While there is no known direct cause of schizophrenia, many factors are known to increase the risk of schizophrenia. Some schizophrenia risk factors occur before a person is even born, while others are what are known as psychosocial risk factors – or those that are part of one’s psychology and life. No single risk factor causes schizophrenia but when added together, risk factors can come together and manifest the mental illness.

Prenatal Schizophrenia Risk Factors

Many risk factors for schizophrenia take place in utero or before. The number one risk factor for schizophrenia is family history. If a person has a first-degree relative with schizophrenia, their risk of having the illness is between 6% to 13% except in the case of twins where the risk of schizophrenia is about 17% for fraternal twins and almost 50% for identical twins.¹ The presence of epilepsy in the family history also increases the risk of schizophrenia. (More on schizophrenia genetics)

Other known schizophrenia risk factors that occur before birth include:²

• Lead and other toxin exposure during pregnancy
• Exposure to some illnesses and parasites (like the toxoplasmosis parasite) during pregnancy
• Malnutrition during pregnancy
• Having an older father
• Birth complications
• Being born during winter months
• Abnormalities in the brain

Additional Schizophrenia Risk Factors

Once a person is born, there can be additional risk factors for schizophrenia. Again, each risk factor does not lead to schizophrenia directly, but is known to correlate to a higher chance of getting schizophrenia.

Additional schizophrenia risk factors include:

• Living in a city in a more developed country
• Drug use
• Highly traumatic or stressful events in childhood
• Drop in childhood IQ
• Having obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Being left-handed

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It’s important to understand real schizophrenia statistics and facts because myths about schizophrenia and misinformation are so common around this mental illness. Misinformation about schizophrenia leads to a stigma surrounding the disease; which is the last thing the sufferers need.

Facts About Schizophrenia

The first thing to understand about schizophrenia is that while the word literally means, “split mind,” schizophrenia is not a split personality or multiple personalities. Schizophrenia is a debilitating mental illness characterized by hallucinations, delusions and confused speech or behavior. Schizophrenia is not known to be a violent illness.

Schizophrenia Rates - Who Gets Schizophrenia?

Schizophrenia can affect anyone but the typical age of diagnosis is from the late teenage years to the mid-30s. There is an incidence of schizophrenia in about 1-out-of-100 people. More schizophrenia facts include:¹

• Men and women have equal rates of schizophrenia
• Men may manifest symptoms of schizophrenia earlier than women
• Usually 1-2 years pass after the initial symptoms of schizophrenia before diagnosis
• Children and people over 45 rarely get schizophrenia (more on schizophrenia in children)
• All races show equal incidence of schizophrenia
• Schizophrenia was once more diagnosed in people of color but this is attributed to cultural bias

Living with Schizophrenia

Many people with schizophrenia are successfully treated and go on to live productive, healthy lives. People with schizophrenia, particularly untreated though, do carry additional risks. Information on risks associated with schizophrenia includes:

• Percentage of adults with schizophrenia who will die by suicide: about 10%
• Risk of violence in schizophrenia is very small unless there are additional substance abuse issues
• Delusions of persecution may also increase the risk for violence

Facts on Schizophrenia and Drug Use

Experts do not believe that drug use causes schizophrenia but there is a link between drug use and schizophrenia. Schizophrenics are far more likely to suffer from substance abuse problems than the general population. In fact, the percentage of schizophrenics who smoke is 75% - 90% compared to 25% - 30% of the general population. Researchers are not sure why, but people with schizophrenia seem to be driven to smoke and may have a harder time quitting.²

More schizophrenia and drug use facts include:

• Using substances can worsen schizophrenia symptoms
• Marijuana is known to increase the rates of psychosis
• Using substances can decrease the effectiveness of schizophrenia treatments

Statistics on Schizophrenia Outcomes

The vast majority of people with schizophrenia respond to treatment and live normal lives in the community. Statistics on people ten years after their initial psychotic break include:³

• 25% of people have experienced recovery
• 25% are much improved and living independently
• 25% are improved but require constant support
• Children and people over 45 rarely get schizophrenia
• 15% are hospitalized
• 10% are dead, mostly of suicide caused by schizophrenia

Similar schizophrenia statistics are seen after 30 years:

• 25% of people have experienced recovery
• 35% are much improved and living independently
• 15% are improved but require constant support
• 10% are hospitalized
• 15% are dead, mostly of suicide

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The history of schizophrenia is somewhat debatable as the term “schizophrenia” didn’t come into being until around 1908. What we do know is that forms of “madness” have been noted throughout medical history and likely some of these conditions are what we would recognize as schizophrenia today. In the early days of psychiatry, no distinctions were made between different types of madness.

