Malnutrition and Obesity in Children With ADHD

Abstract

Frequency of malnutrition and overweight/obese patients was found higher in ADHD cases compared with control group, and this situation suggested that ADHD is a risk factor for the development of eating disorders.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Obesity: Update 2016

“…By contrast, participants with remitted ADHD were significantly more likely to be obese than those without childhood ADHD.The rates of obesity did not significantly differ between participants with persistent and remitted ADHD.Fliers et al (2013) [15]NetherlandsCross-sectionalTotal = 372 children with ADHD5–17Boys with ADHD aged 10–17 and girls aged 10–12 were more likely to be overweight than children in the general Dutch population. Younger girls and female teenagers, however, were at lower risk for being overweight.Gungor et al (2016) [16]TurkeyCross-sectionalTotal = 752ADHD = 362Controls = 3905–15Frequency of overweight/obesity according to Weigh For Height (WFH) criteria was significantly higher in the ADHD group compared with the control group (24.8 vs. 18.9%, p  < 0.0001).Hanc et al (2015a) [17]PolandCross-sectionalTotal = 615ADHD = 219Controls = 3966–18ADHD was significantly related to higher rate of overweight, both when ADHD was treated as a single factor (unadjusted OR = 2.31, 95% CI = 1.40–3.81, p  = 0.001) and after controlling for birth weight, place of residence, parents’ education, and income level (unadjusted OR = 2.31, 95% CI 1.40–3.81, p  = 0.001; aOR = 2.44, 95% CI 1.38–4.29, p  = 0.002).Hanc et al (2015b) [18]PolandThis study reports a retrospective analysis on participants from Hanc et al [17]. Total = 420ADHD = 112308 controls6–18At age 2 (retrospective analysis), children with ADHD were overweight/obese less frequently than controls (ADHD 10.71%, control group 20.13%, p  = 0.02).At age 6 (retrospective analysis), children with ADHD were significantly more often diagnosed with underweight than boys without ADHD (8.93 vs. 3.25%, p  = 0.02).Kummer et al (2016) [19]BrazilCross-sectionalADHD = 23Controls = 19ADHD 8.5 (2.4)Controls 8.6 (2.9)Children and adolescents with ADHD had significantly increased frequency of overweight and obesity ( p  = 0.04) compared to controls.Nigg et al (2016) [20••]Note: this paper presents data from 2 empirical studies plus a meta-analysis.The first study is not pertinent for the present review since it presents data on BMI but not on rates of obesity (see Supplemental Table 1).…”

Attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptom clusters differentially predict prenatal health behaviors in pregnant women

“…This is an interesting finding, as there is relatively little research on healthy eating and inattention. With regard to nutrition and diet, attention problems have been primarily investigated for their relationship to disordered eating (Güngör, Celiloğlu, Raif, Özcan, & Selimoğlu, ; Nazar et al., ; Yates, Lund, Johnson, Mitchell, & McKee, ). For instance, women with an eating disorder were more likely to have a higher BMI if they had elevated inattention scores (Yates et al., ).…”

ADHD, Lifestyles and Comorbidities: A Call for an Holistic Perspective – from Medical to Societal Intervening Factors

“…In addition to this, ADHD was correlated with both malnutrition as well as being overweight and obese. The researchers state that this shows ADHD to be a major risk factor not only for obesity but also for eating disorders in general (Güngör et al, 2016). The lower threshold for stress as well as emotional dysregulation and behaviors associated with this have also been noted in a meta-analysis by Barkley (2016).…”