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Many people are unable to sit still, plan ahead, finish tasks or be fully aware of what is going on around them. To their family, classmates or coworkers they seem to exist in a whirlwind of disorganized or frenzied activity. On some days and in certain situations they seem fine, often leading others to believe they can control this behavior. The disorder can adversely affect relationships with others in addition to disrupting their daily life, consuming energy and diminishing self-esteem.
Incidence
ADHD, once called hyperkinesis or minimal brain dysfunction, is a common mental disorder among children. It affects some 3-5% of all children - perhaps as many as 2 million American children. Two to three times more boys than girls are affected. On average, at least one child in every classroom in the United States needs help for the disorder.
Signs & Symptoms
At present, ADHD is a diagnosis applied to children and adults who consistently display certain characteristic behaviors over a period of time. The most common behaviors fall into three categories: inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. ADD (Attention Deficit/Deficiency Disorder) occurs when hyperactivity is not present.
Diagnosis & Tests
Not everyone who is overly hyperactive, inattentive or impulsive has an attention disorder. Are these behaviors excessive, long-term and pervasive, occurring more often than in most others the same age? Are they a continuous problem, not just a response to a temporary situation? Do the behaviors occur in several settings or only in one specific place such as the playground or the office?
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, there are three patterns of behavior that indicate ADHD, and someone may have one or more.
Signs of inattention include:- becoming easily distracted by irrelevant sights and sounds
- failing to pay attention to details and making careless mistakes
- rarely following instructions carefully and completely
- losing or forgetting things such as toys, or pencils, books and tools needed for a task.
Some signs of hyperactivity and impulsivity are:- feeling restless, often fidgeting with hands or feet, or squirming
- running, climbing or leaving a seat in situations where sitting or quiet behavior is expected
- blurting out answers before hearing the whole question
- having difficulty waiting in line or for a turn.
To be considered ADHD, the behaviors must have appeared before age 7 and continued for at least 6 months. In children they must be more frequent or severe than in most others of the same age. Above all, the behaviors must create a real handicap in at least two areas of a person's life, such as school, home, work or social settings. Someone whose work or friendships are not impaired by these behaviors would not be diagnosed with ADHD, nor would a child who seems overly active at school but functions well elsewhere.
Other conditions may produce similar symptoms resulting in an incorrect diagnosis. Anything from chronic fear to mild seizures can make a child seem overactive, quarrelsome, impulsive or inattentive. For example, a formerly cooperative child who becomes overactive and easily distracted after a parent's death is dealing with an emotional problem, not ADHD. A chronic middle ear infection can also make a child seem distracted and uncooperative. Living with family members who are physically abusive or addicted to drugs or alcohol can produce effects that may resemble ADHD, but are not.
In other children, ADHD-like behaviors may be their response to a defeating classroom situation. Perhaps the child has a learning disability and is not developmentally ready to learn to read and write at the time these are taught. Perhaps the work is too hard or too easy, leaving the child frustrated or bored.
It's also important to realize that during certain stages of development, the majority of young children tend to be inattentive, hyperactive or impulsive, and yet do not have ADHD. Preschoolers have lots of energy and run everywhere they go, but this doesn't mean they are hyperactive. Many teenagers go through a phase when they are messy, disorganized and reject authority but it doesn't mean they will have a lifelong problem controlling their impulses.
Treatment & Prevention
ADHD is a serious diagnosis that may require long-term treatment with counseling and medication. Medication-free methods should receive a trial before immediately beginning drug use. Identifying the problem can help people understand why they behave in these ways. This understanding can be an important part of coping with the disorder.
Prognosis
ADHD often continues into adolescence and adulthood, and can cause a lifetime of frustrated dreams and emotional pain.
While it was previousely thought that Attention Deficit was primarily a childhood problem, it is now believed that only one-third of this population grows out of it.
