Medicine; Hyperactivity, grown up; ADHD is most often thought of as a childhood disorder, but many adults must learn to cope with its distractions. Prescription drugs and to-do lists can help.
With researchers looking for the genes behind ADHD, it’s also clear that it’s a biological, inherited disorder. It is not, as had been once thought, “caused by bad parenting or weak character,” said Dr. David W. Goodman, a psychiatrist and adult ADHD specialist at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who also consults for companies that make ADHD drugs. “It is a neurological condition validated by medical research whose impairments can be reduced by effective treatment.”
Adults with ADHD live lives characterized by “unexplained underachievement,” said [Ned Hallowell], who is the author, with Dr. John J. Ratey, of several books on ADHD, including “Driven to Distraction” and “Delivered From Distraction.”
[Susan Smalley]’s lab is searching among families with ADHD worldwide for the genes that predispose to ADHD. She has estimated that at least 20 to 30 genes are probably linked to ADHD, some of which are involved in the regulation of dopamine, a natural brain chemical that plays a role in attention.
