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This week, news organizations around the world reported a study by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) linking exposure to digital media with reduced attention span and the Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD):
found a link between high rates of digital media use and inattention and hyperactivity, he did not found that one caused the other.
He also did not specifically look at clinically diagnosed ADHD – he used a survey to question students about the symptoms related to ADHD .
What is ADHD
ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder, which means it comes from early childhood and affects brain development. About 7.2% of children in the world have a diagnosis of ADHD.
Symptoms include inattentive, hyperactive and impulsive behavior. Although features of ADHD, these behaviors exist on a continuum. Attention difficulties can be experienced, though to a lesser degree, by children and adolescents who do not have ADHD.
These behaviors may fluctuate due to factors such as age (they are more common in childhood) and stress levels.
How was the study conducted?
Southern California, studied the link between the use of digital media and the development of ADHD-related behaviors among 15- and 16-year-olds.
A little over 2,500 California high school students without ADHD have completed a survey of their frequency of use of digital media: several times a day, 1-2 times a day, 1-2 times a week, never [19659004] find?
Most students (80.9%) reported using high frequency (three or more times a day) at least one type of digital media. Control of social media sites was the most common, with 54% of teens checking several times a day.
In the first six months of the study, 6.9% of students reported experiencing symptoms of ADHD. This rate dropped to 5.9% during the last six months of the study.
Adolescents who reported no high-use digital media activity had lower rates of ADHD-related behavior over the 24-month study period, a rate of 4, 6%.
High frequency engagement with more digital activities was badociated with higher odds of having ADHD-related behavior. Of those who reported high use of seven activities, 9.5% experienced ADHD-like behaviors. Those who reported using as many of the 14 digital media activities had the highest rates at 10.5%.
All high-frequency digital media activities were not badociated with ADHD symptoms. Texting, chatting online, playing games with friends or family on a console, computer or smartphone and posting photos or blogs have nothing to do with
. , like or comment on other statuses, play games alone on a console, a computer or a smartphone, and chat on video.
Two other factors – delinquent behavior and depressive symptoms – were badociated with higher rates of ADHD-related behaviors. But the link between the high frequency of use of digital media and the higher probability of ADHD symptoms is maintained even taking into account these other factors.
What does all this mean?
This study highlights a potential badociation between digital media and the behavioral symptoms typically badociated with ADHD. But this work is incapable of showing causality .
It is not possible to determine whether the use of digital media exacerbates ADHD-related behavior or whether those with ADHD-related behaviors find digital media more appealing and use it more frequently.
Despite a link between digital media use and behaviors that are common in ADHD, ADHD is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder, and these results in no way suggest that digital media can cause ADHD .
There is a strong genetic basis for ADHD. In other words, people with the disorder are more likely than their peers to have parents and siblings with ADHD.
It is also important to note that an increase in inattention and hyperactivity in adolescence does not mean that the young would be diagnosed with ADHD.
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
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