Summertime means teenagers all over the area are taking drivers ed and with school out many are on the road at all times of day and night. We know teens aren't the best drivers (hence the huge premium increase when they are added to a parent's insurance) but teens with ADHD or ADD are at much greater risk of accidents.

Recently I read an article about teen driving and learned that teens with attention issues who are not taking their medication on days they drive are several times more likely to get into an accident than teens without ADD/ADHD. Interestingly, teens who take their medication on days they drive reduce their risk to near normal for age. It makes sense that teens who have barriers to paying attention in school and are easily distracted are also going to be the same way as drivers. Unfortunately, the stakes are very high.

Now when I talk with teens who are on medication, I no longer suggest they take weekends and summers off their medication if they are going to be driving. It used to be common for these older teens to only take their medications on school days, but with this recent data, taking medication every day they are driving makes good sense.