Researchers have established a link between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and depression, reports canada.com.
According to the study, 18 per cent of children who were diagnosed with ADHD between the ages of 4 to 6 were depressed as adolescents—about ten times higher than adolescents without ADHD.
About five per cent of these children with an early ADHD diagnosis thought about committing suicide at least once, and were twice as likely as other children to have tried it.
Researchers at the universities in Chicago and Pittsburgh followed 123 children diagnosed with ADHD at age of 4 to 6 for 14 years, until they reached age 18 to 20.
Last week, British researchers reported finding direct evidence that ADHD is a genetic disorder, which should help dispel myths about high-sugar diets, bad parenting, or psychological labelling for normal exuberance.