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STATES WITH LOWEST PERCENTAGE OF KIDS WITH ADHD, 2011

STATES WITH HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF KIDS WITH ADHD, 2011

Percentage of kids with ADHD

Percentage of kids with ADHD

State

State

Nevada

4.2 5.5 5.6 5.8 5.9 6.0 6.0 6.2 6.7 7.2

Kentucky Arkansas Louisiana

14.8 14.6 13.3 13.0 11.7 11.7 11.6 11.6 11.5 11.2

New Jersey

Colorado

Utah

Indiana

California

Delaware

Alaska Hawaii

South Carolina North Carolina

New Mexico

Ohio Iowa

Idaho

Illinois

Michigan

Note: Includes kids aged 4 to 17 who were diagnosed by doctors or reported as having ADHD by their parents.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Trends in the Parent-Report of Health-Care Provider Diagnosis and Medication Treatment for ADHD: United States, 2003–2011.” http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/prevalence.html.

percentage of kids with ADHD, while Kentucky had the highest. Researchers aren’t sure why this would be. Many states with higher percentages were in the South and have high poverty rates. But Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, and Delaware— states with lower poverty rates—were also in the top 10. So it seems that geography or poverty is not the main cause. Maybe doctors in one state have a tendency to find more ADHD than doctors in other states. Maybe it has to do with the educational systems in different states. The situation is probably too complex to blame any one factor. One problem? There is no formal test to determine whether a kid has ADHD. Questionnaires, called “rating scales,” are widely used. They help doctors compare the

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