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Environmental Factors That May Influence Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Although there is no evidence that environmental factors cause ADHD, they may influence how the disorder is expressed. For example, although ADHD is not caused by "bad parenting," certain parenting methods can improve or make worse some symptoms of the disorder.

Environmental factors that may influence how ADHD is expressed include: 1

  • Exposure to lead.
  • Exposure of a fetus to smoking or alcohol during pregnancy.

Citations

  1. Greenhill LL, Hechtman LI (2009). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. In BJ Sadock et al., eds., Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry, 9th ed., vol. 2, pp. 3560–3572. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.
By Healthwise Staff
Primary Medical Reviewer Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine
Specialist Medical Reviewer Louis Pellegrino, MD - Developmental Pediatrics
Last Revised February 2, 2012

Last Revised: February 2, 2012

Author: Healthwise Staff

Medical Review: Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine & Louis Pellegrino, MD - Developmental Pediatrics

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