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April 18, 2024
ADHD is associated with impaired executive functions. These functions, associated with the prefrontal cortex, control thoughts and goal-oriented behaviors, including inhibition, cognitive flexibility, and working memory.
To what extent can meditation-based mind-body interventions (MBIs) such as yoga, Tai Chi, Qigong, and Mindfulness improve symptoms and executive functioning in persons with ADHD?
To explore this question a Chinese study team performed a systematic search of the peer-reviewed medical literature for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in either Chinese or English that could be subjected to meta-analysis.
Nineteen RCTS, all but one in English, met criteria for inclusion. Nine involved children and adolescents, and ten involved adults. Fifteen of the studies looked at mindfulness, two at yoga, and two at Tai Chi.
Eight studies were rated as high quality, and the other eleven moderate quality. However, “none of the studies succeeded in blinding participants and therapists due to the challenges of performing double-blind procedures in non-pharmacological studies.”
A meta-analysis of fourteen RCTs totaling 832 participants found small but significant improvements for inattention symptoms. Longer trainings (over 16 hours total) increased the effect size to small-to-medium. Trainings were more successful with adults (small-to-medium effect size) than with children and adolescents (improvements not significant).
Another meta-analysis, of fifteen RCTs combining 868 participants, likewise reported small but significant improvements for hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms. In this case the trainings were more successful with children and adolescents than with adults, where outcomes lost significance. Longer trainings (over 16 hours total) did not improve outcomes, and in fact made gains insignificant.
A third meta-analysis, of ten RCTs with a combined 558 participants, found small-to-medium effect size improvements in executive functioning. Trainings were effective for all ages. Longer trainings (over 16 hours total) increased the effect size to medium. Direct measurement of behavioral tasks, as opposed to relying on questionnaires, likewise increased the effect size to medium.
For all three meta-analyses, there was virtually no between-study variation (heterogeneity), meaning these outcomes were consistent across studies. There were also no signs of publication bias.
Overall, MBIs improved ADHD symptoms with small effect size, but executive functioning – arguably the more important of the two criteria for ultimate well-being – with medium effect size when measured directly after over 16 hours of training.
The authors concluded, “This meta-analysis confirmed that MBIs, such as mindfulness, Tai Chi, and yoga, had small to medium intervention effects on ADHD symptoms and EF [executive function] compared with the control condition. Although the results of the subgroup analysis suggest that age, interventions, and total time may be important moderators affecting MBIs intervention on the symptoms (inattention, hyperactivity/ impulsivity) of ADHD, while interventions and total time may be moderators affecting EF, more research needs to be conducted to support these findings.”
REFERENCES
Zeping Zhang, Xiaolong Chang, Weijing Zhang, Suyong Yang, and Guangsheng Zhao, “The Effect of Meditation-Based Mind-Body Interventions on Symptoms and Executive Function in People With ADHD: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials,” Journal of Attention Disorders (2023), 1-15, https://doi.org/10.1177/10870547231154897.
The first few weeks of life are the time when babies are most vulnerable to seizures (known as neonatal seizures). This is partly because of events that can occur during birth, and partly because the newborn brain is naturally in a more excitable state than a mature brain, making it more prone to seizure activity.
Seizures affect roughly 1 to 3 in every 1,000 full-term babies born, and the rate is considerably higher in premature babies, at around 11 to 14 per 1,000. In most cases, seizures at this age are triggered by a specific event or injury affecting the brain. In full-term newborns, the most common cause is a condition called hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), which occurs when the brain is deprived of adequate oxygen and blood flow around the time of birth. Other causes include genetic or metabolic conditions, stroke, bleeding in the brain, and structural abnormalities in how the brain developed. In very premature babies, bleeding into the fluid-filled spaces of the brain (known as intraventricular hemorrhage) is the leading culprit.
Diagnosing seizures in newborns is tricky because many normal or abnormal movements and behaviors in this age group can look like seizures without actually being them. For this reason, monitoring the baby’s brain activity using an electroencephalogram (EEG) – a test that records electrical signals in the brain – is essential to confirm whether a seizure is truly occurring.
Sweden’s single-payer health system provides universal coverage, with national registers linking healthcare and population data. Researchers tracked infants with EEG/aEEG-confirmed seizures born between 2009 and 2020 and compared them to controls without neonatal seizures.
Altogether, 1062 infants with neonatal seizures were matched with 5310 controls.
The team adjusted for birth, mode of delivery, sex, birth weight, and Apgar scores – quick, standardized assessments used to evaluate newborns’ health minutes after birth.
