The relationship between motor skills, ADHD symptoms, and childhood body weight.
In 8-young learners, poor balance predicts higher BMI, and ADHD alone does not mean higher weight.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team tested the kids . Each child had ADHD, motor delays, or no diagnosis.
They measured balance, running speed, and ball skills. They also recorded height, weight, and ADHD symptom scores.
The goal was to see which motor skills, if any, linked to higher body-mass index (BMI).
What they found
Only balance skill predicted BMI. Kids with better balance tended to have lower BMI.
Surprise: the ADHD group had the lowest rate of overweight. They were lighter than both the motor-delay and the typical groups.
Running and ball skills showed no clear weight connection.
How this fits with other research
McGonigle et al. (2014) saw high ADHD symptoms worsen mood in preschoolers with autism. That study paints ADHD as a health risk. The new data flip the picture for older kids: here ADHD was tied to lower weight. Age and sample differences explain the clash.
Berkovits et al. (2014) warned that clumsy kids score poorly on fitness tests because coordination, not weakness, skews results. Our paper agrees: only balance mattered for weight, not strength or speed.
Vos et al. (2013) showed ADHD kids are slow to stop an action. Taken together, the motor issues in ADHD are selective—poor emergency braking, but not necessarily poor balance or high weight.
Why it matters
When you screen an 8-young learners with ADHD, do not assume extra weight is part of the package. Add a quick balance test like single-leg stance to your intake. If balance is shaky, flag for obesity risk and write motor goals that target stability, not just aerobic activity.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Research has suggested an important association between motor proficiency and overweight/obesity. Many children with motor difficulties experience ADHD symptoms which have also been linked with overweight/obesity. Previous research has not considered both ADHD and motor performance when investigating their relationship with overweight/obesity. AIMS: To investigate the relationships between motor performance, ADHD symptoms, and overweight/obesity in children. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: A cross-sectional study was conducted involving189 children aged six to 10 years. Symptoms of ADHD were identified using the SNAP-IV rating scale. Motor impairment (MI) was identified using the Movement Battery Assessment for Children-2. Body composition was estimated from the Body Mass Index (BMI) based on World Health Organization child growth standards. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Balance was the only motor skill associated with BMI even after controlling for gender and ADHD. Group comparisons revealed that the proportion of overweight ADHD children was significantly less than the proportion of overweight control children and overweight MI children; the proportion of underweight ADHD children was significantly greater than the proportion of underweight MI children. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The results highlight the importance of taking into consideration both ADHD symptoms and motor difficulties in the assessment and intervention of physical health outcomes in children with ADHD and/or movement problems.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2016 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2016.05.005