The longitudinal influence of ADHD status and stimulant medication on body mass index and blood pressure among youth with obesity

Summary Background Youth with attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are more vulnerable to developing obesity. Stimulant medication use, an evidence‐based treatment for ADHD, is associated with lower body mass index (BMI) and higher blood pressure among non‐overweight youth. Objectives The purpose of this study was to examine the longitudinal influence of ADHD and stimulant medication use on BMI and blood pressure among a sample of 456 youth with overweight and obesity treated in a paediatric weight management clinic. Methods Mixed linear modelling examined the main and interactive effects of time by ADHD status and stimulant medication use on BMI and blood pressure. Results Youth without ADHD experienced a significantly faster decrease in BMI compared to youth with ADHD (p 0.05). Conclusions Results from this study suggest that youth with ADHD who are not taking stimulant medication may not benefit from clinical weight management to the same extent as either youth without ADHD or youth with ADHD who are taking a stimulant medication.