Can Recommended ADHD Diets Help Minimize Symptoms?

A growing number of parents are turning to diet to help ease the symptoms of their child's ADHD. More often, ADHD-related diets are used as a way to either minimize dependence on medications or as the first step to manage ADHD symptoms before turning to drugs. But how effective are ADHD diets recommended by many experts in the field?

ADHD is a common disorder in children and is often diagnosed in nearly 5% of children in the United States. Once diagnosed, children are often prescribed medications as treatment, leading to a triple increase in the use of ADHD drugs. While drugs have shown a lot of promise in helping treat the symptoms of ADHD, more and more parents are turning to diet as a way to minimize symptoms, manage the disorder and hopefully, avoid medication altogether.

What's wrong with medication?
Medication will always be at the forefront of ADHD management, not only because it's the preferred treatment by most doctors and parents, but also because it offers fast results and can actually show improvement in behavior. However, many parents are turning to ADHD diets because it seems to show long term results. A dietary supplementation plan, for example, has shown behavior improvement after just one or two weeks, offering hope that changes can be encouraged if used regularly.

Recommended diet for ADHD
The main goal of an ADHD diet that is often recommended by professionals and other diet experts is to manage the levels of blood sugar in the body and ensure that the brain receives the right type of nutrition at the most opportune times. Healthy meals not only help regulate the child's energy level, it also helps feed his brain to help it optimize its functions.
North-american's diets are way too rich in sugar and fat. Everyone, regardless if they have ADD should cut down on fatty foods and carbs and incorporate generous amounts of fruits and vegetables as part of their daily regimen.

There are different kinds of ADHD diets, although the most common include:

The elimination diet - certain food categories are eliminated from the diet and are re-introduced one by one. A child's behavior is then observed to see if it is affected by the food.

The Feingold method - first developed in the 1970s by Dr. Benjamin Feingold, this diet recommends that all food additives such as artificial flavorings and color, along with preservatives and certain salicylate-containing fruits and vegetables, are removed. Some of these include apples, plums, raspberries, grapes, oranges, peaches and tomatoes.

Sugar and caffeine-free diet - refined sugar is thought to increase hyperactivity in children while caffeine is a stimulant. By avoiding these foods, ADHD symptoms are not aggravated.

When are nutritional supplements indicated?
Nutritional supplementation completely opposes certain ADHD diets recommended by some experts. Unlike the elimination diet, nutritional supplementation pre-supposes that the body is missing necessary nutrients, preventing it from functioning properly. As such, these missing nutrients are replaced by taking nutritional supplements.

An important thing to note for parents who plan on using mega-vitamins for children with ADHD is that nutritional and dietary supplements are not regulated by the FDA, so many of the ingredients contained in these supplements may not have passed strict testing. It's best to have the child examined by a doctor in order to determine whether he truly is deficient before using dietary supplements.

Can ADHD diets really improve a child's behavior?
It is evident that changes in the diet alone are not helpful for each child who has ADHD. However, there are certain children who benefit from special diets. Most recently, research has shown that a small percentage children who used an additive-free diet exhibited minimal or no ADHD symptoms. Nutritional supplementation has also shown to be a practical approach for children who have exhibited certain deficiencies in nutrients, although this is a natural reaction in such a case.

A caveat: when using recommended ADHD diets, make sure that whatever changes are implemented remain realistic not just for the person with ADHD but also for the rest of the family. By attempting to follow some strict ADHD diet recommended by a professional, for example, you could be creating more unnecessary stress. Be careful also that a young child does not miss out on very important nutrients by following a recommended AHDH diet. The last thing you want to do is to cause a health problem. Furthermore, don't try to be too regimented all the time. It's okay to ease up once in a while, especially if it can be good for the child. Letting him have his cake on his birthday or some other special occasion, for example, might do well for his symptoms than restricting his enjoyment.

Lastly and most importantly, always consult your doctor before giving any medication whatsoever. All medications have side effects and only your physician is qualified to prescribe medicines and treatments and to recommend dietary changes.