Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD) is the most commonly reported childhood behavioral disorder, affecting between between 3 and 7% of American children. It is characterized by poor attention span, impulsive behaviors, and hyperactivity in some children. The diagnostic criteria are strictly observational, and there are no objective laboratory tests to confirm that diagnosis. Subjective evaluations of annoying, distracting, or inattentive behavior makes the “diagnosis” of ADD/ADHD speculative at best.
The most common medical “treatment” for this controversial “disease” is prescriptions of Methylphenidate (Ritalin), a Class II controlled and addictive substance. The long–term effects of this drug on children is unknown, but the side–effects, including addiction, are becoming better understood.
What is ADD/ADHD? Although it's exact “cause” is unknown, major etiologic contributors include adverse responses to food additives, intolerances to foods, sensitivities to environmental chemicals, molds, and fungi, and exposures to neurodevelopmental toxins, such as heavy metals and organohalide pollutants. [1]
Nutrient deficiencies are common in ADD/ADHD. Supplementation with minerals, B vitamin complex, flavonoids, and the omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids have shown promising results, as are reported in the Abstracts Section section below.
A wholistic/integrative management program will include supplementation, dietary modification, detoxification, and removal of environmental toxins and toxic cleaners from the home.
This page is devoted to sharing research information about ADD/ADHD to help parents and teachers make informed decisions, and to support the children who stand to benefit from a drug–free existance. The following articles and journal abstracts discuss ADD/ADHD and a “natural treatment” program.
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A Possible Link Between Early Probiotic Intervention and the Risk
of Neuropsychiatric Disorders Later in Childhood: A Randomized Trial
Pediatr Res. 2015 (Jun); 77 (6): 823–828
At the age of 13 y, ADHD or AS was diagnosed in 6/35 (17.1%) children in the placebo and none in the probiotic group (P = 0.008). Probiotic supplementation early in life may reduce the risk of neuropsychiatric disorder development later in childhood possible by mechanisms not limited to gut microbiota composition.
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Complementary and Alternative Medical Therapies for Children
With Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Alternative Medicine Review 2011 (Dec); 16 (4): 323–337 ~ FULL TEXT
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a commonly diagnosed childhood disorder characterized by impulsivity, inattention, and hyperactivity. ADHD affects up to 1 in 20 children in the United States. The underlying etiologies of ADHD may be heterogeneous and diverse, and many possible risk factors in the development of ADHD have been identified. Conventional treatment usually consists of behavioral accommodations and medication, with stimulant medication most commonly being prescribed. Parents concerned about the side effects and long-term use of conventional medications are increasingly seeking alternatives to pharmacologic treatment. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) offers parents various treatment options for this condition, including dietary modifications, nutritional supplementation, herbal medicine, and homeopathy.
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Chiropractic Care for Pediatric and Adolescent Attention-Deficit/
Hyperactivity Disorder: A Systematic Review
Chiropractic & Osteopathy 2010 (Jun 2); 18: 13 ~ FULL TEXT
The search yielded 58 citations of which 22 were intervention studies. Of these, only three studies were identified for pediatric and adolescent AD/HD cohorts. The methodological quality was poor and none of the studies qualified using inclusion criteria. To date there is insufficient evidence to evaluate the efficacy of chiropractic care for pediatric and adolescent AD/HD. The claim that chiropractic care improves pediatric and adolescent AD/HD, is only supported by low levels of scientific evidence. In the interest of pediatric and adolescent health, if chiropractic care for AD/HD is to continue, more rigorous scientific research needs to be undertaken to examine the efficacy and effectiveness of chiropractic treatment. Adequately-sized RCTs using clinically relevant outcomes and standardised measures to examine the effectiveness of chiropractic care verses no-treatment/placebo control or standard care (pharmacological and psychosocial care) are needed to determine whether chiropractic care is an effective alternative intervention for pediatric and adolescent AD/HD.
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Some Food Additives Raise Hyperactivity, Study Finds
New York Times Research Section ~ September 6, 2007
Common food additives and colorings can increase hyperactive behavior in a broad range of children, a study being released today found. It was the first time researchers conclusively and scientifically confirmed a link that had long been suspected by many parents. Numerous support groups for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder have for years recommended removing such ingredients from diets, although experts have continued to debate the evidence. But this new, carefully controlled study in The Lancet Journal
shows that some artificial additives increase hyperactivity and decrease attention span in a wide range of children, not just those for whom overactivity has been diagnosed as a learning problem.
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Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Children:
Rationale for Its Integrative Management
Alternative Medicine Review 2000; 5 (5) Oct: 402–428 ~ FULL TEXT
ADHD begins in childhood and often persists into adulthood. The exact etiology is unknown; genetics plays a role, but
major etiologic contributors also include adverse responses to food additives, intolerances to foods, sensitivities to environmental chemicals, molds, and fungi, and exposures to neurodevelopmental toxins such as heavy metals and organohalide pollutants. Mounting controversy over the widespread use of methylphenidate and possible life-threatening effects from its long-term use make it imperative that alternative modalities be implemented for ADHD management. Nutrient deficiencies are common in ADHD; supplementation with minerals, the B vitamins (added in singly), omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids, flavonoids, and the essential phospholipid phosphatidylserine (PS) can ameliorate ADHD symptoms. When individually managed with supplementation, dietary modification, detoxification, correction of intestinal dysbiosis, and other features of a wholistic/integrative program of management, the ADHD subject can lead a normal and productive life.
