Twin studies shed light on relationship among ADHD, reading, math

January, 2011

While one twin study points to the common attribute of slow processing speed between those with ADHD and those with reading disabilities, another indicates a role for environment.

A twin study involving 457 pairs has found that ADHD on its own was associated with a reduced ability to inhibit responses to stimuli, while reading disabilities were associated independently with weaknesses on measures of phoneme awareness, verbal reasoning, and working memory. Both disorders were associated with a slow processing speed, and there was a significant genetic correlation between RD and ADHD.

However, just to remind us that genetics are rarely solely the answer, another twin study, involving 271 pairs of 10-year-old identical and fraternal twins, has found evidence that the associations between ADHD symptoms, reading outcomes and math outcomes are a product of both genetic and common environmental influences. The researchers speculate that such environmental influences may include aspects of the classroom and homework environment.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-12/e-cgi120810.php
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-12/afps-tsh121010.php

Reference: 

[2066] Willcutt, E. G., Betjemann R. S., McGrath L. M., Chhabildas N. A., Olson R. K., DeFries J. C., et al.
(Submitted).  Etiology and neuropsychology of comorbidity between RD and ADHD: The case for multiple-deficit models.
Cortex. 46(10), 1345 - 1361.

[2046] Hart, S. A., Petrill S. A., Willcutt E. G., Thompson L. A., Schatschneider C., Deater-Deckard K., et al.
(2010).  Exploring How Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Are Related to Reading and Mathematics Performance.
Psychological Science. 21(11), 1708 - 1715.

Related News

Children living in areas where homicides committed have lower reading, verbal test scores

A study using data on reported homicides in Chicago 1994-2002 and two independent surveys of children and families in Chicago, has revealed that African-American children who were assessed directly after a local homicide occurred scored substantially lower on vocabulary and reading assessments th
ADHD linked to welfare benefits, low maternal education, solo parents

A national Swedish study involving the 1.16 million children in a national birth cohort identified nearly 8000 on the country's Prescribed Drug Register as using a prescription for ADHD medication (and thus assumed to suffer from severe ADHD).
At-risk children who can self-regulate have higher test scores

A study following nearly 1300 young children from birth through the first grade provides more evidence for the importance of self-regulation for academic achievement.
Prenatal meth exposure associated with brain abnormalities

An imaging study has revealed that children (aged 5-15) whose mothers abused methamphetamine and alcohol during pregnancy had structural abnormalities in the brain that were more severe than those seen in children whose mothers abused alcohol alone.
Repeated anesthesia can affect children's ability to learn

Supporting the idea that repeated anaesthesia in children can lead to memory impairment, a rodent study has revealed that repeated anaesthesia wiped out a large portion of the stem cells in the

Children's cognitive ability affected by prenatal exposure to urban air pollutants

A five-year study involving 214 children born to healthy, non-smoking Caucasian women in Krakow, Poland, has found that those prenatally exposed to high levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) had a significant reduction in scores on a standardized test of reasoning abi
Inner-face advantage in familiar face recognition

Although we initially tend to pay attention to obvious features such as hair, it has been long established that familiar faces are recognized better from their inner (eyes, nose, mouth) rather than their outer (hair, hairline, jaw, ears) parts1.

Pages

Subscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest health newsSubscribe to Latest news