Teenage Girls with ADHD

A teenager girl with ADHD may face other serious problems according to a newly-released study by Dr. Joseph Beiderman of Harvard Medical School. "As girls mature, there's a rise in mood and anxiety disorders, disruptive behaviors and substance abuse problems," said the Professor of Psychiatry. The study of 235 teenage girls, more than half of whom had ADHD, revealed those with ADHD are as prone as their male counterparts to acting out with disruptive behavior. In addition, the study presented to the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, offered some startling statistics: more than one in three of teen girls with ADHD suffered major depression compared to 3 in 100 without; 56% suffered with anxiety -19% of those without; 12% used drugs compared to 4 % without; 4% drank alcohol as opposed to 1% without; 28% smoked compared to 13% of the others. Anorexia and bulimia affected 5% of the ADHD teen girls. While ADHD is still considered a male disorder, young women are often misdiagnosed and/or the problems go undetected and untreated. Take time to know your ADHD teen girl - there is help available.