The Basics of Childhood ADD/ADHD

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) affect a child's ability to concentrate, learn, and maintain a normal level of activity. According to the American Psychiatric Association, childhood ADD is shown in children who display an inappropriate attention span, are too impulsive, and sometimes are deemed hyperactive given their age. Childhood ADD/ADHD can be diagnosed either with or without hyperactivity. Childhood Attention Deficit Disorder affects from three (3) to ten (10) percent of all children in America. Some studies estimate that about 20 percent of the population will eventually be diagnosed with ADD. Childhood Attention Deficit Disorder is about 10 times more common in boys.

Childhood Attention Deficit Disorder often develops before the age of seven but is most often diagnosed when the child is between ages eight and 10. The younger the child is when diagnosed, the more serious forms of Attention Deficit Disorder he or she is likely to exhibit. In reverse, when older children or ADHD teenagers are diagnosed, they generally exhibit a less serious form of the disorder. ADD shows up most readily in situations where the child is required to work independently or in a group setting. One-on-one situations or situations that are new to the child tend not to display ADD behaviors as much.

Childhood Attention Deficit Disorder is often called by various names, including hyperactivity, minimal brain dysfunction, minimal brain damage, and hyperkinetic syndrome.

No single cause for childhood Attention Deficit Disorder is known. As with depression, scientists suspect that a combination of heredity, environment, and biological problems contribute to the development of the disorder. For example, studies which have focused on parenting an ADHD child show that some parents of children with ADD/ADHD also were diagnosed as having the illness themselves.