Adult ADHD prescriptions still on the rise, especially among women over 35
Prescriptions for ADHD drugs have been spiking, with the sharpest rise among middle-aged and older women, a new study finds. They're also the least likely to misuse the stimulants.
Prescriptions for ADHD medications have been spiking in recent years, with the sharpest increase among middle-aged and older women. They’re also the least likely to misuse the prescription stimulants, a new study found.
The rise among women ages 35 to 64 has been substantial. At the end of 2022, 1.7 million women in this age group were prescribed stimulants such as Adderall and Ritalin for ADHD, compared to 1.2 million prescriptions in 2019.
There’s been an overall jump in ADHD prescriptions since the pandemic and the rise of telehealth. The new analysis, published in JAMA Psychiatry by researchers at the National Institute on Drug Abuse, also looked into how the medications are being misused — that is, taking more of the drugs than prescribed, taking them at times that differed from what the doctor ordered or using medication from someone else’s prescription
The researchers used data from more than 83,000 adults, ages 18 to 64 who participated in the 2021-2022 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health. Information on prescriptions came from the 2019-2022 IQVIA Total Patient Tracker and National Prescription Audit New to Brand databases.
They found that the prevalence of misuse of prescription stimulants among women aged 35 to 64 was significantly lower than it was among men of the same age (13.7% versus 22.0%). Middle-aged women also misused their medications less than younger women (13.7% versus 36.8%).
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