Two-thirds of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ADHD are likely to have the condition into adulthood. Adults may be calmer but still have trouble with organization and impulsivity. Stimulant and nonstimulant medications are used to treat ADHD. Stimulants are considered the first-line choice for treatment. They help adjust the levels of two chemical messengers in your brain called norepinephrine and dopamine. Stimulants increase the amounts of norepinephrine and dopamine that are available to your brain. This allows you to increase your focus. It is thought that norepinephrine causes the main action and dopamine reinforces it.
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Although there is a significant amount of research on medication treatment for children with ADHD, much less controlled research data has been conducted on medication therapy in adults. However, medication improves attention and reduces impulsivity in adults who have been correctly diagnosed with ADHD. Adults with ADHD may also frequently have other conditions such as depression or anxiety that may require additional treatment. Thus, it is not like an antibiotic that may cure a bacterial infection, but more like eyeglasses that help to improve vision only during the time the eyeglasses are actually worn. Medications that most effectively improve the core symptoms of ADHD seem primarily and directly to affect certain neurotransmitters brain molecules that facilitate the transmission of messages from one neuron [brain cell] to another.
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In the traditional medical and psychiatric communities, stimulant medications are considered first-line treatments for attention-deficit disorder ADD , also known as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder ADHD. From , total stimulant usage doubled, according to a study in Plos One. Many alternatives to ADD medication have been found to reduce ADD symptoms, which include short attention span, distractibility, procrastination, disorganization, problems with follow-through, and poor impulse control. This is good news for the 6 million children and 4.
A lot of adults do not know that they have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ADHD. The symptoms of ADHD can affect adults as well as children, even among people who did receive a diagnosis when they were young. People with ADHD have difficulty concentrating and are easily distracted. According to some research , many adults with ADHD symptoms do not receive a diagnosis of the condition.
