Children with ADHD at risk for binge eating, study shows
Though many children with ADHD may lose weight when treated with the stimulant drugs regularly prescribed to control it, ADHD also has been associated with overweight and obesity in this population, explains study leader Shauna P. Reinblatt, M.D., assistant professor in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The cause of the excessive weight, however, has remained unclear, but experts have suspected a link between the hallmark impulsivity of ADHD and dysregulation or loss of control over appetite and food consumption. To investigate that possible connection , Reinblatt and her colleagues recruited 79 children between the ages of 8 and 14 from the greater Baltimore area. Each of these children underwent assessment that included objective measures and interviews. Researchers also incorporated parental reports to help diagnose or rule out ADHD or LOC-ES, the diagnostic criteria for which are similar to binge eating disorder ...