I read with interest the commentary by Valerie H. Taylor et al. 1 on eating behaviour and obesity. As the authors state, not everyone exposed to high-fat, high-calorie foods becomes overeaters. Only those with specific vulnerability of impulsive behaviours show a tendency to be food addicts. However, the impulsivity is closely related to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). There have been a few clinical investigations that suggest ADHD may be a comorbidity of obesity. The underlying mechanism is unknown.
One of the accepted hypotheses 2 is that ADHD, or ADHD symptoms of impulsivity or attention deficit, plays an important role in developing abnormal eating behaviours, which contribute to obesity. For the treatment of the subset with both ADHD and obesity, improvement of the ADHD symptoms may reduce weight. So in addition to screening for addiction and binge eating in obese population, ADHD should be evaluated.
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For the full letter, go to: www.cmaj.ca/cgi/eletters/cmaj.091142v1#266430