ADHD: Can Diet Changes Help?

For many years there have been anecdotal reports of children with ADHD improving after removing food coloring and additives from their diets.  Now a group of scientists has supported the link between certain chemicals and hyperactivity.  The scientists analyzed multiple studies published in the Journal of the American Academy of  Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and concluded that "artificial food colors had a small but significant effect on ADHD symptoms." Children with ADHD who followed more restrictive diets also showed improvement in their symptoms.

The scientists estimate that about 8% of children with ADHD have symptoms triggered by artificial food colorings while about 30% may have ADHD symptoms triggered by food allergens. Joel Nigg, a professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, said that although implementing dietary restrictions may be difficult, it is worth trying.

For more information and the source of the above quote, please see:

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-05-22/health/sc-health-0522-food-dyes-behavior-20130522_1_adhd-artificial-food-colors-feingold-diet

©Mary M Conneely T/A Advocacy in Action