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According to the findings published in the journal The Clinical Neuropsychologist, ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in the adults is faked in about 1 of every 4 people. This has been proved in a 5 year study on ADHD.
The study has shown only 5 percent of the adults experiencing symptoms like impulsive behavior, lack of concentrating power, forgetfulness actually have ADHD. The study was conducted under the supervision of the famous neuropsychologist of Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis, Dr. Paul Marshall. The research team under Dr. Marshall examined the diagnostic procedures used in the clinics for identifying the occurrence of ADHD. They result of this research showed that as high as 22 percent of the patients were either faking or exaggerating the AHD symptoms to the physicians after performing thorough internet research and practicing imitating the symptoms.
In a press release published by HCMC Dr. Marshall said that this problem is so common these days that some doctors even refuse to evaluate patients complaining about ADHD symptoms. He said that students worried about failing in graduate school or college examinations often pretend to have ADHD symptoms for getting disability accommodations such as special courses, increased test time, private testing, which can help them in improving their grades. According to the information provided in the press release, ADHD medications are generally stimulant based and posses low prescription values. For instance, Ritalin when bought via prescription costs $400 and when bought without it the price becomes $4,000. 
Some users fake ADHD symptoms for getting prescribed with these medicines and using them as cheaper alternatives of abusing drugs like methamphetamine and cocaine. The press release also informed that as the ADHD medications increase testing and studying performance of people even if they don’t have the disorder, they are rated among the most popular buys in the black market.
The researchers involved in this study have drafted some effective measures that will enable doctors to avoid false positive diagnosis of ADHD. These measures include clinical interview, cognitive testing and behavioral ratings. According to Dr. Marshall these measures will make sure that only the patients with ADHD get prescribed with the medicines.
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