ADHD

ADHD medication will stunt your child’s growth

More than four million children in the United States have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). For children with ADHD, particular types of stimulant medications have been proven to be effective therapies in managing their symptoms. While many parents and doctors appreciate how these medicines help children overcome the hyperactivity, distractibility, or inattention that come with ADHD, they worry about how the medicines for ADHD might also be harmful. In particular, many parents and doctors alike have heard that ADHD medicines stunt children’s growth. Parents rightfully wonder whether the benefits outweigh the risks.

Many studies have investigated the question of whether ADHD medicines stunt children’s growth. Several studies have found statistically significant changes in the height and weight of children treated for ADHD; children who are taking ADHD medicines do appear to have slower increases in height and weight as they age. However, the medicine’s effect on growth wanes over time. In a review examining twenty studies of children’s growth while taking ADHD medicines, it was learned that there were some delays in the children’s growth in terms of height and weight gain, but these effects became less or went away over time. In other words, the medicines seemed to slow down the children’s growth at first, but then that effect diminished. Several studies also suggested that the dosage is what has the greater effect on the child’s growth. It is important to note that the differences in the children’s growth compared to children not on medicines for ADHD were very small, and some of the studies suggested that the children went on to have normal adult height and weight. The summary of all these studies is that there seems to be some impact from ADHD medicine on children’s growth, but the effect is less over time and may not have any impact on how tall they are as adults.

There are also some studies that suggest that the medicines are not the real culprit for the children’s growth, and that the real issue may be the fact that they have ADHD. In some studies, ADHD itself is associated with alterations in how children grow, even among children who have never received medication for their ADHD. Most of the studies from which scientists try to answer this question were not really intended to see whether ADHD alone affects children’s growth, and so more research is needed in order to provide a definitive answer.

If you are considering ADHD treatment for your child, you should be aware that there is some potential for a temporary growth delay, especially when they first start therapy. However, you should also know that most of these growth delays go away over time and the child usually catches up in terms of their growth. It is also important to weigh any of these risks against the very real problems that children with ADHD have when they are not treated with medication. These problems include not only difficulties in school, but also a higher chance of having issues such as depression, anxiety, and difficulty relating to their peers.