Adoptees at Higher Risk for ADHD

I've worked in adoptions for a few years but I felt something cold in my soul when I saw the headline for the article.  Despite all the reputable, scholarly experts involved in the study, the whole thing seems over reaching, jumping to conclusions.  I had the same reaction to the American Heart Association running to press with the news that some ADHD children on stimulant medication reportedly had cardiac disease.   The bottom line is how we should resist any more labels for any of our kids. 

In my very humble experience, ADHD in adopted children has a lot to do with what happened prior to the adoption, which someone did note in the article.  I wouldn't doubt for a minute the results would be even higher with children in foster care who are not yet adopted. Also, what "experts" call oppositional defiant disorder, is typically a kid fed up with being jerked all around after a really rough start.  The whole study appears,  unbalanced and incomplete but I'm no expert.  I have ADD and I'm a social worker.  Thank you for allowing me to share my perspective. 

ADHD is a genetic trait, according to research, passed down from parent to child.  As inheritable as height or body build is, so is ADHD (50% liklihood that a child will have ADHD if one parent has ADHD).  With that being said, consider the impulsiveness that goes along with ADHD. Unprotected sex resulting in an unplanned pregnancy is likely to be higher in adolescents and adults with ADHD than those without.  This is likely to result in a child that may be placed for adoption which may pass along those traits (ADHD) which were inherited from their parents. 

International adoptions, in general, tend to be for different reasons than unplanned pregnancy resulting from impulsive unprotected sex, so the inherited traits are different. Just my thoughts on the subject.