Study: Incorrect ADHD Diagnoses Common for Youngest Kids in Class

ADHD is a real condition. If you have any doubts, come on over for breakfast and hang out with my son in the morning. But, since it’s a condition that can only be diagnosed on reports of behavior and doctors can’t just send a test to the lab to confirm it, there’s room for error in diagnosis.

Since adopting my son, I’ve heard comments ranging from “there’s no such thing as ADHD” to “you should just cut out red dye and he’ll be fine” to “ADHD is over-diagnosed.” I’ll just smile politely and walk away from the first two comments, but the third I’ll readily agree to. A recent Michigan State study has found that nearly 1 million children in the US may be misdiagnosed with ADHD.

The number of misdiagnosed kids is, sadly, not too surprising. After all, with nearly 4.5 million children diagnosed, ADHD is the most commonly treated behavioral disorder for kids. What is surprising is the potential reason.

The MSU study used a sample of nearly 12,000 children and compared age with diagnosis and treatment. Researchers determined that the youngest children in a kindergarten class were 60 percent more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than the oldest kids in class.

As parents, we need to advocate for our kids and we need to be reasonable about their behavior capabilities. Behavior issues exhibited by the youngest kids in a classroom may indicate a problem like ADHD… or it may just be a difference in emotional maturity. Children with ADHD will likely exhibit symptoms in multiple settings — home, school, church etc. If attention and/or hyperactivity issues are only problematic at school, work with your child’s teacher to try to improve the situation. GreatSchools.org has some tips for working with your child’s school to handle behavior issues.