Madrid (EFE) (ADHD).
These are some of the data provided on the occasion of the commemoration of International ADHD Day by different associations that have also highlighted that adults with this disease have a three times greater risk of developing a substance use disorder.
ADHD, a chronic neurodevelopmental disorder, affects between 4% and 10% of the population; and although it is usually associated with childhood, 65% of children continue to present adult symptoms and only 10% of adults receive treatment.
Addictions in adults
Compared with adults without any pathology, up to 15% of people diagnosed with ADHD may develop gambling disorders, which is higher than the average for the general population.
It is the alert of the Spanish Society of Digestive Pathology (SEPD) that emphasizes that the problems of lack of attention and motivation of people with this disorder can increase the vulnerability to seek “immediate gratification” through substances, since impulsivity It can lead “to making quick and ill-considered decisions.”
“Several of the characteristics that these people present are impulsiveness, the search for stimulation, deficient self-regulation and attention and motivation problems”, comments the psychiatrist and member of the SEPD Committee, Ignacio Basurte.
For this reason, he insists on early treatment and education about the risks, although he emphasizes that not all people with ADHD develop addictive behaviors.
sleep problems in children
ADHD also affects the sleep of half of the children diagnosed, according to the Spanish Sleep Society (SES), which explains that they tend to fall asleep later at night and this causes their condition to worsen during the day.
“They sleep fewer hours and during the day they are more irritable, hyperactive and have concentration problems”, according to the Society, which also details that they may suffer nocturnal awakenings and a more fragmented sleep, as well as episodes of sleepwalking or night terrors and “legs” syndrome. restless”.
ADHD and screens
With 6.8% of children and adolescents affected by ADHD, the psychiatrist at Hospital Parc Taulí in Sabadell warns of the direct relationship between this disorder and the abusive use of screens during childhood.
He insists that screens are not recommended at an early age because “brain development is very active” and has stressed that ADHD, in addition to genetics, is influenced by factors such as smoking, drinking or taking drugs during pregnancy, infections, maternal stress or prematurity, as well as environmental factors or suffering violence or abuse in childhood.