References & Further Information
Two books that could appear on any suggested reading list include:- ADHD: A Path to Success - A Revolutionary Theory and New Innovation in Drug-Free Therapy (1998) by Lawrence Weathers and Kelsey Loughlin presents a revolutionary theory that helps parents see through their ADHD child's eyes. Their high rate of success is based on learning how your child's ADHD is not a deficit, but a highly refined skill that helps them survive.
- Driven to Distraction - Recognizing and coping with Attention deficit Disorder from Childhood through Adulthood (1995) by Edward Hallowell, MD and John Ratey, MD is a readable and helpful paperback.
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Signs, symptoms & indicators of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): | | | | | Symptoms - Metabolic |  Hyperactivity | People who are hyperactive always seem to be in motion. They can't sit still and may dash around or talk incessantly. Sitting still through a lesson can be an impossible task. Hyperactive children squirm in their seat or roam around the room. Or they might wiggle their feet, touch everything or noisily tap their pencil. Hyperactive teens and adults may feel intensely restless. They may be fidgety or they may try to do several things at once, bouncing around from one activity to the next. |
Counter-indicators:
 Not being hyperactive |
Symptoms - Mind - General |
An overstimulated mind
Having trouble concentrating| | People who are inattentive have a hard time keeping their mind on any one thing and may get bored with a task after only a few minutes. They may give effortless, automatic attention to activities and things they enjoy but find it very difficult to focus deliberate, conscious attention on organizing and completing a task or learning something new. |
High spontaneity| | People who are overly impulsive seem unable to curb their immediate reactions or think before they act. As a result they may blurt out inappropriate comments or run into the street without looking. Their impulsivity may make it hard for them to wait for things they want or to take their turn in games. They may grab a toy from another child or hit others when upset. |
Counter-indicators:
Low spontaneity| | People who are overly impulsive seem unable to curb their immediate reactions or think before they act. As a result they may blurt out inappropriate comments or run into the street without looking. Their impulsivity may make it hard for them to wait for things they want or to take their turn in games. They may grab a toy from another child or hit others when upset. |
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Risk factors for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD):
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) could instead be:
Recommendations and treatments for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): | | | | | Diet |  Food Additive Avoidance| | The belief that food additives can cause hyperactivity in children stemmed from the research of Benjamin Feingold, M.D and is commonly referred to as the Feingold Hypothesis. According to Feingold, perhaps 40-50% of hyperactive children are sensitive to artificial food colors, flavors and preservatives. They may also be sensitive to naturally-occurring salicylates and phenolic compounds in foods.
Dr. Julian Whitaker, MD has observed: "Feingold's assertion that food additives are a problem in learning disorders has been subject to great debate over the past two decades. Practices that are profitable carry on and major economic interests have responded by hiring their own researchers to combat the results. Questions are asked in ways that will produce answers that undercut the challenging work and please the funding interests." The media publishes "conflicting reports"; politicians and regulators cite this conflict as their reason for inaction. Habits do not change easily. Feingold's work has stimulated a classic example of such debate, because the American food supply and American agribusiness is profitably enmeshed in the use of food additives.
