Exercise and ADHD

Exercise clears the mind. It gets the blood pumping and more oxygen is delivered to the brain. This is familiar territory, but Dartmouth's David Bucci thinks there is much more going on.

"In the last several years there have been data suggesting that neurobiological changes are happening -- [there are] very brain-specific mechanisms at work here," says Bucci, an associate professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. From his studies, Bucci and his collaborators have revealed important new findings:

• The effects of exercise are different on memory as well as on the brain, depending on whether the exerciser is an adolescent or an adult.

• A gene has been identified which seems to mediate the degree to which exercise has a beneficial effect. This has implications for the potential use of exercise as an intervention for mental illness.

Bucci began his pursuit of the link between exercise and memory with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), one of the most common childhood psychological disorders. 

Bucci is concerned that the treatment of choice seems to be medication. "The notion of pumping children full of psycho-stimulants at an early age is troublesome," Bucci cautions. "We frankly don't know the long-term effects of administering drugs at an early age -- drugs that affect the brain -- so looking for alternative therapies is clearly important."

"The implication is that exercising during development, as your brain is growing, is changing the brain in concert with normal developmental changes, resulting in your having more permanent wiring of the brain in support of things like learning and memory," says Bucci. "It seems important to [exercise] early in life." 

When I was in school -- and this was first grade through 12th -- we had physical education for one hour every single day. That's not happening now. What's it like at your school?

Adult ADHD: the good, the bad, the ugly

I happened to talk with several creative type friends the other day about Attention Deficit Disorder -- one has been diagnosed, the other thinks he has it. Just over 4 percent of adults do.

Research has found a correlation between ADHD and creativity.

Previous research has suggested that adults with ADHD perform better on some measures of creativity than non-ADHD adults. The present study replicated this: Adults with ADHD showed higher levels of original creative thinking on verbal tasks  and higher levels of real-world creative achievement, compared to adults without ADHD.

So I looked up the symptoms. Here are a few:

• “zoning out” without realizing it, even in the middle of a conversation.
• extreme distractibility; wandering attention makes it hard to stay on track.
• difficulty paying attention or focusing, such as when reading or listening to others.
• struggling to complete tasks, even ones that seem simple.
• tendency to procrastinate.

There are many more, but I picked those because I'm sometimes like that. I think we all exhibit some of these some of the time. I've seen young people get a formal evaluation from a psychologist and then respond quite well to medication. I don't think I would be diagnosed.

It's important to understand the burden on someone with ADD. As two counselors write:

Most adults with AD/HD were not diagnosed until they were adults. Throughout their lives, they have suffered a great deal of pain. Many have had to develop coping mechanisms to help them survive. Over time, the constant pressure of trying to cope with their problems brought on by their new ways to cope can bring about stress. As a result, some adults become overwhelmed, depressed, anxious and lose confidence.

Here's another look at what it's like from the perspective of someone with ADD.