Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) can respond to a diet change

Over 10% of school age children in USA are nowadays diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD) and the corresponding attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).  That is an alarmingly huge number.  There wasn't such an epidemic in the 1800s, and even now the problem is concentrated in the USA.  Why?  What has changed?

Your doctor may tell you that diet change does not help and that Ritalin or other drugs and counseling are the only effective treatment, but that is not so!  In one study, researchers compared a group of children treated with Ritalin to another group which received a mix of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, amino acids, essential fatty acids, phospholipids, and probiotics.  Both groups showed significant and essentially identical improvement.

The treatment was based around these known eight risk factors for ADD/ADHD: food and additive allergies, heavy metal toxicity and other environmental toxins, low-protein/high-carbohydrate diets, mineral imbalances, essential fatty acid and phospholipid deficiencies, amino acid deficiencies, thyroid disorders, and B-vitamin deficiencies.

Thee researchers concluded: "These findings support the effectiveness of food supplement treatment in improving attention and self-control in children with AD/HD and suggest food supplement treatment of AD/HD may be of equal efficacy to Ritalin treatment."
(Outcome-based comparison of Ritalin versus food-supplement treated children with AD/HD. Altern Med Rev. 2003 Aug;8(3):319-30.)

The following information is mostly paraphrased from Dr. David William's popular Alternatives Newsletter September 1999 issue.  Dr. David Williams is a medical researcher who studies scientific research and travels around the globe researching natural cures and nutrition for different illnesses.  He is not taken in by any kind of hype and thoroughly researches the matter before reporting the working solutions in his newsletter.

Food additives and insensitivities

The finger points back to the unnatural chemicals used abundantly all around us and in our food supply, and to the deficient diets that most Americans eat.  People in the past were better off with their whole grains and less variety than us today with tons of variety of processed food robbed of its nutrition.

Children with ADD are commonly treated with a drug Ritalin, instead of looking into nutritional deficiencies and insensitivies to chemicals and foodstuffs.  Ritalin can be very dangerous in the long run.  It has some same properties as cocaine.  For example, researches at the Brookhaven National Laboratory at Upton, New York found that when Ritalin was given to cocaine users, they couldn't distinguish the Ritalin high from a cocaine high.

One study at University of California at Berkeley found that Ritalin users were three times more likely to develop a taste for cocaine.  The same researchers form The Brookhaven Laboratory have followed 5,000 children with ADHD till adulthood, and found that when ADHD-diagnosed children reach adolescense, they exhibit higher rates of alcohol and drug abuse and are involved in more criminal activities and accidents compared to non-ADHD children.   Their problems follow them into adulthood, too, with depression, divorce, and low self-esteem.

Ritalin is not a cure.  It is a quick-fix for behaviorial problems that does not address the underlying cause.  Fortunately, there is help.  Studies in Australia and the U.S. have shown that almost three-quarters of ADHD-diagnosed children show remarkable improvement when placed on diets which elimiate dyes, preservatives and foods commonly associated with allergic reactions (cow's milk, wheat, soy, eggs, corn, chocolate, yeast, orange and apple juice).

In the 1970's, Dr. Benjamin Feingold found that many of the hyperactive children were allergic to artificial flavors, colorings, preservatives, and the salicylic compounds found in aspirin and many berry fruits. An association bearing his name continues even today to educate parents about the Feingold program, which eliminates these artificial additives from a child's lifestyle, and can help children with various kinds of ailments. The association says over 90% of children get help from their program.

Sugar may be to blame, too

Another factor causing hyperactivity in some children is a difficulty with glucose metabolism, or in other words blood sugar problems.  Normally, when you ingest sugar, the pancreas releases insulin, which stops blood sugar from rising too high.  At the same time, adrenal glands release certain hormones to keep the insulin from driving blood sugar levels too low.  According to research, ADHD children release only about half the amount of these hormones as normal children.  It was found that this uncontrolled drop in blood sugar significantly decreased brain activity in these children.

It was also found that the ADHD children unconsciously become physically hyperactive in an effort to force their adrenal glands to release more of these hormones (catecholamines).  These children are unconsciously placing their bodies under stress trying to 'squeeze' more hormones from their already weakened adrenal glands.

As a solution, Dr. David Williams recommends avoiding sugar and high carbohydrate foods, as well as strenghtening the adrenal glands with a product called Drenamin.  In some children, a thyroid imbalance may be contributing to ADD and/or ADHD.  If avoiding sugar and high carbohydrate foods and taking Drenamin does not cure the problem, Dr. Williams recommends taking thyroid glandular supplement Thytrophin and the liquid iodine supplement Iosol.