Dr. Feingold made his original presentation to the American Medical Association in 1973. His strong claims were based on experience with 1,200 individuals in whom behavior disorders were linked to consumption of food additives. Follow-up research in Australia and Canada has tended to support Feingold's thesis." [Dr. Whitaker's Guide to Natural Healing, Prima Publishing, 1996]
The Hyperactive Children's Support Group of Great Britain recommends that the following food additives be avoided:
Amaranth, Benzoic Acid, BHA, BHT, Brilliant Blue FCF, Caramel, Carmine, Carmoiic Acid, Cochineal, FCFV, Indigo, Potassium Nitrate, Quinoline Yellow, Red 2G, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Nitrate, Sulfur Dioxide, Sunset Yellow, Tartrazine,
Try to avoid foods, such as the following, with high salicylate content, to see if their removal causes a difference in behavior:
Almonds, Honey, Peppermint Tea, Peanuts, Peppers, Plums (canned), Prunes (canned), Raspberries (fresh), Strawberries (fresh), Tomatoes - and many spices, including Cardamom, Cinnamon, Cloves, Curry, Oregano, Paprika, Pepper, Rosemary, Sage and Turmeric. |
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Drug |
 GHB (Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate) |
Lab Tests/Rule-Outs |
 Test for Food Allergies| | Allergies to one or more foods are often found in children with ADHD. Frequent offenders are milk, cane sugar, chocolate, American cheese, and wheat. [Annals Allergy Vol. 72, 1994, pp. 462-8] |
Test Copper Levels
Test Zinc Levels
Test for Manganese Levels
Test for Heavy Metals |
Mineral |
Magnesium| | Magnesium is often given as part of a treatment for hyperactivity in kids, usually along with vitamin B6. |
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Nutrient |
DMAE| | DMAE helps alleviate the behavioral problems and hyperactivity associated with ADD. |
DHA (docosahexaenoic acid)| | Studies show that low DHA intake in infancy can lead or contribute to Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). A preliminary double-blind placebo-controlled trial found some evidence that a supplement containing fish oil and evening primrose oil might improve ADHD symptoms [Presented at 2nd Forum of European Neuroscience Societies; July 24-28, 2000; Brighton, United Kingdom].
In a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of children already using stimulant therapy, the addition of the essential fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) for 4 months failed to further improve symptoms. [J Pediatr. 2001;139: pp.189-196.] It remains to be confirmed whether DHA will provide any benefit in those not using stimulant therapy. |
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Physical Medicine |
Manipulation| | Some chiropractors believe that ADD is commonly caused by an occiput that is jammed too far forward on the cranial base, caused as a common result of any sort of birth trauma, even when minor. As many as 60% of children with ADD are claimed to have this mechanical problem and a high percentage experience improvement with adjustment. |
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Vitamins |
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) |
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KEY | | Weak or unproven link | | | Strong or generally accepted link |  | | Proven definite or direct link | | | Strongly counter-indicative | | | May do some good | | | Likely to help | | | Highly recommended |
GLOSSARY
Allergy (Allergies)
Hypersensitivity caused by exposure to a particular antigen (allergen), resulting in an increased reactivity to that antigen on subsequent exposure, sometimes with harmful immunologic consequences.
Chronic (Chronicity)
Usually referring to chronic illness: Illness extending over a long period of time.
Copper
An essential mineral that is a component of several important enzymes in the body and is essential to good health. Copper is found in all body tissues. Copper deficiency leads to a variety of abnormalities, including anemia, skeletal defects, degeneration of the nervous system, reproductive failure, pronounced cardiovascular lesions, elevated blood cholesterol, impaired immunity and defects in the pigmentation and structure of hair. Copper is involved in iron incorporation into hemoglobin. It is also involved with vitamin C in the formation of collagen and the proper functioning in central nervous system. More than a dozen enzymes have been found to contain copper. The best studied are superoxide dismutase (SOD), cytochrome C oxidase, catalase, dopamine hydroxylase, uricase, tryptophan dioxygenase, lecithinase and other monoamine and diamine oxidases.
DHA
Docosahexanoic Acid. A metabolite of the omega-3 fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid.
Essential Fatty Acid (EFA, EFAs, Essential Fatty Acids)
A substance that the human body cannot manufacture and therefore must be supplied in the diet.
Learning Disorder (Learning Disabilities, Learning Disability, Learning Disorders)
A generic term that refers to a group of disorders manifested by significant difficulties in the acquisition and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning or mathematical abilities. These disorders are intrinsic to the individual and presumed to be due to central nervous system dysfunction. Even though a learning disability may occur along with other handicapping conditions (e.g. sensory impairment, mental retardation, social and emotional disturbance) or environmental influences (e.g. cultural differences, insufficient/inappropriate instruction, psychogenic factors) it is not the direct result of those condition or influences.
