Hyperactive Children Should Be More Active To Avoid Obesity In Adolescence

March 4, 2014: 12:00 AM EST

An eight-year study in Finland that followed children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has found a significantly higher risk of obesity among ADHD kids by age 16. Children with ADHD were more sedentary as teenagers. The study followed 7,000 Finnish children, about nine percent of whom were diagnosed with ADHD. Oddly enough, given that the disorder has to do with “hyperactivity”, a key factor in the onset of obesity among ADHD teenagers was their lack of activity. “We think encouraging children with ADHD to be more physically active could improve their behavior problems as well as help them stay a healthy weight,” the researchers concluded.

Natasha Khalife et al., "Childhood Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms Are Risk Factors for Obesity and Physical Inactivity in Adolescence. ", Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, March 04, 2014, © American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

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Hyperactive Children Should Be More Active To Avoid Obesity In Adolescence

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