New research suggests that stimulant therapy for attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) decreases the risk of teen girls developing substance abuse problems later in life, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported Oct. 10.

Researchers at Harvard Medical School followed 262 female subjects ages 6-18 -- roughly half of whom were previously diagnosed with ADHD and half of whom were not -- over five years and found that those given stimulants to treat ADHD were not at higher risk of becoming cigarette smokers or abusing drugs. The authors concluded that ADHD treatment actually decreased the risk.

Two of the study authors, Timothy E. Wilens and Joseph Biederman, had earlier been accused of failing to disclose that they had taken $1.6 million in payments from drug companies, a charge they denied. Wilens and Biederman did disclose in the new study that they took money from companies that made ADHD drugs.

The findings of the study were published in the Oct. 10, 2008 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.