When you hear so many stories about how adults manage to cope despite being diagnosed with something like ADHD or Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, it makes you wonder what effect the condition would have on children. If you’re a parent who thinks that your child has symptoms of the condition, how are you supposed to cope?

ADHD in Kids

First, let’s take a look at the basics of ADHD. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, ADHD may be diagnosed in kids between 4 to 18 years of age. If you’re a parent of a boy below 4 years of age who thinks that the child is a handful to take care of, you may want to wait until your child’s fifth birthday before getting him to undergo behavioural and medical testing for ADHD. The condition afflicts about 8 to 10% of school age kids, and boys are three times more likely to be diagnosed with it than girls – although no medical research has an explanation for it yet.

Next, what’s the clue that your child may have ADHD? Children with this condition typically act without thinking, they are often classified as hyperactive and have trouble focusing or following instructions from parents or teachers. They typically cannot sit still, it’s difficult for them to pay attention or focus on one task for more than a few minutes, they’re always moving and they find it difficult to play quietly.

 

What is the Effect of the Increase in ADHD Diagnoses?

If you’re a parent who suspects that your son or daughter has ADHD, you might find it easy to have the condition diagnosed. But what if you are living from paycheck-to-paycheck? Even if you want to, you might find it difficult financially to have your child checked out for the condition.

Fortunately, access to health care with the help of public insurance programs has improved in such a way that diagnoses for poor kids with attention deficit disorder have vastly improved. This is also due to the expansion of CHIP or Children’s Health Insurance Program and Medicaid.

The percentage of poor kids diagnosed with ADHD has increased from 8 to 12%, while public insurance coverage increased from 40 to 69%. So what does this mean for the average American family? According to University of Western Australia pediatrics professor  Dr. Fiona Stanley, this is not actually representative of an increase in the actual number of kids suffering from attention deficit disorder. Instead, it means that more and more families are getting their kids diagnosed simply because they have better access to health care benefits.

This is definitely good news for average-earning families who cannot necessarily pay the extra money to have their kids checked for the condition. Once it has been confirmed that their child has ADHD, education and support is provided for families on how the affected kids can be managed.