Attention deficit disorder, or ADD, is a chronic medical condition caused by defects in the brain's neural wiring that are usually present at birth. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that 4.1 percent of the U.S. population has ADD. Some research strongly suggests that ADD symptoms can sometimes be partially or fully controlled by eliminating certain foods from your diet.
ADD Symptoms
Attention deficit disorder, also known as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD, was identified by Dr. Alexander Crichton in 1798. Attention deficit disorder can be inherited from a parent or caused by environmental problems such as childhood exposure to lead paint. ADD symptoms manifest as combinations of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. A typical ADD child or adult often has trouble focusing on tasks and may constantly fidget and interrupt the conversations and activities of other people.
ADD Diet Controversy
ADD cannot be cured, but it can be controlled by behavior therapy and medications such as amphetamines and antidepressants. In 1975, Dr. Benjamin Feingold, an allergy specialist, suggested that a food allergy diet could help ADD children, igniting a fierce debate among ADD experts. In 1999 the Center for Science in the Public Interest found that out of 23 studies of the effects of food dyes and foods such as milk or wheat on ADD children, 17 studies showed evidence that some ADD children's behavior got worse after ingesting certain foods and dyes. But other researchers opposed these findings, arguing that food study results were weak and that some ADD adults and children were simply reluctant to take medications also associated with addiction and mental illness.
ADD Diet Study
A February 2011 study done by researchers at the ADHD Research Centre in Eindhoven, Netherlands, offers support to ADD patients seeking dietary advice. Dr. Lidy Pelsser and her colleagues placed 100 children diagnosed with ADD into two groups. Fifty children spent five weeks on a restricted diet, and the remaining 50 children ate a normal healthy diet. Thirty children on the restricted diet showed a 40 percent or greater improvement in their ADD symptoms after five weeks. These 30 children were then given foods for four weeks that might stimulate an allergic response. Nineteen children experienced a relapse in their ADD symptoms.
ADD Diet Recommendations
Pelsser and her colleagues suggest that your ADD child be placed under a physician's supervision and put on an individually tailored five-week restricted elimination diet, composed of hypoallergenic foods such as water, non-dairy calcium-reinforced rice drink, turkey, lamb, pears and other fruits and vegetables, including rice, lettuce, carrots, cauliflower, cabbage, beets, potatoes and wheat. If there are no behavioral changes after two weeks, your child's diet can be reduced to vegetables, rice, meat and rice drink. If your child's ADD symptoms decrease after five weeks, other foods should gradually be reintroduced into his diet to determine which foods he might be allergic to. The researchers warned that if your child does not show any reduction in ADD symptoms during the five weeks of restricted diet, he should be placed on the standard program of medications and behavioral therapy.
References
- "Lancet"; Effects of a Restricted Elimination Diet on ... Children With Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ...; Dr. Lidy M. Pelsser, et al.; February 2011
- Center for Science in the Public Interest; Diet, ADHD and Behavior; Michael F. Jacobson, et al.; 1999
- "Journal of Child Health Care"; Diet and Sleep in Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; Sarah L. Blunden, Ph.D., et al.; March 2011
- National Institute of Mental Health; Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; 2008
- National Institute of Mental Health: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Among Adults
- An Enquiry into the Nature and Origin of Mental Derangement; Alexander Crichton, M.D.; 1798