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ADHD, Ritalin, and Big Brother
Alternative Medicine Review 2000 (Oct); 5 (5): 401 ~ FULL TEXT
The year: 2000. Location: somewhere in the United States. "Doug and Marie," loving, well-intentioned parents of a school-aged child are sitting in a jail cell, awaiting a hearing in which they will be charged with child abuse and neglect. The reason? Refusing to dose their son with Ritalin. This scenario is fictitious; however, it is not far from what could happen.
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Drug-free Treatment for Attention Deficit Disorders
Food, while nourishing, can also energize or subdue, comfort or agitate. A growing body of evidence implicates diet in the commonly diagnosed attention deficit disorder (ADD). Simple meal modification may eliminate the need for the frightening array of drugs being prescribed to control children. Diet can mean the difference between a normal childhood and years of difficult behavior or behavior-modifying drugs.
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Polyunsaturated Fats and Neurological Disorders
Nutrition Science News ~ September 2000
For he past 50 years, major psychiatric disorders generally have been attributed to neurotransmitter system abnormalities. Neurotransmitters are biochemicals that transfer information from one neuron, or central nervous system cell, to another. While this concept is still considered valid, it has limited ability to explain the origins and guide the treatment of mental illness. Furthermore, there is a growing consensus in scientific circles that the phospholipid metabolism of the neuron cells themselves also plays a crucial role in the development of mental conditions. [1] Phospholipids are substances composed of two fatty acids linked to a phosphate group (e.g. choline, serine, inositol). This consensus has come because numerous studies have linked low brain levels of these substances to conditions such as depression, dyslexia, schizophrenia and more.
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ADHD: A Modern Malady
Nutrition Science News ~ August 2000
ADHD is being identified as epidemic throughout the United States: The National Institutes of Health in Washington, D.C., estimates that from 3 to 5 percent of all American schoolchildren have been diagnosed with the disorder. This trend alone is reason for concern, but perhaps more troubling is that more than 6 million American children currently diagnosed with ADHD are being treated with central nervous system stimulants--usually methylphenidate (Ritalin)--when more natural approaches exist. [1] A sad commentary on the seriousness of this problem was related by a patient who recently visited his child's school and outside the nurse's office found a long line of children waiting to get their dose of Ritalin.
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Diet, ADHD, and Behavior
This letter, from scientists at the Center for Science in the Public Interest is directed to Donna Shalala, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It reviews studies on the effect of diet on behavior (including ADHD) and touches on side effects of the stimulant drugs that have been used to treat behavior disorders in millions of children.
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What is Methylphenidate (Ritalin)
This page from the National Library of Medicine's MedlinePlus Drug Information Page is a real eye–opener!
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Top Child Health Agencies Urge Testing to Protect Early Brain
Development From Toxins: One Out of Six Affected
One out of six children are suffering from behavioral disorder according to the Learning Disabilities Association and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS–NIU). Both are calling for research testing to recognize, reduce and eliminate the environmental toxins scientifically linked to learning disabilities.
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Fish Oil Could Be an Alternative to Ritalin
Dr Basant Puri, a consultant and senior lecturer at Hammersmith Hospital in Ireland has been using sophisticated imaging techniques to study the role of fatty acids in brain function. He says he has unearthed a wealth of evidence about how supplementation with specific fatty acids can not only help those with ADD/ADHD (attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder), but also dyslexia and dyspraxia.
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Study Links Nutrition and Children’s Behaviour
Functional Foods & Nutraceuticals July 2005
The double-blind study gave the 5– to 12–year-old children, many of whom had accompanying attention deficit problems and dyslexia, either an olive oil placebo or a fish oil-derived omega-3 fatty acid supplement. Those on the supplement showed greatly increased concentration and ability to process information within three months of taking the supplement, with an average advancement in reading age of about nine months and spelling age of six months.
Here's a report on the
The Durham Dyspraxia Trial.
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Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Children:
Rationale for Its Integrative Management
Alternative Medicine Review 2000; 5 (5) Oct: 402–428 ~ FULL TEXT
The exact etiology is unknown; genetics plays a role, but major etiologic contributors also include adverse responses to food additives, intolerances to foods, sensitivities to environmental chemicals, molds, and fungi, and exposures to neurodevelopmental toxins such as heavy metals and organohalide pollutants. Nutrient deficiencies are common in ADHD; supplementation with minerals, the B vitamins (added in singly), omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids, flavonoids, and the essential phospholipid phosphatidylserine (PS) can ameliorate ADHD symptoms. When individually managed with supplementation, dietary modification, detoxification, correction of intestinal dysbiosis, and other features of a wholistic/integrative program of management, the ADHD subject can lead a normal and productive life.
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