No More Ritalin!
The Drug-Free Approach to Attention Deficit Disorder
by Simone Gabbay
Seth Feldman had trouble paying attention and concentrating in elementary school. He was considered a slow learner. Doctors diagnosed him with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and prescribed the psychiatric drug Ritalin along with other mind-controlling medication. Seth's parents were told he would never learn to read and write.
The stimulant effect of Ritalin kicked Seth's nervous system into overdrive, aggravating his attention-span problem and causing extreme hyperactivity. Seth's doctors discontinued the medication. His parents, sensing that their son might benefit from a different learning style and environment, pulled him out of the public school system and enrolled him in a private school that was better able to guide his learning. Today, at 28, Seth holds a BFA degree with a double major in Music and Literature, and is working toward a Masters degree at the University of Toronto. He has travelled the world and taught English to students in India.
Seth is fortunate to have escaped the Ritalin treadmill that is a daily reality for more than 200,000 Canadian children, and millions worldwide. Each year, more and more children whose learning style and behaviour do not conform to accepted norms - who display mental, physical or emotional traits that involve difficulties with information processing and retention - are diagnosed with ADD or ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder), and prescribed addictive psychiatric drugs such as Ritalin.
Side Effects of Ritalin
Ritalin's many side effects include sleep problems, headaches, abdominal pain, nervousness, irritability, suppressed growth, weight loss, and excessive sadness and crying. Many children receive additional medication to counteract these symptoms, a trend that is raising concerns about the unknown risks of multiple drug interactions in children.
ADHD drug use is not limited to children. According to data compiled by U.S. prescription benefit manager Medco Health Solutions, adult usage has doubled since 2000. The Autumn 2005 issue of Nutrition and Mental Health also discusses concerns about the growing trend among adults who use Ritalin as a recreational drug to increase concentration, lose weight, or boost energy.
Until the early 1980s, ADHD was unknown. Even today, some physicians and behavioural experts are convinced that ADHD does not exist; that it is a fraudulent label with an ulterior motive: to sell drugs. Dr. Fred Baughman Jr., a neurologist for over thirty-five years, calls ADHD an "invented, for-profit fraud." He says that twenty-five years of research have failed to validate ADD/ADHD as a disease. John Breeding, author of The Wildest Colts Make the Best Horses, explains that unrealistic and unreasonable expectations regarding the way children learn, adjust and conform are fueling the ADHD drug machine.
Sleep and Behaviour
Adults who don't get enough sleep are often irritable and unable to focus. Their memory suffers, and they make mistakes. Children are no different. In fact, their still-developing nervous systems are more vulnerable to the damaging effects of sleep deprivation. An increasing body of research shows that many children, including babies and toddlers, don't sleep enough. Researchers have reported that sleep loss may lead to anxiety, depression, aggressive behaviour, and decreased brain function; all symptoms associated with ADHD. Making sleep a priority for our children will help them to be healthier, happier, and better focused.
Whole foods for brainpower
What a child eats not only influences physical health, but mental, emotional and cognitive function as well. Build your child's meals around fresh vegetables and fruits, whole grains, and protein foods such as eggs, yogurt, fish, and poultry. Avoid refined, processed and sugary foods, including baked goods made with white flour. These foods cause blood sugar levels to rise and fall quickly, typically resulting in hyperactivity followed by tiredness. Eliminate processed cheese, soda pop, hydrogenated fats, and artificial flavouring and colouring agents.
Essential fatty acids are important for proper brain and nervous system function. EFAs are found in nuts and seeds; cold-pressed, unrefined vegetable and seed oils; and wild, cold-water fish such as salmon and mackerel. Recent research has linked EFA deficiencies to ADHD and other behavioral problems, including autism. If children do not eat enough EFA-rich foods, they may benefit from taking supplements, available in natural food stores.
Research reported in the December 2004 issue of Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine suggests that many children labeled with ADHD suffer from iron deficiency. Good sources of iron include red meat, fish, liver, eggs, legumes, and dried fruit such as raisins. Herbal iron supplements in liquid form are more readily assimilated than synthetic iron tablets.
We get what we give
When it comes to teaching our children, actions speak louder than words. We need to ask ourselves whether we model the behavior that we seek from them. If we want them to be attentive, considerate, and non-aggressive, we should interact with them that way. A study reported in the November/December 2005 issue of Child Development showed that children who are spanked are more likely to be anxious and aggressive than children who are not.
My husband and I have never considered disciplining our ten-year-old son, physically or otherwise. Nor have we found it necessary. We show him love, and respect his feelings and opinions, and he reciprocates fully. When he, and we, felt overwhelmed by the enormous stress and competitiveness inherent in the public school system, we pulled him out, as Seth's parents did with their son years ago. Today, we are happy home-schoolers.
Not everyone's circumstances allow for such options, but if we treat our children with the same love and respect that we expect from them, they will mirror our behaviour back to us.
We all want the best for our children. Let's give them our best today!
Simone Gabbay, RNCP, is a Toronto-based nutritionist and the author of Nourishing the Body Temple (A.R.E. Press, 1999) and Visionary Medicine: Real Hope for Total Healing (A.R.E. Press, 2003).
Resources
Books:
True Nature and Great Misunderstandings: On How We Care for Our Children, by John Breeding, PhD, Virtualbookworm.com Publishing, 2002
The LCP Solution, by B. Jacqueline Stordy, PhD, and Malcolm J. Nicholl, Ballantine, 2000
Twelve Effective Ways to Help Your ADD/ADHD Child: Drug-Free Alternatives for Attention-Deficit Disorders, by Laura J. Stevens, Avery, 2000
Internet:
* Dr. Fred Baughman Jr.: www.adhdfraud.com www.adhdfraud.com
* John Breeding: www.wildestcolts.com www.wildestcolts.com
* The LCP Solution: www.lcpsolution.com www.lcpsolution.com