OBJECTIVE: As the prevalence of childhood obesity increases, identifying groups of children who are at increased risk of overweight is important. The current study estimated the prevalence of overweight in children and adolescents in relation to attention-deficithyperactivity disorder and medication use. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study was a cross-sectional analysis of 62 887 children and adolescents aged 5 to 17 years from the 2003-2004 National Survey of Children's Health, a nationally representative sample of children and adolescents in the United States. Attention-deficit disorderattention-deficithyperactivity disorder was determined by response to the question "Has a doctor or health professional ever told you that your child has attention-deficit disorder or attention-deficithyperactive disorder, that is, ADD or ADHD?" Children and adolescents were classified as underweight, normal weight, at risk of overweight, or overweight according to BMI for age and gender. RESULTS: After adjustment for age, gender, raceethnicity, socioeconomic status Tom Brady Patriots Jersey , and depressionanxiety, children and adolescents with attention-deficit disorderattention-deficithyperactivity disorder not currently using medication had approximately 1.5 times the odds of being overweight, and children and adolescents currently medicated for attention-deficit disorderattention-deficithyperactivity disorder had approximately 1.6 times the odds of being underweight compared with children and adolescents without either diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides heightened awareness for pediatric providers about the relationship between attention-deficit disorderattention-deficithyperactivity disorder, medication use, and weight status. Future work is needed to better understand the longitudinal and pharmacologic factors that influence the relationship between attention-deficit disorderattention-deficithyperactivity disorder and weight status in children and adolescents. 1Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurobehavioral disorder that affects ~2.9-4.7% of US adults. Studies have revealed high rates of ADHD (26-61%) in patients seeking weight loss treatment suggesting an association between ADHD and obesity. The objective of the present study was to test the association between ADHD and overweight and obesity in the US population. Cross-sectional data from the Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiology Surveys were used. Participants were 6,735 US residents (63.9% white; 51.6% female) aged 18-44 years. A retrospective assessment of childhood ADHD and a self-report assessment of adult ADHD were administered. Diagnosis was defined by three categories: never met diagnostic criteria, met full childhood criteria with no current symptoms, and met full childhood criteria with current symptoms. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 33.9 and 29.4%, respectively, among adults with ADHD Womens Danny Amendola Jersey , and 28.8 and 21.6%, respectively, among persons with no history of ADHD. Adult ADHD was associated with greater likelihood of overweight, (odds ratio (OR) = 1.58; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.05, 2.38) and obesity (OR = 1.81; 95% CI = 1.14, 2.64). Results were similar when adjusting for demographic characteristics and depression. Mediation analyses suggest that binge eating disorder (BED), but not depression, partially mediates the associations between ADHD and both overweight and obesity. Results suggest that adult ADHD is associated with overweight and obesity. Obesity (2008) doi:10.1038oby.2008.587.