Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Mind-Body Approaches

A number of behavioral and self-awareness strategies have been found to have some effect at improving symptoms of ADHD, and potentially reducing the amount of stimulant medications required. These include basics such as establishing household and school routines, avoiding information and stimulus overloads (Davenport TH et al 2000; Goddard J 2000), and maintaining good eye contact, as well as techniques that require more practice and specific training, such as meditation and some forms of biofeedback.

In addition, there is preliminary evidence that vigorous exercise may have a role in managing some features of ADHD, especially in boys. This may be related to exercise-induced increases in dopamine activity (Tantillo M et al 2002).

Environmental and Dietary Considerations

Considerable controversy continues to surround the questions of how much environmental toxins and dietary factors contribute to ADHD (Kidd PM 2000). Overt toxicity from contaminants and pollutants such as mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are known to cause a wide spectrum of behavioral disorders (Rice DC 2000), although the effects of more subtle exposures are less clear.

Similarly, several theories have been advanced regarding the association between dietary components (such as simple sugars) and ADHD, but again convincing evidence is lacking (Chaves-Carballo E 2003). Dietary manipulations, such as the Feingold elimination diet, in which one category (or several categories) of food is carefully excluded, have been tried but with no success in treating ADHD (Krummel DA et al 1996).

Likewise, although allergies to foods or food additives have been proposed as a cause of ADHD (Boris M et al 1994; Rowe KS et al 1994), there is little scientific basis for this idea. So-called oligoantigenic diets aim to reduce the number and variety of food-based allergens that children might be exposed to. A few small trials have shown some benefit in carefully selected groups of children (Egger J et al 1985). Because such diets aim to eliminate large categories of food (on which growing children may depend), they should be undertaken only in careful collaboration with a physician. Allergy testing has rarely proved helpful in treating ADHD.

The role of dietary sugar. Despite a great deal of attention in the popular press, there has been no convincing evidence that dietary sugar is causal in ADHD (Krummel DA et al 1996). In a 1985 study, children with ADHD were shown to have lower adrenaline levels after a sugar intake than control children (Girardi NL et al 1995). The implications of this study are not clear. However, other studies have suggested that some children with ADHD may have food sensitivities that include sugar. The authors of these studies conclude that diet modification is an important part of ADHD management (Schnoll R et al 2003). Whatever the outcome of this debate, there is little doubt that dietary sugar is not a benefit in children's diets. It is linked to tooth decay, obesity, and other health conditions. Therefore, it is probably wise for all children to limit or completely avoid dietary sugar.

Product Availability

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