The term “schizophrenia” literally means a splitting of the mind, which is unfortunate because this gives the impression that schizophrenia is a multiple personality or split personality disorder, which isn’t true. The term schizophrenia was chosen to denote the separation between personality, thinking, memory and perception.

Who Discovered Schizophrenia?

The word “schizophrenia” was coined by Eugen Bleuler, a Swiss psychiatrist but this isn’t when schizophrenia was discovered. It’s thought its predecessor, dementia praecox, was the first medical description of what we think of as modern schizophrenia.¹ Bleuler documented schizophrenia’s “positive” and “negative” symptoms – terms we still use today.

Dementia praecox, a term first used in Latin, was discovered, or described, around 1891 by Arnold Pick, a professor of psychiatry at the German branch of Charles University in Prague. This discovery is often attributed to German psychiatrist, Emil Kraepelin, as he popularized the concept. Kraeplin divided dementia praecox into hebephrenia, catatonia and paranoid dementia subtypes, which are similar to the subtypes of schizophrenia classifications seen today.²

Modern History of Schizophrenia

While schizophrenia treatment once consisted of exorcisms and insulin shock treatment, the major breakthrough in the history of schizophrenia treatment came in 1952. That’s when Henri Laborit, a Parisian surgeon, discovered that chlorpromazine (Thorazine, now known as an antipsychotic) effectively treated the symptoms of schizophrenia. This discovery ushered in a time when people with schizophrenia were no longer confined to asylums (or mental hospitals) but could live in the community.

In the 1970s, as growing numbers of people with schizophrenia were being successfully treated with antipsychotic medication, groups and programs began to emerge to support them. Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) was developed to help these individuals and its programs are still in use and considered the “gold standard” for service delivery today. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) also came into being in the 1970s to fight for the rights of those with a mental illness.³

Atypical antipsychotics, or second-generation antipsychotics, are now more commonly used to treat schizophrenia as they are thought to have a more tolerable side effect profile than first-generation antipsychotics. Psychosocial therapies are now also used to treat schizophrenia. Psychosocial interventions include:

• Family therapy
• Supported employment
• Skills training
• Cognitive behavioral therapy
• And others

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You may not need anxiety attack treatment if you've only had one or two episodes. People who have experienced multiple or repeated episodes of anxiety attacks may have one of many anxiety disorders and should seek help from a medical professional. Typically, doctors and mental health professionals treat anxiety attacks with medication and certain types of psychotherapy.

Types of Anxiety Attack Treatment

With the right anxiety attack treatment strategy in place, you can live a productive, fulfilling life despite the anxiety attacks. Imagine not feeling incapacitated by excessive worries and fears. How would your life improve if you could learn to focus your energy on living life, rather than constantly thinking about what might happen and what might go wrong? The specific type of treatment required depends upon the type of anxiety attack as well as external and internal factors (triggers, history, other co-existing conditions).

Medications Used to Treat Anxiety Attacks

Medications used to treat anxiety attacks alone cannot cure you of having these debilitating episodes, but are most effective when taken in conjunction with an appropriate psychotherapy program. Your physician might prescribe the medications and then refer you to a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other counselor experienced in treating anxiety attacks with psychotherapy; or, if you see a psychiatrist straight away, he or she can both prescribe the medication and provide psychotherapy. Doctors prescribe medicines from several different pharmacological classes, depending on your specific type of anxiety, to treat the attacks.

Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) – these are among the safest, and newest class of antidepressants. You may know many of them by their brand names: Prozac®, Zoloft®, Lexapro®, Paxil® and Celexa®. Doctors frequently prescribe these for a number of anxiety disorders including, panic disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and social anxiety disorders.

Tricyclics – These work just as well as SSRIs do to treat anxiety attacks and disorders, but are not as new and come with more possible side effects. Available under the brand names Tofranil® and Anafranil®, physicians and patients find them effective in treating generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and OCD, respectively.

Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs) – These represent the oldest class of antidepressant drugs. Doctors don't prescribe these as frequently as in the past, due to the availability of newer, safer options. MAOIs can interact dangerously with over-the-counter medications and cause an unacceptable rise in blood pressure. But, sometimes they are the best choice for an individual patient. Sold under the brands Nardil®, Parnate®, and Marplan®, these are effective as anxiety attack treatments for panic disorder and social anxiety disorder (social phobia).

Anti-Anxiety Drugs - Anti-anxiety medications from the benzodiazepine class of drugs have few side effects, but are highly addictive and have a high potential for abuse. These work for quick relief of symptoms, when you're in the middle of an anxiety attack. They help you get-a-grip on yourself, so to speak, but don't work at all to prevent attacks. Physicians prescribe these sparingly and usually only at the beginning of treatment, when you haven't yet had enough therapy to develop tools for controlling your anxiety. You may know these by the brand names Klonopin®, Xanax®, and Ativan®.

Therapy Used in Anxiety Attack Treatment

An important component of successful anxiety attack treatment involves psychotherapy. Anxiety attacks respond well to both cognitive-behavioral therapy and exposure therapy. Both focus on changing behavior rather than examining your underlying psychological structure, stemming from conflicts and past events. If you're seeing a therapist for anxiety attacks and he or she is providing one of these two types of therapy, expect to attend sessions for 5 to 20 weeks, depending on the severity of your issues.

During cognitive therapy, the therapist will ask you to focus on your thoughts (leading up to and during an attack) and behaviors. He or she will then help you identify the negative thought patterns and unreasonable beliefs that feed into your anxiety, eventually resulting in an attack.

Exposure therapy will challenge you by requiring that you confront your fears, such as performing on stage or talking to your boss about a raise or employee conflict, in a safe environment. Imagine that you're an accomplished violinist, but have a profound fear of performing on stage and sharing your talent. With exposure therapy, your therapist may first ask you to perform in a closed stage environment, where he or she is the only audience. Next, you'll perform in front of a few carefully selected, trusted friends and family. You'll keep stepping up the challenge until finally, you can perform on stage in front of a group of complete strangers.

Stop Worrying About What to Do For Anxiety Attacks

If you're tired of excessive worry, fears and beliefs controlling your life and calling the shots, get help and stop worrying about what to do for anxiety attacks. Safe, effective help is available – but it's up to you to take the first step toward helping yourself.

See Also:

• Dealing with an Anxiety Attack and How to Get Relief
• How to Stop an Anxiety Attack
• How to Prevent Anxiety Attacks
• Can You Cure an Anxiety Attack?

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What is an anxiety attack? First, you need to know what an anxiety attack is not. An anxiety attack is not the same thing as a panic attack. Whereas a panic attack can come on suddenly – out of the blue – people having an anxiety attack know that their worries and anxieties have been brewing for some time prior to the attack.

What Is an Anxiety Attack?

The following vignette answers the question: What is an anxiety attack? If you've ever had relationship issues, or serious financial concerns, you're familiar with the worry and nervousness that you feel while dealing with them. The worry may build up over time and you may avoid dealing with the problems because of how upset or nervous they make you. While you may realize that things would probably get better if you dealt with the problems up front, the thought of confronting them makes you nauseous or shaky. This is classic anxiety.

An anxiety attack may occur when you're forced to confront the issues – you may become overwhelmed with nervousness, your heart may start racing, you could break out in a cold sweat, feel restless, or have feelings of dread. This describes some of what it may feel like to have an anxiety attack.

Difference Between an Anxiety Attack and Panic Attack

People suffering from panic attacks feel as if they're going crazy, losing control, about to die of a heart attack or from choking. Most of the time, the fear and terror that bring on a panic attack are unfounded. Anxiety attacks, on the other hand, usually develop due to a real fear, such as a fear of performing on stage, talking to the boss, family problems, or financial issues.

The outward symptoms of anxiety attacks are similar to those of panic attacks, which is what leads to the confusion. Anxiety attack symptoms, like symptoms of panic attack, can include breaking out into a cold sweat, nausea, racing heartbeat, dizziness, and trembling. Internally, though, the person having a panic attack has unfounded fears and terror that are triggered by unrelated, and usually unthreatening, circumstances or situations. The worries associated with anxiety attacks, while possibly overblown, usually stem from real issues and circumstances.

