Experts uncover link between ADHD and memory problems in later life

Adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) could be more vulnerable to experiencing memory and thinking problems in later life, according to findings from a new study.

Experts have urged regular "monitoring" for older adults living with the condition after discovering a "markedly" heightened risk of cognitive impairment.

The investigation explored diagnosis rates among people with ADHD alongside associated genetic risk factors tied to the condition.

Academics analysed medical data belonging to 187,341 adults in the US who were aged 50 or over.

Roughly 1.6 per cent of the participants, representing 3,026 individuals, held a formal ADHD diagnosis.

After tracking participant health records for an average of seven years, researchers found that 6.7 per cent of those with ADHD were diagnosed with cognitive impairment, compared to 3.4 per cent without the condition.

Led by a team from the University of Pittsburgh in the US, the study also evaluated participants' ADHD polygenic risk scores, which analyse genetics to gauge an individual's likelihood of developing the condition.

They found that people who have genetic links to the condition were also more likely to be diagnosed with cognitive impairment.

The team of academics concluded that ADHD was associated with a more than four-fold higher risk of cognitive impairment.

“ADHD was associated with a markedly increased risk of late-life cognitive impairment,” the authors wrote in the journal Jama Psychiatry.

They added: “These findings support ADHD as a relevant factor in later-life cognitive health and call for clinical guidelines recommending cognitive monitoring in adults with ADHD, while recognising that the mechanisms and causal nature of this association remain to be established.”

It comes as a major review into ADHD, autism and mental health in the UK is to be published.

The review, launched in December last year, examined rates of diagnosis and the support offered to people from mental health, ADHD and autism services.

An interim report from the review team, chaired by Professor Peter Fonagy, found that there could be “multiple factors” behind a rise in diagnosis rates for autism and ADHD, including improved recognition of the conditions, rising distress among young people, “institutional incentives and pressures within existing service pathways”.

Speaking ahead of the final report Prof Fonagy has insisted “it’s harder to be young now”, telling the BBC that there has been a real rise in mental health problems among young people and saying he will call for support to be improved.

He said the report “dismisses the idea of a snowflake generation” and that the NHS is “not fit for purpose” as too many young people are left on waiting lists for long periods for mental health support.

Elsewhere a report published by the Children’s Commissioner in June found that more than a million children – around one in 10 – in England were referred for, awaiting or getting treatment from mental health services in the 12 months to March 2025.

And in August, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman warned that people with ADHD and autism are “falling through the gaps” as services are “under significant pressure”.

Ombudsman Paula Sussex said that children and adults with ADHD and autism face “long waiting times, variations in access and fragmented care” as demand for care is outstripping capacity.