People with high levels of ADHD symptoms are more likely than people with high levels of autistic features to feel anxious and hopeless, according to a recent study by psychologists at the University of Bath in the UK.
This study is the first to demonstrate that ADHD has greater predictive power for poor adult mental health outcomes than other neurodevelopmental disorders like autism.
ADHD On Poor Mental Health
Up until now, there hasn’t been much study on how the condition affects mental health, with the majority of studies concentrating on how autism affects depression, anxiety, and quality of life. As a result, sufferers frequently fail to get the therapeutic care they require to manage their symptoms.
Luca Hargitai, the study’s principal investigator, said: “Scientists have long recognized that autism is associated to anxiety and melancholy, but ADHD has been relatively disregarded. Blue Monday is the third Monday in January and is sometimes referred to as the most depressing day of the year.
The new study, which was conducted in cooperation with King’s College London, the Universities of Bath, Bristol, and Cardiff, is published this week in the prominent journal Scientific Reports. It occurs in the same month as Johnny Vegas and Sue Perkins, two British television stars, disclosed their recent diagnosis.
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Researchers Find Hope For This Condition
In order to enhance the mental health outcomes for those who have ADHD, the study’s authors hope that their results will spur more research into the illness. Impulsivity, hyperactivity, and/or inattention are hallmarks of ADHD, a neurodevelopmental condition. It is estimated that the sickness affects 3% to 9% of the population.
Through the Prolific website, the researchers located 504 adult volunteers in the UK (51% women and 49% men). They were between the ages of 18 and 79. They all completed the industry-recognized tests for diagnosing and distinguishing autism and ADHD features.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, from 2016 to 2019, around 9.8% of children in the US received a diagnosis. The National Institute of Mental Health reported that 4.4% of adults worldwide suffer from adult ADHD.
Women are now diagnosed with ADHD at a lower rate (3.2%) than men (5.4%). Since the projected lifetime frequency of ADHD is presently 8.1% in the U.S., much more individuals have been diagnosed with it.
Due to a shortage of skilled psychiatrists and psychologists with expertise in neurodevelopmental disorders, acquiring a diagnosis for an adult with high levels of ADHD symptoms continues to be difficult.
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