Symptoms of Anxiety Attacks

The primary symptoms of anxiety attacks are excessive and irrational fear and worry over a real event or situation. In addition to these primary symptoms, health care professionals classify other common symptoms into two groups – those with an emotional component and those with a physical component.

Emotional Symptoms of Anxiety Attack

• Difficulty concentrating
• Restlessness
• Feelings of dread
• Irritability
• Feeling as if your mind suddenly blanks out about certain information
• Anticipations of the worst (extreme negativity)
• Feeling edgy or extremely tense

Physical Symptoms of Anxiety Attack

• Racing heartbeat
• Shaking and trembling
• Nausea
• Dizziness
• Shortness of breath (hyperventilating)
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Insomnia
• Muscle tension and soreness
• Sweating (even in cool temperatures)
• Skin rashes
• Dry mouth

It's normal to feel anxious over certain situations in life – like asking for a raise, dealing with financial concerns, or news that a loved one has a serious illness. Anxiety can also provide you with the energy and gumption you need to escape from a dangerous situation or get things done under time constraints. But excessive anxiety and worry over these and other things can disrupt your life and greatly reduce the quality of life you're living.

If you spend time worrying excessively or needlessly over little things, or things that might occur, and have repeatedly experienced the symptoms of anxiety attacks above, you should seek professional help. Safe, effective treatment for these uncomfortable attacks is available.

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This ADD quiz / ADHD quiz is for parents of children who might have attention deficit disorder (see ADD, ADHD Definition). If you suspect your child may have this mental health condition, please answer the ADHD quiz questions and share the results of this ADD child quiz with your pediatrician.

While no substitute for a physician's evaluation and diagnosis, this ADD quiz can help you determine whether your child's ADHD signs and behaviors warrant a doctor visit for further evaluation.

Take ADD Quiz (for Parents of Children Age 6-9)

When answering the ADD quiz questions, you want to compare your child's behaviors to other typical children of the same age. And the behaviors, or what you might consider ADHD symptoms, should have been taking place for at least 6 months. If the time period is less than 6 months, your child may have another mental health problem such as depression or anxiety.

Answer each question with a rating of 1-4

1 Does not apply to my child

2 Occasionally true in describing my child

3 This often describes my child's behavior or trait

4 A very good description of my child's behavior or trait

My child:

1. Is always on the go, like he's all wound up.

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

2. Difficult to control in shopping situations

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

3. Runs or climbs excessively in situations where it is clearly inappropriate

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

4. Could be described as restless or squirmy

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

5. Has difficulty waiting his/her turn for games or group situations

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

6. Has difficulty playing quietly

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

7. Leaves classroom or situation in which staying seated is expected

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

8. Easily frustrated in situations that require sustained effort

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

9. Short attention span

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

10. Only attends to a task if he/she is very interested

1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4

Scoring the ADD Quiz, ADHD Quiz

Total the scores for all ADD quiz questions.

0-20 Your child does not appear to have the symptoms of ADHD.

21-25 Has some ADHD symptoms.

26-30 Likely to have ADHD-could benefit from further evaluation and testing.

30+ Higher likelihood of having ADHD and should be evaluated.

For ADD help, remember to print out the results of this ADD quiz and take them with you to your child's next doctor visit.

See Also:

• What Is ADD and ADHD? ADD, ADHD Definition
• ADHD Symptoms: Signs and Symptoms of ADHD
• Understanding and Recognizing ADHD in Children
• Recognizing Symptoms of Depression in Teens and Children
• Anxiety and Children: Symptoms, Causes of Childhood Anxiety

Do I have ADHD? You may ask yourself this question when you arrive late to work repeatedly, find yourself daydreaming in important meetings or lose things due to poor organization skills. Taking this free online ADD test / ADHD test may help you decide whether you may have adult attention deficit disorder and need to arrange to see a physician about your concerns. If you suspect your child may have the disorder, you can assess his symptoms by answering the ADHD test questions with your child in mind.

Take ADD Test, ADHD Test

Please keep in mind, no one can self-diagnose a condition as complex as ADHD, but this reliable online ADD and ADHD test may help you determine whether your symptoms fall in the normal category, or need further evaluation by a qualified health care practitioner.

Circle the number that best describes how you have felt and conducted yourself over the past six months. Add up your total and give the completed questionnaire to your healthcare professional during your next appointment to discuss the results.

