Do you think that ADHD is a disorder that is created by our current society?

Question

In today's society, it seems that we are bombarded with a ton of information in a short amount of time, which is fine for adults with developed brains. If you were to watch television or movies, they cut away to different scenes quite often and skip through months and years in a short time span. If parents tend to plop their small children in front of a television, these children are bombarded with many different images (cut scenes, etc.) in a short time span. If they get used to their focus constantly being shifted during these shows, then for them, does that become the norm? Then you put them in a classroom where they have to focus on one subject at a time, and a classroom that does not change, but remains the same, unlike how they had to process these shows that they were watching, hence boredom and a lack of focus. I know that there are other causes as well, but I was wondering if anybody had any links regarding studies done on a link between television and ADHD.

Instead of created, I should have said exacerbated. I just couldn't think of the word at the time, so I apologize. Wisdom?, if you are really a psychiatrist, do you think that ADHD is an overly diagnosed disorder? I am a therapist at a residential facility, and it seems like every child that comes in, was labeled with ADHD at some point in time, along with several other diagnoses. Thank you all for the responses, they are all very interesting and informative.

This is just a question to spurn discussion. I deal with these children and families every day, and they have helped me understand what you are talking about and how difficult it can be for the child and the parents. My question refers to children before the age of two, when their neural connections are rapidly developing, not children who have already been diagnosed with ADHD. I unfortunately did not have enough space to specify an age range. Anncinn, I'm sorry that you took it so harshly. It was not aimed to offend, but just to gather opinions, and it is not necessarily my own personal viewpoint.

Found a study done in 2004 that indicates a link between hours watched between the ages of 0 and 3 and an increased likelihood of developing ADHD.

http://www.neuropsychiatryreviews.com/may04/npr_may04_excessiveTV.html

http://www.whitedot.org/issue/iss_story.asp?slug=ADHD%20Toddlers

Answer 1

The evidence is clear... it is clearly a medical condition; however, environment plays a significant role. Environments with excessive amounts of noise, movement, activity, flashing lights (mostly schools) tend to worsen the symptoms. Also, homes with limited structure and routine, inconsistent rules, no follow through on consequences and and poor parenting models, have a higher incidence rate for it.

Having lived in other countries around the world, ADHD shows up there too.

Is it over-diagnosed? This is a tough one... there are several masquerade or mimic syndromes, such as bipolar manic type, learning disability that expresses itself as ADHD, and others that make diagnosis difficult. On the other hand, there are many children who have not been identified as having ADHD, while they may have it. As one parent said below me, it does show up even in their infancy at times, and is very disheartening. Our field is hardly exact, unlike suturing a wound or medicating for Lupus, where the diagnosis and meds can be more definitive. There are many in the mental health profession, for example, that still doubt some diagnosis, such as those in the personality disorders range, or differentiating high functioning autism from Asperger syndrome.

In our practice, I don't know of any child that has been diagnosed with ADHD below 36 months, and we see approx. 300 children at any given time (>1000 in a year), much of this due the fact that most aren't identified until they hit the school system.

Answer 2

Wow! Your question, and most of the responders, are unbelievable! Have you ever lived with a child who has adhd? First of all, it's not very easy to get them to sit down for long peiods of time to watch tv to be able to say that it has an effect! Second, as the mother of a child who has adhd, I can tell you that I have always monitored his sugar, caffeine, and saturated fat intake since long before his diagnosis because from around age 3, I knew that something definately differed from him and my other 2 children. Adhd is a very real medical condition, and thank goodness there are still doctors out there who agree! My son has been on medication for the disorder since age 7. He went from failing everything, to now at age 11, being an honor student, and he is not zombie like, and he doesn't stare off, he is a normal 11 year old boy, with normal energy and normal eating habits.

Until you have dealt with an adhd child in your life, please don't make uneducated statements about a very real disorder that you don't seem to know all that much about. I tell you what, spend a week with an unmedicated child who has adhd. Don't give them the wrong foods, and don't let them watch tv, and see if you still feel the same way! I'm willing to bet you won't!

Answer 3

You are a good self starter and thinker . Certainly the causes of the disorders are in each type of social structure. I am not convinced that a ton of information is to blame all by itself. The forever stress of human society is behind it all and is basically the same as a hundred years ago. The struggle is being able to relearn life's simple needs of love and worth. We don't do well when life goes astray. Divorce, cruelty and peer fighting all bring a reaction of withdrawal from life for youth. The maturing youth are bombarded with depression from beliefs that have been learned in error. Nothing looks right. Life is not fair and the end result is more emotional disorder. Yes life fifty or a hundred years back was slower and time for recovery by yourself was more possible. But the new techniques of medication to slow everything down and dull the brain allow some hope for so many. If you had to dream in a field of hay or in front of a TV it is still daydreaming.

Answer 4

ADHD has always existed. It's just that only recently has medical studies put a name to it.
Haven't you noticed when you were in school, there was always that kid in the class who could not listen or sit still?
Yes, sometimes it is due to bad parenting, but sometimes that kid has awesome parents yet no ability to stay still.
My daughter, before treatment, would suffer physical pain and itching if she attempted to sit still, and then get embarrassed by her own actions when she would move about.
She has an age-old disorder that did not need a medical name to exist.
It was only about 20 years ago that Alzheimer's disease was given a name, even though it had existed for a long time before then.
To answer your title question, no, ADHD was not "created" by anything current, because it has been around for a long time.
However, I am sure the fast-paced TV shows can make concentration harder for kids with ADHD to learn.

Answer 5

I think you've hit one of the nails squarely on the head. Now add to that the junk foods a lot of these kids are eating (high in sugar and carbohydrates), and the fact that there's nowhere for them to burn off all that stored energy. Now add the fact that there is practically no physical education or games that kids used to play (tag, dodge ball, etc.) because of political correctness, and so on.... then there are the teachers... not willing to put a little extra time for "problem kids" wanting them instead to be drugged up with prozac or ritalin, and then the parents who don't have time for their average two and one half children to burn off that energy at home or teach them any values. It's no wonder kids nowadays are labled and troubled. Wish I had some links to guide you to, but good luck in your search.

Answer 6

I think that our society does make it worse but I don't know that it causes it. My friend's son has ADHD. The one thing that has really worked to help him is a steady routine. pretty much every week the routines are the same and it helped to calm him quite a bit. I think today's society of trying to cram so much in and pushing our schedules to the limit the idea of a steady routine isn't always possible.

Answer 7

i don't think its the total cause. it can defiantly make it worse though. i have had adhd all of my life and i don't think that tv plays that much of a role in it. the major cause of it is genetics and head trauma. people with this disorder have lower blood circulation than a person without it. also people with adhd have a much faster glucose metabolism than a person without it thus creating the "hyperness". if a person has adhd watching tv can make it worse but cannot cause it in a person that does not.

Answer 8

Have you tried WEB MD?

As for your question I definitely feel society is partially to blame for adhd, but it also has alot to do with genetics as well.

If we could just harnass the energy expended on each episode then our society we be a much better place.

Answer 9

I've heard it's not only caused by too much tv but also eating too much garbage like foods with preservatives and other man made garbage.