Magnesium
An essential mineral. The chief function of magnesium is to activate certain enzymes, especially those related to carbohydrate metabolism. Another role is to maintain the electrical potential across nerve and muscle membranes. It is essential for proper heartbeat and nerve transmission. Magnesium controls many cellular functions. It is involved in protein formation, DNA production and function and in the storage and release of energy in ATP. Magnesium is closely related to calcium and phosphorus in body function. The average adult body contains approximately one ounce of magnesium. It is the fifth mineral in abundance within the body--behind calcium, phosphorus, potassium and sodium. Although about 70 percent of the body's magnesium is contained in the teeth and bones, its most important functions are carried out by the remainder which is present in the cells of the soft tissues and in the fluid surrounding those cells.
Manganese
An essential mineral found in trace amounts in tissues of the body. Adults normally contain an average of 10 to 20mg of manganese in their bodies, most of which is contained in bone, the liver and the kidneys. Manganese is essential to several critical enzymes necessary for energy production, bone and blood formation, nerve function and protein metabolism. It is involved in the metabolism of fats and glucose, the production of cholesterol and it allows the body to use thiamine and Vitamin E. It is also involved in the building and degrading of proteins and nucleic acid, biogenic amine metabolism, which involves the transmitting of nerve impulses.
Occiput
Hind-most region on the top of the head.
Potassium
A mineral that serves as an electrolyte and is involved in the balance of fluid within the body. Our bodies contain more than twice as much potassium as sodium (typically 9oz versus 4oz). About 98% of total body potassium is inside our cells. Potassium is the principal cation (positive ion) of the fluid within cells and is important in controlling the activity of the heart, muscles, nervous system and just about every cell in the body. Potassium regulates the water balance and acid-base balance in the blood and tissues. Evidence is showing that potassium is also involved in bone calcification. Potassium is a cofactor in many reactions, especially those involving energy production and muscle building.
Seizure (Seizures)
While there are over 40 types of seizure, most are classed as either partial seizures which occur when the excessive electrical activity in the brain is limited to one area or generalized seizures which occur when the excessive electrical activity in the brain encompasses the entire organ. Although there is a wide range of signs, they mainly include such things as falling to the ground; muscle stiffening; jerking and twitching; loss of consciousness; an empty stare; rapid chewing/blinking/breathing. Usually lasting from between a couple of seconds and several minutes, recovery may be immediate or take up to several days.
Self-Esteem
The extent to which and ways in which people view themselves. People who view themselves favorably have good self-esteems whereas people who view themselves negatively have poor self-esteems. Self-esteem affects a person's behavior dramatically.
Sodium
An essential mineral that our bodies regulate and conserve. Excess sodium retention increases the fluid volume (edema) and low sodium leads to less fluid and relative dehydration. The adult body averages a total content of over 100 grams of sodium, of which a surprising one-third is in bone. A small amount of sodium does get into cell interiors, but this represents only about ten percent of the body content. The remaining 57 percent or so of the body sodium content is in the fluid immediately surrounding the cells, where it is the major cation (positive ion). The role of sodium in the extracellular fluid is maintaining osmotic equilibrium (the proper difference in ions dissolved in the fluids inside and outside the cell) and extracellular fluid volume. Sodium is also involved in nerve impulse transmission, muscle tone and nutrient transport. All of these functions are interrelated with potassium.
Vitamin B6 (B6, B-6)
Influences many body functions including regulating blood glucose levels, manufacturing hemoglobin and aiding the utilization of protein, carbohydrates and fats. It also aids in the function of the nervous system.
Zinc
An essential trace mineral. The functions of zinc are enzymatic. There are over 70 metalloenzymes known to require zinc for their functions. The main biochemicals in which zinc has been found to be necessary include: enzymes and enzymatic function, protein synthesis and carbohydrate metabolism. Zinc is a constituent of insulin and male reproductive fluid. Zinc is necessary for the proper metabolism of alcohol, to get rid of the lactic acid that builds up in working muscles and to transfer it to the lungs. Zinc is involved in the health of the immune system, assists vitamin A utilization and is involved in the formation of bone and teeth.
Last updated: Apr 13, 2008
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