Why ADHD Deniers are Talking Rubbish — Tell Them to Read This
We have heard them all — the flat earthers, anti-vaxxers, chemtrail terrorists or the ADHD deniers. Read this to get some facts that they cannot deny and they might, if you are lucky, shut up.
Is ADHD really a condition? Or just something invented by pharmaceutical companies to make millions of dollars from it? The answer is that yes, it really is a neurological condition although some people prefer to call it a mental disorder. There are over 100,000 articles on ADHD research so do not believe it when people say that ADHD is a myth. This research started in 1775 and is still ongoing. It is real! The following distinguished bodies have all confirmed that this condition exists and needs to be treated:
- American Medical Association (AMA)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
Add in countless other research bodies, medical associations, neurological research agencies, psychological and psychiatric bodies and many, many more who have all confirmed that this condition really does exist. They also point out that it may be much more prevalent in the adult population than we think, simply because it has gone undiagnosed in childhood. Many kids just slip through the net.
Scientists get mad at media.
Some years ago, a group of 75 scientists, doctors and researchers got so mad at media reports that ADHD was an invented condition that they issued the following statement. Read this and you will, I am sure, be able to counteract any ADHD deniers you might meet. And you will meet them!
“To publish stories that ADHD is a fictitious disorder or merely a conflict between today’s Huckleberry Finns and their caregivers is tantamount to declaring the earth flat, the laws of gravity debatable, and the periodic table in chemistry a fraud.”
What causes ADHD?
The most frequently asked question by parents about what causes ADHD in children is whether any situation in the home life of the child or bad parenting could be responsible. We can reassure parents that their parenting is NOT the cause. But we need to warn them that unless there are effective parenting skills in place when the child has ADHD, there is a strong chance that the child will have to go through all their life with this condition.
Chemicals in the brain are out of sync!
What causes ADHD could actually be a chemical imbalance in the brain and that means that the brain does not function at its maximum capacity leading to many well-known problems associated with ADHD such as inattention, hyperactivity, squirming and impulsivity. These might well be present in any normal spirited child but in ADHD they tend to interfere with the child’s development, lack of social skills, inattention, and sometimes defiant behavior.
Children with ADHD may have smaller brains
Researchers have actually found that ADHD children’s brains are about 3% or 4% smaller than those of normal children and this could result from certain areas not being fully developed. Then there are a whole series of arguments linking the cause of ADHD to diet and media exposure but these are neither valid nor true. These two latter factors can exacerbate symptoms but they are certainly not what causes ADHD in children.
Genetic cause?
Scientists at the First Moscow State Medical University have discovered that two genes may be what causes ADHD and this would strengthen the genetic origin and or hereditary link. There is a strong correlation between the two although more studies need to be done. As there are so many symptoms of ADHD which range from inattention to depression, impulsive behavior, and hyperactivity, it would seem that there are many genes involved. We are just at the beginning here in trying to understand what causes ADHD. Just last year, research at the University of Barcelona with an international team of scientists has confirmed what may be the first genetic map of ADHD.
If I have ADHD, is my child at risk?
Do YOU have ADHD? Have you ever thought about this possibility is a genetic condition and that you might pass it on to your child? According to the WebMD site:
“If a parent has ADHD, a child has more than a 50% chance of having it. If an older sibling has it, a child has more than a 30% chance.”
The genetic link is, therefore, a probable element in what causes ADHD. It is a fact that many parents when they get their children diagnosed with ADHD discover that they have the condition themselves which is a two-edged sword.
It may give them a certain empathy with the child in trying to cope but on the other hand, they will be severely handicapped when it comes to providing structure and organization in family life.