ADHD has become a condition that is rampant in today’s society. While it is still being researched and treatment has primarily been through a trial and error process of finding the right blend of medication for the sufferers to help with focus and concentration, this form of treatment seems to show only benefits that last a few years. One scientist, Dr. James M. Swanson, of the University of California is one person to suggest that medications do not offer long term benefits and that alternative means should be researched to help improve focus and concentration skills.
Meditation has been suggested as one such possible help.
When a person undertakes mindful meditation, they are attempting to sit quietly and to try and focus on breathing. As the mind wanders (which it does in non ADHD people too), the art of pulling the mind back on track to focus on that breathing forms part of the skillset that will ultimately help in general life.
The practice not only helps with relaxation, but it is thought that it may even improve brain connections in the area of the brain that controls focus. Dr Swanson has noted that there has been a reduction in activity in this area of the brain with ADHD individuals, suggesting that meditation may be another tool in the arsenal in helping.
In fact, one study that had 50 ADD patients showed that those who practiced meditation or mindfulness based cognitive therapy had comparable outcomes in terms of motivation to those who were taking ADHD and ADD medications.
Another study done in 2017 showed that ten minutes of meditation helped people stay focused and better relaxed. This study involved some 82 patients who suffered from anxiety.
This mindful meditation may even reduce depression, further helping ADHD sufferers who have high tendencies to this condition.
Meditation is often a concept that is promoted by chiropractors and the like to further help their patients achieve a better state of well being. It’s clear that meditation helps many people who put their minds to it, including those suffering ADHD. So why not try some meditation yourself, particularly if you are an ADHD sufferer in New York.
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ADHD is a more common condition these days, many children are being diagnosed with it and more and more medications are being prescribed. While medications have their place, there’s lots of other things that Manhattan ADHD patients can do to help their condition and help more. We recently posted an article on the positive effects of chiropractic treatment may have on ADHD patients, but another key component is the role of the diet in Manhattan ADHD patients.
Diet is extremely important to everyone anyway, but finding the right diet for the ADHD sufferer can go a long way to helping themselves as well.
A great deal of research has discovered that zinc, calcium, selenium, magnesium, iron and omega 3 fat acids deficiencies can have an effect on stress and neural plasticity that helps with both brain development and healing properties. Children that suffer with ADHD can therefore suffer in learning challenges, memory issues as well as a lack of concentration skills.
Furthermore, a heightened sensitivity to food additives and other preservatives can cause inflammation in blood which can result in poor sleep, irritability, asthma, hay fever, and high impulsive actions. Research has demonstrated that probiotics can play a role in managing this inflammation which may help ADHD sufferers too.
Studies have long suggested that food additives, preservatives and the like do cause problems particularly with Manhattan ADHD patients, causing heightened hyperactivity.
Essential fatty acids along with phospholipids are vital for proper function, especially in the early years of childhood, and the diet is the only way of the body receiving these essential aspects. A deficiency in the diet in these early years has been shown to be a cause of increasing ADHD type symptoms.
Another aspect, which is well known is that diets that are low in protein but high in carbohydrates and sugar is another aspect that does not help the Manhattan ADHD patient.
So while there are many other natural aspects that can affect ADHD positively, diet is one of the key aspects that can be controlled more readily. A mutli-faceted approach which can include chiropractic treatment can go a long way to helping ADHD sufferers and better manage their condition.
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Call now on (212)371 2000 or text (315)873-3095 or email us at Your.Friends@BackAndBodyNY.com
Having a child with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can be a challenging—and sometimes heartbreaking—experience, and it’s one that affects many families. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4.7 million children in America have been diagnosed with the condition. Approximately 9.5% of children between ages 4 and 17 have at some point in their lives been diagnosed with ADHD, which has increased 5.5% on average each year between 2003 and 2007.
Why the sudden upsurge in the prevalence of ADHD? A few years ago, a number of studies found a strong association between ADHD and diet, and there was a strong push to try treating ADHD with diet modification. This approach has met with very mixed results. In the end, no conclusive evidence was found of a direct cause-and-effect link between specific dietary factors and ADHD. As a result of the contradictory and inconclusive data, diet modification lost a lot of its support within the medical community as a possible treatment. However, that started to change with the 2007 publication of a seminal British study now commonly referred to as the “Southampton Study”.
In the Southampton Study, a drink containing a mixture of artificial food coloring and the preservative sodium benzoate was found to aggravate hyperactivity in three-year-olds and did the same thing to a lesser extent in eight- to nine-year-olds. A 2010 study published in The American Journal of Psychiatry found similar results, and suggested that children made more hyperactive by food additives were likely to have problems with the genes that regulate histamine release (in response to potential allergens). In February 2011, another follow-up study was published in the prestigious journal The Lancet, which found that nearly two-thirds of the children who were following an elimination diet (in which food additives were eliminated in favor of fresh grains, meats, vegetables, and fruit) experienced significant reduction of their symptoms of hyperactivity and defiant behavior.
This research was strong enough to restart discussions about the possible role of food additives in causing or aggravating ADHD, and has led to the British government requesting that manufacturers remove most food dyes from their products. The European Union now requires warning labels on products that contain any of six food dyes that “may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.”
There has been a recent resurgence in interest in “elimination diets” as a possible approach to treating ADHD. Even though they may not work for all children with ADHD, they may work in a significant enough percentage of cases to warrant their use. Basically, such a diet consists of eating more protein (meat, eggs, cheese, nuts, etc.), eating fewer simple carbohydrates (candies, corn syrup, breads made from white flour, etc.) and eating more complex carbohydrates (whole grains, fresh vegetables and fruits). Proponents of such diets also recommend taking supplements of omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) and a general vitamin supplement.
The real “elimination” part of the diet involves trying to remove from it ingredients or food additives suspected of causing or aggravating ADHD to see if not eating them results in fewer symptoms. These additives include sodium benzoate and food dyes Yellow Nos. 5, 6 and 10, Red Nos. 3 and 40, and Blue Nos. 1 and 2.
Naturally, if your child has been diagnosed with ADHD, consult with a qualified physician before trying any type of elimination diet. He or she may be able to perform tests to help determine which dietary changes might be the most beneficial.
