Two out of five adults with ADHD have excellent mental health: Study

As per a new study, two in five adults (42 per cent) with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were in excellent mental health. The findings were published in the International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology.

“This finding provides a very hopeful message for both individuals struggling with ADHD and their loved ones,” said lead author Esme Fuller-Thomson, professor at the University of Toronto’s Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work and director of the Institute for Life Course and Aging.

“This research marks a paradigm shift. Most previous research, including my own, has focused on mental illness among those with ADHD so to focus on those who are thriving mentally is refreshing and very heartening,” added Esme Fuller-Thomson.

“Our findings emphasize the importance of addressing comorbid mental health issues when providing care to individuals with ADHD,” said co-author Bradyn Ko, a recent graduate of the Master of Social Work (MSW) program at the University of Toronto.

“Those with ADHD who also struggle with depression and anxiety face substantial barriers to achieving complete mental health and may benefit from targeted care. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a very promising intervention that has been shown to be effective for those with ADHD”

“These results highlight potentially modifiable risk factors to support the well-being of adults with ADHD,” said co-author Lauren Carrique, a recent MSW graduate from the University of Toronto.

“When compared to being sedentary, engaging in optimal levels of physical activity approximately quadrupled the odds of complete mental health. This underlines the potential value of physical activity in helping individuals with ADHD achieve excellent mental health.”

“The finding that female respondents were less likely to be in flourishing mental health highlights the specific vulnerabilities among women with ADHD,” said co-author Andie MacNeil, a recent Master of Social Work graduate from the University of Toronto. “This aligns with other research that has found higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidality among women with ADHD, which may partially explain this gap in mental well-being.”

“Although we were surprised and delighted to find that two in five adults with ADHD were in excellent mental health, they are still lagging far behind their peers without ADHD, for whom 74 per cent were thriving. There is still a long way to go in closing the mental health gap between those with and without ADHD,” said Fuller-Thomson. “This study calls attention to this gap, while also emphasizing potential mechanisms to reduce this discrepancy.”