Parents of children with ADHD often worry about side effects associated with the ADHD medications that their physicians have prescribed.

In a Nov. 25 article on the website Life With ADHD, a writer identified as "ADHD Dad" wrote about the importance of investigating non-medical alternatives for treating problems related to behavior, focus and attention:

Medication itself cannot solve ADHD problems or even treat it in an adequate way &

ADHD behaviour therapy is now regarded as an essential support and that means learning parenting skills which will solve a lot of the problems associated with ADHD such as inattention, hyperactivity, oppositional and defiant behaviour and so on.

Behaviour therapy is now recommended as one of the best ways of controlling ADHD without medication or at least reducing it to a bare minimum.

Labels: behavior, therapy

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Several studies have focused on the potential effects tobacco and lead have separately on children. But now, a first-of-its-kind study has documented the risks of combined exposure.

"New research suggests exposure to both tobacco and lead my increase [a childs] risk [for ADHD] by eight-fold." Florida's Ivanhoe Newswire reported. "A recent study from the Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center found a connection between ADHD, prenatal tobacco exposure and childhood exposure to lead."

Authors of the study believe prevention should be the focus, rather than treatment, the Newswire reported. Reducing exposure to tobacco and lead could decrease instances of ADHD in young people ages 8 to 15 by 35 percent (about 800,000 cases), according to the study.

Labels: causes, prevention

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The Australian government has been forced to pull guidelines for ADHD medication after it discovered that one of the contributing doctors may have received payments from drug companies.

"US-based child psychiatrist Dr. Joseph Biederman is under investigation in America by authorities who have uncovered $1.6 million in payments," Australian newspaper The Daily Telegraph reported. "The US Congress investigation has found Dr. Biederman failed to declare where all the money came from and has possibly breached federal and Harvard University laws."

As a result, Australian authorities have been forced to pull their ADHD guidelines for medications like Ritalin. Some child welfare and ADHD experts are asking for the guidelines to be completely re-written.

Labels: australia, guidelines, government

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The holidays are stressful for most families, and they can be particularly difficult for families of kids with ADHD. In Dr. Kari Miller's Nov. 15 examiner.com article, mother and author Deborah Merlin offers some suggestions to help reduce stress for all family members:

• Use the family gathering as an opportunity to build strong family ties as well as childrens self-esteem. -- ADHD children are often told everything they do wrong, and tend to have low self-esteem. An effective way to remove negative feelings from a family dinner is to have everyone take a turn listing either a positive comment or something they're grateful for about each person at the table.

• Be alert to food sensitivities and allergies. -- Food allergies are often common with people who have ADHD. Dairy allergies caused my boys countless ear infections and visits to the doctors office.

• Encourage your childs creativity! -- I helped my twins get in touch with their creative side by making sure we had plenty of construction paper, crayons and patterns for turkeys and pumpkins so they could make place cards and decorations.

Labels: stress, prevention

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A study conducted by the Cincinnati Childrens Medical Center found than nearly 9 percent of children in the United States meet the medical definition of ADHD. However, some are concerned that diagnoses are being made too quickly, before other issues are ruled out.

Kindall Nelson addressed this matter in a Nov. 12 article on examiner.com:

Because ADHD diagnoses are usually based on observation of the child, it is possible that the behaviors seen during observation have a different source. Symptoms of ADHD that are most recognized at school include: not listening, not finishing classroom assignments, disrupting other students, and inability to sit still.

While these issues definitely point to a problem, there are other possibilities to consider.

Among the "other possibilities" that Nelson refers to are hearing loss, dyslexia, and even giftedness. A child whos gifted academically may have trouble concentrating in class because shes not being challenged.

If your child is struggling with issues related to focus and attention, ADHD may be to blame -- but that's not the only option. Make sure you work with your child's teachers and your family's health care providers to ensure that a proper diagnosis is made, and all appropriate support services are made available.

Labels: diagnosis

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More than four million school children in the United States have ADHD. For many of them, medication is an important part of their treatment. It shouldnt, however, be their only treatment.

"Doctors who treat children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder said structure in the classroom and at home is vital." Columbus, Ohio news station 10TV reported. "Doctors recommend also including organization, prompts to keep kids on task and even checklists so they can follow their routines."

According to the 10TV report, Dr. Daniel Coury also suggests having students complete homework as soon as they get home so that theyre not having to stay focused later at night when medication may be wearing off.

Labels: organization, structure

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A paper by Jakob Asberg of the University of Gothenburg advises parents and teachers of children with ADHD or autism to pay particular attention to any problems the children are having with language comprehension.

A Nov. 12 article on the medical news website ScienceDaily provided the following details about Asberg's findings:

The findings in the five studies that comprise [Asberg's] thesis demonstrate that pupils with autism or Asperger's syndrome often have problems with comprehension, in particular with continuous texts such as stories. However, it was common that these children and young people were able to read individual words correctly and with a satisfactory flow, even though there was significant variation within the group in this respect.

"Both reading and spelling words and reading comprehension seem to be difficult for a lot of children with ADHD. It is important that teachers, parents and other professionals are vigilant regarding the occurrence of such difficulties and that the pupils are offered the support to which they are entitled," [Asberg said]

Labels: autism, students, reading, language

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In an Oct. 30 blog post on the Psychology Today website, author Anneli Rufus described a possible link between celiac disease and ADHD.

