PAHs could be the Major Factor Increasing the Risk of ADHD Disorder

•   November 10,2014
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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a brain disorder found in almost 10% of the school going children. Being one of the most common disorder today, ADHD has been proven as a difficult disease to diagnose. The common symptoms of ADHD in a child are hyperactivity, impulsiveness and inattention. However, in spite of the brain disorder, with proper treatment children could learn to manage and live with their symptoms.

Recent news reports as per the study by environmental health sciences department at Columbia's Mailman School of Public Health in New York City, have showed that mothers exposed to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (high levels of air pollutants), during their pregnancy can lead to higher risk of the child developing ADHD symptoms by the age of 9. The researchers also added that the children who are exposed to the harmful air pollutants are almost five times at a higher risk to develop more intense and increased number of the ADHD symptoms. The study was conducted on more than 230 nonsmoking pregnant women and their children from the New York City.

The study is based on the previous cases and reports by Columbia University on links between parents exposed to PAH leading to the child having mental and behavioral issues. These issues include developmental delays, reduced IQ and anxiety, depression & inattentiveness at the age of 3, 5 and 6 & 7 respectively

With the rising number of patients with ADHD disorder, the demand for the ADHD drugs would also rise in the coming years. The growing awareness of ADHD disorder among the parents is the major factor driving the growth of the market. Research Beam adds a report titled "Global ADHD Drugs Market 2014-2018", which provides a detailed analysis of the latest market trends and factors influencing the growth of the global ADHD drugs market

However, Stephen Faraone, a professor of psychiatry at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, N.Y., states, "We think it means as the brain is developing, these toxins change something in the functional connectivity or structure of the brain that downstream leads to ADHD."

The researchers had tested the PAH chemical (benzo[a]pyrene) level in the mother's blood during pregnancy and in the blood from umbilical cords. "Children exposed to PAHs in the womb were particularly likely to display signs of inattentiveness that are related to ADHD," said study's lead author Frederica Perera, the professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia's Mailman School of Public Health in New York City. "It reflects not only that the chemicals have been brought into the body, they have been activated through metabolism and they have bound to DNA," Perera said.