The Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) estimates that from 3 to 5 percent of the school-age population (between 1.46 and 2.44 million children) suffer from various degrees of AD/HD. Recent estimates of prevalence range from 4 to 12 percent of school-aged children, and new information suggests that those numbers are steadily growing.

It is commonly accepted that AD/HD lasts well past childhood. The symptoms of AD/HD continue into adolescence for 50 to 80 percent of the children who have it, and into adulthood for 30 to 50 percent.

One of the first questions parents ask when they learn their child has AD/HD is, "Why? What went wrong?" Health professionals stress that no one really knows what causes AD/HD. Therefore, parents are counseled that it doesn't help to look backward, but rather move forward in finding ways to lead a positive lifestyle.