1. How often do you have difficulty getting things in order when you have to do a task that requires organization?

Never (0) Rarely (1) Sometimes (2) Often (3) Very often (4)

2. When you have a task that requires a lot of thought, how often do you avoid or delay getting started?

Never (0) Rarely (1) Sometimes (2) Often (3) Very often (4)

3. How often are you distracted by activity or noise around you?

Never (0) Rarely (1) Sometimes (2) Often (3) Very often (4)

4. How often do you leave your seat in meetings or other situations in which you are expected to remain seated?

Never (0) Rarely (1) Sometimes (2) Often (3) Very often (4)

5. How often do you feel restless or fidgety?

Never (0) Rarely (1) Sometimes (2) Often (3) Very often (4)

6. How often do you have difficulty waiting your turn in situations when turn-taking is required?

Never (0) Rarely (1) Sometimes (2) Often (3) Very often (4)

Scoring the Online Adult ADHD Test

Total your points from the above adult ADHD test. A score of 11 points or higher indicates that your symptoms may be consistent with Adult ADHD.

You can print out the results of the ADHD test and take them with you to the doctor appointment. Please remember that taking an ADHD test online is no substitute for the evaluation and diagnosis by a licensed health care professional. Frankly discuss the ADHD test results with your (or your child's) physician and follow the doctor's advice carefully.

This online ADD and ADHD test was developed in conjunction with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Workgroup on Adult ADHD and is intended for people ages 18 and older.

See Also:

• What is Adult ADHD? Adult Attention Deficit Disorder
• Adult ADD, ADHD Symptoms and Their Impact
• Finding Adult ADHD Doctors Who Know How to Treat Adult ADHD
• Understanding and Recognizing ADHD in Children
• ADHD Symptoms: Signs and Symptoms of ADHD
• Types of ADHD: Inattentive Type, Hyperactive Type, Combined Type

Some form of adult ADHD support is almost a necessity in being able to successfully deal with the symptoms of this mental illness. Like those with any chronic condition, people with adult ADHD can use support.

ADHD is a lifelong disorder for over half of those diagnosed as children. In addition, due to misinformation, many people become diagnosed with ADHD for the first time as adults because they assume that only children and adolescents suffer from ADHD. Imagine struggling with the symptoms of ADHD through childhood and into adulthood. It can be a wearing, frustrating and depressing experience at times.

An adult ADHD support group can provide much needed emotional support to adults dealing with the disorder and offer tools and strategies to help manage their adult ADHD symptoms. Adults dealing with the symptoms of the condition benefit greatly from adult ADHD support.

What is Adult ADHD Support?

Adult ADHD support usually comes in the form of an organization that seeks to connect people with the disorder to one another. Adults with ADHD often underperform at work, show up late to events, and daydream during lectures or staff meetings. Normal co-workers may treat them differently, making them feel like outcasts. By attending support group meetings, ADHD adults can talk with others dealing with similar challenges. There they can exchange advice, ideas, and strategies that have worked for them and also explain what did not work and why. An adult ADHD support group can alleviate the feelings of isolation and loneliness, often experienced by adults with the condition.

Frequently, these groups have trained counselors to lead the sessions and who bring resource kits and tools to share with the support group members. Resources may include a listing of qualified therapists in the area, local and regional events for adults with ADHD, and information about research breakthroughs and current clinical studies.

Finding an Adult ADHD Support Group

Two national ADHD advocacy and support groups, CHADD and the Attention Deficit Disorder Association, hold regular events and awareness campaigns at the regional level. Their websites also have a listing of local meetings and events. Another popular adult ADHD support group, Living with ADD, holds virtual ADHD conferences and classes. Check their website for details. Search the Internet for other virtual support communities. One community, ADHD Support, sponsored by the pharmaceutical company, Shire, offers a number of educational resources and strategies for coping with ADHD at work. Shire manufactures and sells the ADHD stimulant medication, Vyvanse. Alternatively, people searching for a local support group can ask their therapists (see Adult ADHD Therapy - Could It Help You?) if they know of any groups in the area.

Adult ADHD support provides vital networking and personal connections for adults with ADHD. Nothing can replace the satisfaction and comfort obtained from talking to someone else dealing with the same challenges and difficulties.

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Is ADD support necessary for parents of children with ADHD? Parenting is difficult, even under the best of circumstances. Parenting a child with a neurological disorder, such as ADD and ADHD, comes with unique challenges that sometimes seem impossible to overcome and cope with. An ADD support group can help parents deal with the rocky situations and occasional roadblocks associated with raising an ADHD child.

