Denmark study: ADHD and autism rise may reflect improved detection
A huge new study from Denmark found that the rise in ADHD and autism diagnoses may not be because more kids actually have these conditions.
Instead, doctors may be better at spotting them, alongside greater public awareness, better recognition by schools and healthcare systems, wider access to diagnostic evaluations, and a possible shift in the threshold for diagnosis.
Researchers looked at data from over 2.1 million children between 2012 and 2022 and noticed that kids diagnosed in 2022 look a lot more like the general population than they did in 2012.
Birth weight and family links fade
In the past, being diagnosed with ADHD or autism was often tied to things like low birth weight or tough family situations, but those links have faded.
For example, low birth weight as a risk factor was 54% in the study period and had dropped to just 17% by 2022.
The researchers say this shift helps explain changing diagnosis patterns.