ADHD stimulants appear to work less by sharpening focus and more by waking up the brain. Brain scans revealed that these medications activate reward and alertness systems, helping children stay interested in tasks they would normally avoid. The drugs even reversed brain patterns linked to sleep deprivation. Researchers say this could complicate ADHD diagnoses if poor sleep is the real underlying problem.

ADHD stimulants appear to work less by sharpening focus and more by waking up the brain. Brain scans revealed that these medications activate reward and alertness systems, helping children stay interested in tasks they would normally avoid. The drugs even reversed brain patterns linked to sleep deprivation. Researchers say this could complicate ADHD diagnoses if poor sleep is the real underlying problem.

  • lIlIlIlIlIlIl@lemmy.worldEnglish
    5·
    8 hours ago

    To examine how stimulants affect the brain, the researchers analyzed resting state functional MRI, or fMRI, data from 5,795 children ages 8 to 11 who took part in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. Resting state fMRI measures brain activity when a person is not performing a specific task. The ABCD study is a long term, multisite project following the brain development of more than 11,000 children across the U.S., including a site at WashU Medicine.

    It does study adults, we just have to wait