Dyslexia is caused

Dyslexia is caused by differences in the areas of the brain that deal with language, which aren't yet fully understood.

Several areas in the brain interact in a complex way to coordinate the manipulation of words needed for reading, writing and spelling, so the features of any one person's dyslexia will depend on which areas are affected and how.

There may be problems, for example, receiving sensory information through vision or hearing, holding it or structuring it in the brain, or retrieving it later, or there may be problems with the speed of processing information.

Brain-imaging scans show that when dyslexic people try to process information their brains work differently to those without dyslexia. This has nothing to do with intellect - people with dyslexia show a normal range of intelligence.

Inherited or genetic factors are important in dyslexia and other family members are often affected.


About four per cent of the population have severe dyslexia, while a further six per cent experience mild to moderate problems.


There's no cure, but recognition that a child has a problem (especially, if possible, the specific processing disorder relevant to the individual) and appropriate teaching methods can help a great deal. It's vital children are diagnosed and given the help they need.

Other approaches can help, too. In cases linked to visual differences, coloured overlays and lenses can lead to improvement because they may stop the letters from 'dancing on the page' (a common complaint).