Some mental health conditions have genetic components, and the same can be said for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Research have some insight into the genetic component of the condition. However, there are more to potential causes of ADHD aside from just your genes.

Here's what scientists know so far about the heritability of ADHD and how it compares to other risks that contribute to the condition.

Though it's unclear how significant a role genetics plays, studies have shown that having a parent or sibling can drastically increase one's risk of developing ADHD.

For example, a 2016 study published in Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment found that in the sample of 79 children with ADHD, 41.3% had mothers with ADHD and 51% had fathers with ADHD.

Another study, published in 2017 in Revista Colombiana de Psiquiatra, found that siblings of someone with ADHD had a 26% to 45.2% chance of also having ADHD making it a greater likelihood than if no siblings had ADHD.

Another 2014 studyof 59,514 twins found the heritability of ADHD the likelihood of a genetic component for the condition to be 88%. However, genetics are likely not the sole factor for whether or not a person develops ADHD.

"Since siblings also share a social, physical, and rearing environment, this in itself does not prove genetic rather than potentially shared environmental causes," says Robert King, MD,

Pediatric Developmental and Behavioral Medicine Psychiatrist and Medical Director of the Tourette's/OCD Clinic at Yale Child Study Center.

There is no one gene that causes ADHD, and there is no test you can take to determine your risk of developing it. In fact, ADHD is most likely a condition associated with multiple genes, not just one, says King.

But researchers have hypothesized that one gene in particular, the DRD4 gene, may play a part in ADHD. The DRD4 gene affects dopamine receptors in the brain, which in turn can influence brain function and mental disorders associated with brian function, including ADHD. However, how strong a role DRD4 plays in ADHD, specifically, remains unclear.

King says that researchers have found other rare genes that are associated with different aspects of brain development, but clarifies that "although these are of interest in suggesting new research leads, they are found only in a very small number of cases of ADHD and are not useful as any sort of diagnostic test."

Another factor that makes genetic studies for ADHD so complicated is the fact that ADHD is often co-occurring with other mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, and tic disorders, King says, and these disorders may also be partly genetic.

King says that aside from genetics, various other factors predispose somebody to ADHD, and some of them are preventable. Some examples of ADHD risk factors are:

While genetics are not the only factor in whether or not someone develops ADHD, there certainly is a genetic component, which has been proven through years of scientific research. However, there is not one specific gene that is directly associated with ADHD.

There are multiple non-genetic risk factors that may contribute to an individual's ADHD, as well. Regardless of what caused somebody's ADHD, there are multiple treatment options available that can help manage ADHD symptoms and improve quality of life.

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