One of the best things for a child with ADHD is a parent or guardian who is aware of what triggers certain behaviors in their child. Certain foods and actions trigger ADHD in children, resulting in a bad two or three days for him and you.
Children with ADHD
Remember when you brought your child home from the hospital and you had to learn what foods to feed him and when? For instance, each food had to be introduced two or three days at a time before adding a new food to see if there was an allergic reaction. This is similar to what you’ll need to do for children with ADHD. Certain foods such as sugars, sugar substitutes, red dyes, orange dyes, blue dyes, green dyes and yellow dyes are all known to trigger certain behaviors. Carbohydrates are also a culprit.
Knowing what foods and additives cause your child the most problems will help you help him control his ADHD. According to John M. Dye’s Healing Arts, one food may not trigger a behavior, but two or more combined might. Knowing the foods your child eats throughout the day will give you an upper hand on helping him with his ADHD.
Nutrition for ADHD Children
One good food combination I have found with my child is combining carbohydrates and protein. If he eats too many carbs and not enough protein, he may be more likely to have an outburst and be more hyperactive than if the two are balanced.
Another thing to watch is sugar. By starting with no sugar for two weeks, you’ll be able to figure out how much sugar your child will be able to handle before it affects his behavior and learning ability.
For instance, my child can’t handle any more than 5 grams of sugar (at this time) before he begins to lose focus, but my nephew, who also has ADHD, can handle a bit more sugar. Each child is different and should be handled as such.
Another thing to keep in mind is food allergies. Some children are allergic to certain foods, and the parents are unaware because the child may react to them differently than is expected. Foods to keep in mind when looking for food allergies include peanuts, dairy, corn, chocolate and corn syrup. When looking for these ingredients on the back of a box, keep in mind they have many different names they go by. An example would be sugar. Sugar goes by other names such as Glucose, Dextrose, Lactose, Maltose, High-Fructose Corn Syrup, Invert Sugar and many others.
Alternative Medicines
I chose to use alternative medicines with my child’s ADHD disorder. First, we have been using a product to help calm him down. It does not make him a zombie, nor does it seem to affect him in any way except that he calms down. For instance, instead of jumping from couch to couch, he sits down at the table and does his homework. Yes, he still fidgets, but much less than before.
We are also using a herb for focus, attention and memory. This seems to help him a lot. His grades have not fallen. Actually, he has jumped from reading 41 words a minute to more than 60 words a minute in just two months! This was a huge step for us. He is retaining more information and is able to take tests with little difficulty. Will these herbs continue to work? I am praying they will.
Two specific nutrients we have added to his diet are flax seed oil and fish oils. I also give him calcium-enriched orange juice every morning for added vitamin C.
School and ADHD
My child’s school has been very accommodating with the ADHD. I found out that around 100 out of 1,000 students that attend his school have some form of ADHD, including ADD. The counselor and principal are showing his teachers how to fold his papers to keep him focused on one section at a time, letting him have a stress ball to squeeze, he has a special chair and is allowed to wear fingerless gloves as a reminder to keep his hands to himself.
They have also given him special jobs to do throughout the day and placed a computer in the room for him to use when he is having trouble focusing. After a short time on the computer, he is able to sit back down at his chair and focus on his lessons.
I hope that as time continues he will be able to control every part of his ADHD. I know that with God’s help and guidance, he can do it or God would not have given it to him because he does not give us anything we can’t handle.
Other Things That Might Trigger ADHD Symptoms
I have found with my child that many things can trigger his ADHD. One way is by my reactions to the things he does. If I appear upset, whether I am or not, he might feel like he has done something wrong. Another is things that happen in day to day life. If something scary or upsetting happens, it may affect him for several days. Not the way it would affect us, but maybe he is grumpier or even crying more.
Learn your child’s habits, feelings and foods he eats. These will get you on a good start to helping your child with his ADHD.