UW-Madison Begins Collaborative ADHD Research Program

Madison, Wisconsin - University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers will soon begin testing and developing a mind-training program that provides a drug-free alternative for treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) and high functioning autism in children.

The program is a collaboration between University of Wisconsin-Madison's Center for Investigating Healthy Minds (CIHM) at the Waisman Center and the Mind Matter Research Foundation (MMRF) in conjunction with the HESA Institute (HESA).

The effort is supported by a three-year, $550,000 research and development grant from the Mind Matter Research Foundation and the HESA Institute to the Center for Investigating Minds.

Last year, the Centers for Disease Control estimated that 11.2 percent of all boys and 4.9 percent of all girls aged 3-17 have been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorders. It is considered the biggest health-related learning problem faced by schools, teachers and families today.

The attention-training program to be developed by Center for Investigating Minds researchers is focused on children with ADHD between the ages of 10 and 12.

"Our research will examine the specific neural systems affected by attention deficit hyperactivity disorders and will examine methods to cultivate improved attention based on this knowledge," says CIHM director Dr. Richard J. Davidson, professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "We will use this information to develop non-pharmacological training protocols that have specific biological effects in the systems implicated in attentional dysfunction."

The three-stage project includes both basic and applied research. The basic research seeks to identify and understand the neural systems and circuits associated with ADHD and related attentional problems, while the applied research will develop a prototype training product for the conscious control of the identified pathways.

Jim Walsh, CEO of the Mind Matter Research Foundation, believes this research will benefit millions of children and that the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds is poised to take this critical step toward finding a solution to a pervasive problem.

"We must expand ADHD research beyond pharmacological treatments," he says. "By collaborating with Dr. Davidson and the CIHM, we can explore and develop tools to give children enhanced self-sufficiency, coherence and a full expression of mental capacities. Work in this area constitutes the next revolution in wellness. Giving each person control over his or her own health can truly democratize the healing process."

Research to unlock the mind's power is a common mission uniting the Mind Matter Research Foundation with the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds, adds Walsh. Mind Matter focuses primarily on exploring the potential of the human energy system and conducting research to identify and understand methods of mind-matter interaction.

"We are honored," says Walsh, "to collaborate with the CIHM and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and look forward to bringing forth a better tomorrow for our children."

Through basic and translational scientific research, the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds will help pave the way toward more widespread incorporation of methods and practices to nourish positive qualities of mind at the individual, community and global levels.

"The MMRF and the HESA Institute are providing the CIHM an opportunity to fulfill its mission of conducting research that can have a positive impact throughout society," says Davidson.