Best of Q: Are we overdiagnosing ADHD?
A Pulitzer Prize-nominated reporter and medical expert weigh in on the ballooning number of adults and children being diagnosed with ADHD.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- an obscure diagnosis just decades ago -- has entered the public lexicon, and has even become shorthand for the frenetic pace of modern life. The popularity of the term has been matched on the prescription pad, as a ballooning number of adults and children are diagnosed with ADHD.
- CBC News: ADHD may be overdiagnosed in youngest classmates
- CBC News: Hearing disorder could be misdiagnosed as ADHD in kids
For a breakdown of the number and insight on the sharp rise in treatment, Jian speaks to Pulitzer Prize-nominated reporter Alan Schwarz. He recently wrote an extensive article titled, The Selling of Attention Deficit Disorder.
Jian also checks in with Dr. Gabor Maté, author of the bestselling book on ADHD Scattered Minds, about why he thinks overdiagnosis is a by-product of a larger cultural problem.