Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, is a chronic behavioral disorder that causes children, and sometimes adults, to act impulsively and exhibit hyperactive behavior. Children with this disorder have trouble concentrating and paying attention. Dietary changes can help to minimize the symptoms of ADHD for some, but not all, children.
Function
The medications prescribed for ADHD have side effects, including irritability, weight loss, decreased appetite and trouble sleeping. Ritalin may also increase cancer risk, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Eliminating foods that may cause your child to be more hyperactive may lessen or eliminate the need for your child to take prescription medication, especially if your child is also undergoing behavioral therapy.
Features
Diet therapy for ADHD involves avoiding foods that may cause hyperactivity, those that are particularly allergenic and those that contain artificial colors and preservatives. Since dietary changes only make a difference for some children, if you try an elimination diet and it does not effect your child's behavior, you can go back to feeding her a normal diet. However, if it does, you can challenge the child by adding the foods back one at a time to see which ones affect your child, and add back any foods that don't affect her behavior so her diet isn't overly limited.
Recommended Foods
Children with ADHD should eat a diet that contains plenty of fruits, vegetables, healthy omega-3 fats and grains, according to MayoClinic.com. Processed foods and foods containing a lot of sugar should be limited. Omega-3 fats may improve ADHD symptoms, but further research is needed in this area before recommendations can be made.
Considerations
You should speak with a doctor or registered dietitian before severely limiting your child's diet. You need to make sure that he still gets enough of the essential nutrients, and this can be hard when you eliminate many foods from the diet. Food additives may increase hyperactivity, according to MayoClinic.com, but do not cause ADHD.
Potential
If you want to try an ADHD diet for your child, the food additives that are most commonly cited as increasing hyperactivity include FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Yellow No. 5, FD&C Yellow No. 6, D&C Yellow No. 10 and sodium benzoate, according to the MayoClinic.com. Tomatoes, berries and apricots contain natural salicylates which may also increase symptoms of ADHD.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Children
- MayoClinic.com: ADHD Diet: Do Food Additives Cause Hyperactivity?
- Center for Science in the Public Interest: A Parent's Guide to Diet, ADHD& Behavior
- Center for Science in the Public Interest: Diet, ADHD& Behavior - a Quarter-Century Review
