Stimulant prescriptions for ADHD up sharply since 2015, especially among women

The number of people in Ontario who were prescribed stimulants to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder skyrocketed more than 150 per cent between 2015 and 2023, a new study has found, with the greatest increases among women.

The prescriptions spiked from the beginning of the pandemic onward, increasing nearly four times faster each year from 2020 to 2023 compared with 2015 to 2019.