Magnesium deficiency

Other considerations are different nutritional deficiencies.  The majority of Americans doesn't meet the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for magnesium, including children.  A deficiency of magnesium can present common psychiatric symptoms including depression, anxiety, restlessness, and irritability.  Depressed patients have been found to have lower levels of magnesium.  Several studies show that ADHD children are deficient in many common minerals, most often in magnesium, zinc, and iron, and that magnesium supplementation significantly decreases the hyperactivity symptoms in these children.

Why does the 'standard American diet' cause magnesium deficiency?  Did you know that

• 99% of the magnesium in sugar cane is lost when it is refined to white sugar.
• 80 - 96% of magnesium content in wheat is removed when refined to white flour.
• Consumption of soft drinks (pop or soda) decreases the body's absorption of magnesium.
• The typical high-dairy, high fat North American diet contains almost four times as much calcium as magnesium. This unbalanced ration coupled with the high fat content tends to suppress magnesium absorption.
• Further, high levels of dietary or supplementary calcium tend to suppress magnesium absorption.
• Refined salt is practically void of magnesium.

Essential fatty acids

It has been found that many ADHD children have a deficiency of essential fatty acids (EFAs).  This could be either because they cannot metabolize them properly, or because they cannot absorb EFAs normally from the gut, or because their EFA requirements are higher than normal.

The main omega-3 essential fat is ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), from which the body makes EPA and DHA (other omega-3 fats).  DHA is very important for the brain.  For the conversion from ALA to DHA the body needs adequate supply of vitamins C, B6, B3, and enough zinc and magnesium.  Also, if the diet contains too much omega-6 fats in comparison to ALA (as is usually the case in western diets), then the conversion is slowed down.

The best source of ALA is flax seed and flax oil, but when adding flax to the diet, one needs to make sure that the child is not deficient in the other vitamins and minerals that are needed for the conversion to DHA.  To err on the safe side, one could also eat oily fish like salmon, trout, herring, or sardines, which contain DHA (mackerel is an oily fish too, but often has high mercury levels).

Sources & resources:

ADHD: Treatments. Nutritional therapies
Excellent article that summarizes all current scientific findings on nutritional therapies for ADD and ADHD, including food sensitivies, allergies, magnesium, zinc & essential fatty acid deficiencies, cadmium and lead toxicity, problems with gastrointestinal flora, and more.

Dr. David William's Alternatives Newsletter September 1999 issue.

Magnesium and Aging

Feingold Association − educating families about eliminating artificial dyes, flavors, preservaties, and aspartame from a child's diet. BTW, this diet does allow the child to eat sweets and fast foods in moderation as long as they don't contain the abovementioned ingredients.

Attention Deficit Disorder: Facts, Prevention and Treatment Strategies

ADD and Autistic-like behaviors. Is there an alternatives to drug therapy for your child?

ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER & THE ALLERGY CONNECTION

Attention Deficit Disorder & Hyperactivity Success by Dr. Allen Buresz

Sugar and Refined Carbohydrates

Nutritionally Yours: Food Allergy Test
Our practitioner runs a "delayed" food allergy test to discover "hidden" food allergies that can be contributing to add/adhd symptoms.

The effects of magnesium physiological supplementation on hyperactivity in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Positive response to magnesium oral loading test. Magnes Res. 1997 Jun;10(2):149-56.

[The effect of deficiency of selected bioelements on hyperactivity in children with certain specified mental disorders] Ann Acad Med Stetin. 1998;44:297-314.

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children: rationale for its integrative management. Altern Med Rev. 2000 Oct;5(5):402-28.

The following books can be a starting point for avoiding and eliminating Ritalin:

	Twelve Effective Ways to Help Your ADD/ADHD Child: Drug-Free Alternatives for Attention-Deficit Disorders
	Why Can't My Child Behave?: Why Can't She Cope? Why Can't He Learn?
	The A.D.D. Nutrition Solution: A Drug-Free 30 Day Plan by Marcia Zimmermann
	Dr. Bob's Guide to Stop ADHD in 18 Days
	The A.D.D. and A.D.H.D. Diet! A Comprehensive Look at Contributing Factors and Natural Treatments for Symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder and Hyperactivity
	No More Ritalin: Treating Adhd Without Drugs by Mary Ann Block

Even if your child is not affected, you can help save some other child's future.  By all means relay this information to any parent you know who has a child with hyperactivity problems.

My fifteen year old son Willy Darman went from almost five years of Ritalin use for ADHD, to getting well naturally, making the honor roll, and being one of only four children out of over 200 to receive the "Principal's Award" this year.

...Willy went from being a very sickly child, with spontaneous nose bleeding, "easy bruising", and very soft teeth throughout his childhood, to being very healthy today.

Willy's profound metamorphosis as a human being, both mentally and physically, in the past twenty three months was simply the result of nutritional and other natural supplementation that I gave to him within this period of time (and no supplementation was given to him before this with the exception of a Flintstone vitamin on occasion).

Sincerely,

Allen Darman

You can read a more complete Willy Darman recovery story here

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