Natural Way to Treat ADHD

Overview

When it comes to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, parents may begin to feel as if their children are being over-diagnosed and over-medicated. If your child has been labeled as ADHD, but you do not feel comfortable with a standard medication such as Ritalin, you may wish to explore natural alternatives.

Step 1

Eliminate artificial colorings, flavorings, sweeteners and preservatives from your child's diet. One program, the Feingold Diet, is targeted particularly at eliminating ADHD symptoms in children. The diet recommends the elimination of aspirin and foods containing salicylates, such as berries, apples, cloves, oranges, peaches, grapes, peppers (chile and bell), prunes, plums and tomatoes. Other foods that have been linked to behavior disorders in children include eggs, milk, wheat and chocolate. If you do not want to impose a drastic dietary change on your child all at once, eliminate different types of foods one by one to see if there is any improvement.

Step 2

Use musical or rhythmic therapy. Interactive metronome therapy uses rhythmic feedback to improve children's motor control and attention. Children treated with this technique perform exercises to a rhythmic beat while wearing sensors and headphones on their hands and feet. If you cannot find a practitioner of this type of therapy, enroll your child in music and/or dance lessons.

Step 3

Find a neurofeedback practitioner. The practitioner will paste electrodes to your child's head to pick up signals from his brain, and then try to help him control his brainwave activity. Neurofeedback sessions usually last for 50 minutes and are given twice a week over 4 or 5 months. Beneficial results have been reported by numerous studies, and have been written up in publications, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Step 4

Help your child relax. A daily massage may help her feel happier, less fidgety and better able to focus. If she is willing, help her learn yoga or even meditation. Look for guided meditation tapes. They may be soothing, and can at least provide some short-term relief from the ADHD symptoms.