According to the Mayo Clinic, celiac disease is "a digestive condition triggered by consumption of the protein gluten & [that] can cause vitamin deficiencies that deprive your brain, peripheral nervous system, bones, liver and other organs of vital nourishment."

In her Psychology Today post, Rufus reported that a gluten-free diet may be able to minimize the impact of some ADHD symptoms:

"We have seen ... that nutrient deficiencies can lead to or exacerbate the onset of certain ADHD symptoms," reads a Stanford Wellsphere report. "For example, iron has been shown to be a useful supplement in treating certain underlying factors in ADHD. ...

It is thought that a celiac-disease-damaged system can contribute to iron deficiency, likely through impaired iron absorption, thus presenting a challenge to the ADHD patient. ...

A gluten-free diet (which, unfortunately, can be very difficult to administer due to the prevalence of wheat in the Western diet) has been shown to ameliorate most of these negative symptoms. A study done on celiac-disease patients and ADHD symptoms found that after treating patients with a gluten-free diet for six months, a number of ADHD-like symptoms subsided.

Labels: causes, diet, celiac disease

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In a Nov. 5 article in The Daily Kansan (the student newspaper of the University of Kansas), writer Abigail Bolin addressed concerns about the growing abuse of the ADHD medication Adderall on college campuses:

Adderall has a high potential for abuse and dependence, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Services, which explains the concern with its rising illegal use.

"My guess is that most students find it not problematic, having no major side effects, and helpful by being more alert," [Dr. Ty Yoshida, child and adolescent psychiatrist and medical director of Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center] said. "If anything theyre thinking they are getting an edge in academic performance and/or getting 'high.'"

According to [the National Survey on Drug Use and Health], full-time college students who used Adderall without having a prescription were three times more likely to use marijuana, eight times more likely to use cocaine and tranquilizers nonmedically and five times more likely to use pain relievers nonmedically. Ninety percent were also binge drinkers, but the illicit use of Adderall doesnt seem like a dangerous thing to some students.

"I take it to stay up to study for tests," [one UK student] explained. "Or when there are game days because Id like to make it out at night after a whole day of drinking."

Labels: adderall, college, abuse

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Myron Pryor is a 310-lb. defensive lineman whose athletic abilities have taken him from a stellar four-year career at the University of Kentucky to a promising role with the NFLs New England Patriots. Though he is used to squaring off against some of the largest men on a football field, Pryor told the Providence Journal that his younger years involved a struggle against a particularly difficult opponent: ADHD.

Sportswriter Shalise Manza Young provided the following details on Pryors journey from struggling student to football star:

Growing up, the Louisville native would frequently get in trouble for talking in class because he would simply forget that he was supposed to be paying attention. His grades were bad, and his self-esteem went down with them. &

Pryor saw therapists who taught him how to focus, and he was put on Prozac, which helped him stay in the moment. &

When he was medicated, Pryor found he was able to tune in, and things started to improve. He taught himself good habits, and eventually doctors wanted to see how he could function without the aid of medicine.

After a couple of months, they were very surprised because I was taking care of everything I was supposed to. I was staying focused in class, I didnt get in trouble as much and I did a lot better on my grades, he said. &

Pryor is just a few credits shy of receiving his [college] degree in family and consumer sciences, and he has every intention of returning to complete his studies.

Labels: students, athlete

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A study led by Yale School of Public Health assistant professor Jason Fletcher and University of Wisconsin-Madison researcher Barbara Wolfe found that young people with ADHD are more likely to commit crimes as adults.

The researchers analyzed data on more than 13,000 adolescents that had been collected during the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

An Oct. 28 article by Yale Daily News contributing reporter Jennifer Nadelmann provided the following details:

The type of crime committed depended on whether the child was diagnosed with impulsive ADHD, inattentive ADHD or a combination of the two. Children with impulsive ADHD were more likely to commit impulsive crimes such as theft. Children with inattentive ADHD were more likely to engage in premeditated crimes, such as burglary and selling drugs.

Children with both impulsive and inattentive ADHD were less likely to commit crimes compared to children with the other subtypes. ...

The study recommended extensive school intervention programs for children with ADHD, who not only tend to perform worse in school but also leave school earlier than their peers. The programs, Fletcher and Wolfe said in the study, could be "dollars well spent in terms of crime and drug abuse averted."

Labels: research, crime

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Several recent studies have found an unexpected supplemental treatment to anxiety and attention disorders: yoga. The studies have mainly focused on yogas effects on cancer patients, but in the process have discovered potential psychological as well as physiological benefits.

A Nov. 1 article by MedPage Today staff writer Kristina Fiore provided the following details about yoga's potential for helping kids with ADHD:

An Australian study published in the Journal of Attention Disorders concluded that yoga "may have merit as a complementary therapy for boys with ADHD already stabilized on medication."

Heather Peck, PhD, a school psychologist at the Bethany Community School in Bethany, Conn., and her colleagues at the University of Connecticut, performed a study last year on children with attention problems -- although not clinically diagnosed with ADHD.

After taking a yoga class in school, the children had improved attention that was comparable to that of their peers who didn't have attention disorders.

"We found significant effect sizes," Peck said. "Their levels of attention came up close to those of the rest of the kids in the class."

Labels: alternative_medicine, treatment, yoga

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