Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Jan Buitelaar named Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion

Jan Buitelaar received a royal royal distinction for his exceptional academic and social achievements. The Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry is named Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion.

Buitelaar has been able to improve the lives of many children and their families. His research has made significant strides in the biological understanding of ADHD and autism. Both are particularly prevalent among adolescents and young adults.

He has published hundreds of scientific articles and book chapters that have had a major impact in the field. This is thanks to his innovation of organising large-scale cohorts of patients, their siblings and control subjects, on the basis of which, Buitelaars and his team have uncovered the genetic and neural underpinnings of developmental disorders. Buitelaars developed a screening questionnaire to detect autism at an early stage. He was one of the first to demonstrate that ADHD also occurs in adults. He developed an elimination diet for children with ADHD that has been the impetus for a great deal of subsequent research into the relationship between the brain and food.

Jan Buitelaar is very passionate about getting his research into the spotlight. His advocacy in the media for attention to the relationship between poverty and mental health is characteristic for his social engagement. Buitelaar knows how to clearly articulate complex issues and get his important message across.