A Weighty Concern
“My 9-year-old son has just been diagnosed with ADHD. He is overweight, and we were told that a stimulant may also help control his appetite. Is this true?”
Yes, stimulant medications decrease some children’s appetites. As long as your son was correctly diagnosed with ADHD, and if the physician follows a rigorous dosing process, appetite suppression could, in his case, be a tolerable side effect. But you should not look to this medication primarily for this effect, as there may be several reasons for his weight problem. You must address his weight problem separately from treating his ADHD.
