What Role Do Genes Play in ADHD?


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Tat person is going to be hyper-focused and very motivated but incredibly agitated because dopamine does that, too. Te person might act like they’ve had way too much coffee. Tey’re going to be excessive with an energy that overwhelms people.


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enes and genetic testing—and what our DNA can reveal about our health—have become topics


of much research and great interest. People who wish to gain a more thorough understanding of their body’s intricate processes can—with assistance from knowledgeable health professionals—cross- reference lab results with genetic testing to get a better picture of their health. In the case of ADHD, neurotransmitter


testing (which indicates levels of dopamine, serotonin, epinephrine and others) can be used in conjunction with genetic tests to discover the reasons why neurotransmitter levels may be off and match them up with the most effective interventions.


Your Genes Tell a Story Genes produce enzymes, and then those enzymes make chemical reactions happen in the body. Genes control the production of neurotransmitters (how fast or how slow they’re being produced), the reuptake of neurotransmitters by neurons (how long they are active in the brain) and the degradation of neurotransmitters (how fast or slow they exit the brain aſter they have been utilized). Looking at neurotransmitter levels


(usually obtained through analyzing a urine sample) is important, but this study


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only gives us a snapshot in time of the big picture. When you pair neurotransmitter levels with results from a genetic test (usually obtained through analyzing a saliva sample) it gives us insight into HOW those levels came to be, and which genes may be affecting the production and utilization of the neurotransmitters.


How Genetics Affect ADHD Dopamine is just one neurotransmitter that we evaluate in people with ADHD; one function of dopamine is to regulate focus. Tere’s a gene called COMT that is responsible for the degradation of dopamine. If this gene is working too slowly, a person could have higher levels of dopamine because the neurotransmitter is not breaking down properly. But there are also other genes that affect dopamine in different ways. Tere are genes that produce dopamine and genes that store dopamine. So even if we’ve identified that the COMT gene is working too slowly, that could be offset by other genes. What we look for are multiple genes


telling a story in one direction. If the genes are making too much dopamine, storing too much dopamine and not able to break down dopamine, we will see evidence of excessive levels of dopamine.


Solving Mysteries with Neurotransmitter Tests and Genetics Testing Te neurotransmitter test and the genetics test don’t always match up. For example, from the neurotransmitter test, it may look like someone has normal to low dopamine levels, but their symptoms may not support that. Trough the genetics test, we may find out that a slow COMT gene isn’t getting rid of dopamine properly; it’s not being excreted. It makes sense once you see the whole picture. High levels of dopamine (showing up


in a neurotransmitter test) could indicate the person is breaking it down too quickly. Tis could be due to a “fast” COMT gene, or because it’s not being metabolized properly or being utilized by the brain properly; the person’s body is making it, breaking it down and not using it. For example, a child may show high


dopamine levels from a neurotransmitter test but exhibits no focus or hyperactivity. With high dopamine levels, the child should be very focused and maybe even hyperactive. Te culprit may be a defective pathway in the genes. A gene variant may not be allowing use of the dopamine. We can’t change the gene itself, but we can help change the speed at which the gene’s enzyme functions.


How Do Genetics Help Solve ADHD and Other Problems? Genes and the enzymes they produce are affected by the presence or absence of cofactors: vitamins, minerals and amino acids. For example, if a person has a “slow” COMT gene, this may create a situation


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