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Children diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)—especially those treated long term with Ritalin—may face increased risks of becoming overweight and experiencing shorter stature later in life, a recent large-scale research suggests.
The study examined health data from about 35,000 young people in South Korea over roughly 12 years. Researchers tracked children ages 6 to 19 who received an ADHD diagnosis between 2008 and 2013, following them until they reached adulthood.
Weight and Stature Changes
The findings, published in JAMA Network Open, showed that children with ADHD had a higher average body mass index than children without ADHD, with average BMIs of 24.3 versus 23.3.
