There are people who, instead of listening to what is being said to them, are already listening to what they are going to say themselves. - Albert Guinon
A new study has come to the attention of the fine folks over at NPR (up at NPR?), and I just have to share. It seems, after all these years, that ADHD may not actually be a true medical diagnosis in the sense that it defines a specific medical condition that might be susceptible to a specific medical treatment or regimen. "ADHD, it's just a couple of symptoms — it's not a disease," Dr. Lidy Pelsser of the ADHD Research Centre in the Netherlands told All Things Considered weekend host Guy Raz. As a matter of fact, the study suggests that some simple, but restrictive dietary changes may be of most benefit to kids who are considered to have the manifestations of hyper activity.
While the study, published in The Lancet, the well regarded British publication, does show that diet changes will not necessarily help all kids with these outward symptoms, they do help the majority, so now the issue becomes one of educating physicians to recognize the symptoms and learn the correct ways in which to change the diets. The study showed that it only take about five weeks to affect a marked change in most kids, and that certainly would be a time well spent, especially if it could mean getting away from the overdependence on drugs.
Taken together with other recent studies about homeopathy, CFS, and others, this also illustrates another very significant point. As has been said so many times before, we are what we eat. And, let's face it. While it is true that the diet we follow today might resemble the diet we had as kids, or even the diet of our parents, that is really all it does: resemble the diet of yesterday. Today, we don't make much from scratch anymore; instead, we buy a package that contains a mix that has been pre-prepared, so all we do is assemble the ingredients. Those mixes are not the same as what mom made. Likewise, everything we eat today has had more preparation done before we pick it up off the shelf at the supermarket, or even from the refrigerated display case in the store, than what mom bought.
Likewise, even when we buy fresh fruits or vegetables, except in rare cases, those items are not as fresh as the ones mom bought from a fruit stand along the road, close to home, now are they? So much of the food that today's working mom provides to her kids has changed, that it was inevitable that those kids would start to show some effects. And, here is one that – in my opinion – should relieve a lot of anxiety on the part of a lot of moms. The fact is that this condition (and who knows how many others?) is not the fault of the parent, not a genetic disorder, and more importantly, not something that requires more and more medication.
Now, don't get me wrong. This published report of the study does not specify what dietary changes are needed, but I will bet money that the new diets will focus on more natural things, and fewer prepared and processed foods. And, that is not a bad thing, is it?
And, by the way, please don't bring up any ideas about genetically modified foods, or organic products, or any of that other crap. My point here is the same point I have tried to make before: just eat a balanced diet, whoever you are, and you will most likely be just fine. Or, as my father used to like to say, "Don't do as I do, do as I say."
Please take the time to read the report (I was going to include it here, but decided it is much simpler for anyone interested to just go to this URL): http://www.npr.org/2011/03/12/134456594/study-diet-may-help-adhd-kids-more-than-drugs?ft=1&f=1001
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