D Thursday, February 4, 2010 News ADHD is not all bad, says Irish study ROCK star Kurt Cobain, Oscar Wilde and Picasso all shared a developmen- tal disorder which helped their talents to flourish, it was claimed yesterday. They are among a list of names of notable achievers who displayed symptoms of attention deficit hyper- activity disorder (ADHD). Others include Jules Verne, Mark Twain, guerilla leader Che Guevara, and actors James Dean and Clark Gable. Professor Michael Fitzgerald, from Trinity College Dublin, believes they all owed their success to risk taking genes that play a role in ADHD. The disorder is one of the most com- mon behavioural problems in chil- dren, causing them to be restless, im- pulsive and inattentive. In some cases the symptoms carry on through ado- lescence and adulthood. But Prof Fitzgerald believes there can be an upside, which he ex- plained yesterday at a Royal College of Psychiatrists meeting. He said: People with ADHD have symptoms of inattentiveness, but they often also have a capacity to hyper- focus on a narrow area that is of par- ticular interest to them. Clearly ADHD is not a guarantee of genius, but the focused work rate that it produces may enable creative genius to flourish. For example, Kurt Cobain who we know was pre- scribed the anti-hyperactivity drug Ritalin as a child had an amazing ability to focus on writing music. Prof Fitzgerald has conducted re- search that identifies ADHD as a re- curring factor in the lives of many historic figures. Other classic exam- ples were the hell-raiser poet Lord Byron and Sir Walter Raleigh. There is a stigma surrounding ADHD, and people tend to focus on the negatives. But we should remem- ber that ADHD can, in the right cir- cumstances, be a fertiliser helping to generate a seed of untapped potential in a person, said Prof Fitzgerald. By John von Radowitz Rosanna Davison and fireman Joe Brennan launched the Listerine Total Care Sensitive search for Mr Strong And Sensitive. Nominations can be made at www.listerinestrongandsensitive.ie Picture: Jason Clarke I need a hero Terry lover denies more player affairs Can you panda to her every need? WANTED: Language teacher, must be bi-lingual English-Chinese speaker. Oh, and must get on well with pandas. And theres more. While the successful candidate will only have one pupil, he or she must also be at ease with the Sichuan dialect. The student is Mei Lan, a three- year-old giant panda born in America but due to arrive in China via FedEx tomorrow. Staff are lining up a special diet for Mei Lan, or Beautiful Orchid. THE underwear model at the heart of the John Terry love cheat scandal yesterday denied claims she had bedded at least three other Chelsea stars. Vanessa Perroncel, 28, admitted knowing the footballers when working in a nightclub but said that was as far as it went. As she mulled offers to tell all about her relationship with Chelsea and England captain Terry, publicist Max Clifford said: She knew lots of the footballers and lots of stars, as you do when you work in clubs. index.html2.html3.html4.html5.html6.html7.html8.html9.html10.html11.html12.html13.html14.html15.html16.html17.html18.html19.html20.html21.html22.html23.html24.html25.html26.html27.html