Background noise: A distraction or a boost for children with attention deficit disorder?

About 3% to 7% of children 5 to 17 years old in the United States have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC labels it “one of the most common neurobehavioral disorders of childhood.”

It also breaks down ADHD into three different categories: predominantly inattentive (which was once called attention deficit disorder, or ADD), predominantly hyperactive-impulsive and combined.

The Orlando Sentinel’s health blog Vital Signs reports on a recent study that measured the effect of background noise on inattentive students called “A little white noise may help ADD students.”

Check out the CDC’s webpage on symptoms and diagnosis to learn more about the disorder.

--Mary Forgione/For the Los Angeles Times