What Is ADD Support?

The term ADD support refers to a group or organization with a mission centered around helping parents cope with the complexities and challenges of raising a child with the disorder. Depending on the nature of the ADD support group, parents may have access to trained counselors or group facilitators who offer advice, tools, and strategies for managing the behavior of their children (see Finding ADD/ADHD Help), including dealing with hyperactivity and inattentive ADHD behaviors.

Why Do Parents of ADHD Children Need ADHD Support Themselves?

ADHD support provides vital help to parents of children who just received a diagnosis for ADHD and those who have dealt with it for years. Parents of 'normal' children often cannot relate to the challenges of parents whose child has ADHD. Without a network of others who deal with the same challenges and setbacks, parents can begin to feel alone in the struggle and become isolated, exacerbating the frustrations and loneliness they feel while raising their child with ADD. An ADHD support organization has resources and counselors specifically for parents dealing with the challenges of raising an ADHD child.

By connecting and networking with other moms and dads who regularly deal with the same issues, parents can talk about their frustrations with others who understand and learn about new ways to help and support their child. Many of these ADHD support groups hold regular meetings for parents of newly diagnosed children and veterans of dealing with the disorder. They can discuss what tools and strategies have and have not worked for others as well as discover new approaches to behavior management. Finding tools and approaches that work, when others have failed, will empower the child and represent a small victory in the journey of raising an ADHD child.

Finding Parent ADHD Support Groups

The two main national ADHD support groups and advocacy organizations are CHADD and the Attention Deficit Disorder Association hold regional-level networking and educational sessions for ADHD adults and parents of ADHD children. Most public schools and many private schools or community organizations offer programs and networking sessions for parents raising children with ADHD and other special needs. Parents can ask their child's therapist or healthcare provider about ADHD support for parents in their area. Alternatively, many ADHD support groups for parents have online forums where moms and dads can engage in moderated discussions and chats from their home computers. One such group is the ADDitude Forum, an online community of parents and other adults living with the disorder.

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Is there an ADHD cure on the horizon? Is there an ADD cure out there that can help my child or me? If you or your child suffers from the chronic disorder known as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), you may frequently ask yourself these or similar questions. ADHD represents one of the most common disorders of childhood. The condition often persists through adolescence and can continue to adulthood.

Searching for an ADHD Cure

Searching for an ADHD cure is on the minds and hearts of many research scientists today. Children with untreated ADHD struggle socially and academically. Adults, who have the disorder, but remain untreated, exhibit poor occupational performance, poor organization and time management skills, and may have trouble maintaining primary relationships. Despite numerous studies conducted annually that help researchers better understand the underlying mechanisms and causes of ADD; an ADHD cure continues to elude the scientific community.

Effective Treatment – Not an ADD Cure, But Immediate Relief

Currently, stimulant ADD, ADHD medications, therapy for ADHD children, and community ADD support represent the best way to deal with attention deficit disorder in lieu of an actual ADD cure. Stimulant ADHD medications improve the imbalance of certain neurotransmitters in the brain to reduce common ADHD symptoms in both children and adults. Numerous well-conducted research studies show stimulant drugs as the most effective strategy for controlling symptoms and improving academic, social, and occupational performance. Certain people, such as those who do not respond well to various stimulant medications, or who have a history of substance abuse, can now take the non-stimulant drug, Strattera. Research indicates this stimulant alternative as effective in controlling ADD symptoms, but it takes longer for visible improvements to occur.

Beware Claims of ADHD Cures

Steer clear of websites and television or magazine advertisements touting ADHD cures. One such website, which promotes itself as a sort of "earth clinic", claims to have discovered several formulations for people to use as natural ADD cures, cures for chronic fatigue syndrome, and more. Think about these claims logically. If any entity had knowledge of a cure for this chronic disorder, the large pharmaceutical companies and research and development organizations would have already obtained this veritable goldmine of information from it. The best scientists and researchers in the world are searching tirelessly for ADD cures. Rest assured that no website or company advertising on television or a magazine has an actual ADHD cure.

If you think your child has ADHD, or if you suffer from ADHD symptoms, make an appointment with a qualified health care professional, experienced in diagnosing and treating the condition (see Where to Get ADD Help).

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