Previously ADHD was the most common acronym for Attention Deficit Disorder with or without Hyperactivity.
Since more children are diagnosed with being very hyperactive the community tends to utilize the term ADHD instead.
There is no real difference in their use except that they are on different ends of the hyperactivity scale.
A child who is said to have ADD is said to be quiet, keeps to themselves and is generally a daydreaming sort of person.
A child with hyperactivity needs constant companionship or attention and cannot sit still for any length of time.
Hyperactivity in people without ADHD tend to be caused by too much muscle activity caused by sugar consumptions or other aspects of diet.
Eating sugary cereals or caffeine for breakfast can increase brainwave activity and cause hyperactive symptoms of ADD to occur.
To keep up that hyperactivity the user must continue to consume those types of foods throughout the day.
Children with ADHD do not need those things to be hyperactive and in some cases those foods will actually reduce the symptoms for a while.
Children with ADD without hyperactivity are diagnosed quite a bit less then children with hyperactivity.
This is illustrated through the old saying "the squeaky wheel gets the oil".
The hyperactive symptoms in an ADHD child draws more attention to them and forces the parent or teacher to get help because of the constant disruptions.
The child without hyperactivity often gets labelled as slow or as not being as smart as others and therefore other reasons for their behavior and reactions is not explored.
Children with ADHD without hyperactivity tends to be diagnosed more in girls then in boys.
In general boys are more rambunctious and active leading to an easier diagnosis of hyperactivity.
In most cases ADHD with or without hyperactivity can be treated with stimulant and non-stimulant drugs.
In both cases there is certain brainwaves that are hyperactive but sometimes those hyperactive tendencies are not reflected in the ADD symptoms.