hyperactive.In fact, no diet was found to reduce ADHD symptoms.Parenting methods didn't make the symptoms any better; in fact, parental frustration was found to be an effect, not a cause, of ADHD.Also, overactive television watching and video game playing was noted to be a symptom, not a cause, of ADHD.This helps kids with the disorder because it is a form of stimulation that helps them to sustain focus and to control their inner feelings of agitation similar to that at work with medication.
More and more it appears that ADHD is a neurological disorder that needs a medical diagnosis and treatment.