With these adjustments, infants who had neonatal seizures were twice as likely to subsequently be diagnosed with ADHD and three times as likely to be subsequently diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
The authors emphasized that because the study was observational, it cannot demonstrate a direct cause-and-effect relationship between neonatal seizures and outcomes. Factors like seizure frequency, genetics, and socioeconomic status are thought to significantly impact the prognosis of affected children, but these could not be included in this study due to data limitations.
Background:
There are currently few long-term treatment options for adult ADHD. Psychostimulants can help reduce symptoms, but their benefits rely on availability, continued use, and are not easily tolerated by some. Cognitive-behavioral therapies have also proven to be helpful, but access is limited because they must be provided by trained specialists. These challenges highlight the need to explore alternative interventions that could provide cognitive and behavioral improvements with fewer side effects.
Exercise has shown potential as a nonclinical intervention for ADHD. Previous research indicates that physical activity can increase cortical volume, enhance brain activation, and boost connectivity in cognitive regions, as well as raise dopamine and norepinephrine levels – effects similar to psychostimulants. Research in children and teens with ADHD has found that both regular exercise programs and even single workout sessions can improve executive functions (mental skills like planning and self-control) and reduce core ADHD symptoms. But whether exercise helps adults with ADHD has remained an open question.
Study:
A Chinese sports medicine research team set out to answer this by reviewing all available peer-reviewed studies on exercise and adult ADHD. They found so few studies on regular exercise programs – only four total, and three of those were small pilot studies just testing whether the approach was feasible – that they couldn’t draw firm conclusions about long-term exercise interventions.
However, they were able to analyze four moderate-to-high-quality studies involving 152 adults with ADHD that tested single exercise sessions. The combined results showed moderate improvements in inhibitory control (the ability to resist impulses and stay focused). Adults not taking medication showed large improvements.
When they looked at four studies involving 170 adults, they found small but consistent improvements in core ADHD symptoms after single exercise sessions. There was little to no variation (heterogeneity) in individual study outcomes, and no sign of publication bias.
Results:
The team concluded, “Overall, these findings offer preliminary evidence on the potential role of exercise as a helpful strategy in the management of adult ADHD,” but cautioned that more well-designed randomized controlled trials are needed to determine the efficacy of both acute and chronic exercise interventions for adult ADHD, with particular emphasis placed on determining the best “prescription” for exercise – what type, how intense, and how often.
They also noted that most existing research has focused narrowly on attention and impulse control, while other important mental abilities like working memory and mental flexibility remain largely unexplored.
Take-Away:
The takeaway here is practical and accessible: you don't need a long-term fitness program to get a cognitive bump from exercise if you have ADHD. Even a single session appears to help — particularly with impulse control. While the research base is still thin and we don't yet know the ideal exercise "prescription," the risk-benefit calculation is hard to argue with. For adults with ADHD who can't access medication or therapy, or who simply want an additional tool, breaking a sweat may be worth building into the routine.
Background:
Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) means intentionally hurting yourself without trying to end your life. Common examples include cutting, scratching, or burning yourself. This behavior is most common in teenagers, affecting 13-20% of adolescents. It’s also called self-harm or deliberate self-injury.
Young people who struggle with managing emotions, act impulsively, or have mental health conditions like depression are more likely to self-harm.
Because ADHD involves impulsivity and often occurs alongside emotional difficulties, researchers have suspected a link between ADHD and self-injury. However, previous studies have tended to be small, unrepresentative, and inconsistent, making it hard to draw clear conclusions.
The Study:
Researchers combined results from 14 different studies involving nearly 30,000 people to get a clearer picture. They looked at children, teenagers, and adults with ADHD from various settings—including hospitals, community programs, and general population studies.
To be included, studies had to confirm ADHD diagnosis through professional evaluation or validated testing methods.
Key findings
Conclusion:
The researchers concluded that roughly one in four people with ADHD have engaged in non-suicidal self-harm. The findings suggest that ADHD and self-harm share overlapping vulnerabilities.
Overall, this meta-analysis strengthens evidence that people with ADHD face a significantly elevated risk of non-suicidal self-injury, likely reflecting overlapping challenges with impulsivity, emotional regulation, and co-occurring mental health conditions. Importantly, this does not mean self-harm is inevitable in ADHD. It does, however, highlight the need for early screening, supportive environments, and targeted mental-health care to help reduce risk and support healthier coping strategies.
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