A good first step is to find out if your child with ADD is allergic or sensitive to any foods. While you can use blood tests and skin testing to determine this, you can also use an elimination diet to pinpoint trouble spots in the diet. There are a number of ways to do an elimination diet. One simple one is to begin by eliminating all foods with additives, dairy products, fruit juice, artificial sweeteners, processed meat, wheat, chocolate, and sugar. For two weeks, your child’s diet should consist of vegetables, fruit, and meat. After two weeks, try adding back one food at a time. If there is a reaction that you notice in terms of behavior, rashes, runny nose, it may indicate a problem with this food. Stop the food immediately, wait a couple of days, and add another food.

Once you find out what not to eat, you can look at what to eat. Researchers have found that diets high in protein are excellent for children with ADD. A general rule is to serve 70 percent protein and 30 percent carbohydrates for breakfast. Stick to about 50 percent protein and 50 percent carbohydrates for the other meals.

Omega-3 fatty acids are dietary essentials for everyone, but are especially important for children with ADD, as they are critical in brain function and development. Dr. Alexandra J. Richardson, in an article in Psychiatry says, “Increasing evidence suggests that a relative lack of omega-3 may -contribute to many psychiatric and neuro-developmental disorders.” Eating more flaxseed, sardines, and walnuts can help increase Omega-3 in the diet. You might also want to consider supplements of Omega-3.

Other tips for using an ADHD diet include things that are good advice for anyone’s diet. Drinking lots of water is important, as water acts as a purifier in the body. Additionally, eating lots of vegetables and fruit provides necessary vitamins and minerals.

To end with another substance to avoid, many doctors agree that it is best to avoid food additives. Children with ADHD often are very sensitive, and these chemical substances may contribute to distractibility and activity.

Mom’s Take:

Until I kept a food diary and wrote down what my daughter with ADD was actually eating, I didn’t realize how little protein she was getting. She disliked many foods, and she was filling up on a lot of carbohydrates. Since she doesn’t like meat or cheese very much, we decided to use a protein supplement. I make her a milk shake with protein powder every morning. She drinks that along with her scrambled eggs. I’ve noticed an improvement in her ability to get ready and get out to the bus in the morning.

The post Is There a Diet That Can Help My Child with ADHD? appeared first on ADHD Notebook.

If your house is anything like mine a good night’s  sleep is  often elusive.  It’s not just my energetic son, who somehow never seems to tire, that could use a few more hours sleep a night.  It’s also his exhausted parents who get even less sleep than he does.  His bedtime battles, nighttime awakenings, and morning sleep-ins are enough to make any parent want to throw in the towel.  But we are clearly not alone.  Research has shown that 20% of children with ADHD have trouble falling asleep.  That is three times the rate of children without ADHD.  But that is not the most bothersome statistic.  According to a study from England involving 100 parents of children with ADHD, 57% receive less than six hours of sleep and 27% get less than five hours.  More than half of those said children get up more than four times during the night and 42% of them wake up before 6:00 AM.  Lack of sleep is clearly an international phenomenon when it comes to kids with ADHD and their parents.  It’s no mystery that sleep is so evasive to our children.  Many of the same regions of the brain that control attention also regulate sleep.    So how do we help our children get the shut-eye that we all so desperately crave?  As a desperately exhausted parent I have done my research and I am proud to say that I have made some substantial changes to my son’s bedtime routines that have made a big impact on our nighttime schedule.  Here are some things that I have learned:

1.  Your child’s day should be full of exercise which helps the body make the transition between phases of sleep and places physical stress on the body which will ultimately increase the amount of time the body will spend in the deep sleep phase.
2. Try to avoid sugary snacks before bedtime.  A pre-bedtime snack should consist of warm milk and some saltines, or perhaps some turkey  which contains the natural sleep-inducing chemical tryptophan.
3.  It’s important to point out that most sleeping pills have not been adequately tested for their safety and effectiveness in children.  This is true of both over the counter drugs like melatonin as well as prescription drugs.  Medications should only be used after careful consultation with your pediatrician.
4.  Bedtime routines allow fearful children to feel secure and signal the brain to slow down.  Read a bedtime story or allow an older child to read in bed.  Give younger children and blanket or a doll to cuddle with.
5. There are relaxation techniques that you can do to help your child fall asleep.  You can give her a foot rub by making a fist with your hand, having her lie on her back and rubbing her foot gently up and down.  Deep breathing exercises are great relaxation techniques.  Have your child picture an elevator going up and down as he inhales and exhales.
6.  6.The hour prior to bedtime should be devoted to relaxing things like reading and listening to music as opposed to playing video games or even pillow fights.
7.  The bedroom should be completely dark.  All visual distractions should be eliminated.  If your child is fearful of  the dark a dim nightlight should be used.
8.  Background music or white noise is sometimes helpful in quieting down the mind and drifting one off to sleep…

Mom’s Take:

Bedtime doesn’t have mean battle time in your home anymore. If done right it could actually turn into one of your favorite times of the day.  It just has to be eased into and planned well.  Things need to start quieting down an hour prior to bedtime.  That’s when televisions and computers screens need to be shut down for the night.  You might encounter resistance to that idea at first, but it’s well worth the battle.  Bedtime has become so much easier since we have instituted some of the above ideas.  My son has started  falling asleep faster and he’s even managed to sleep through the night.  Now if only I could learn how to do the same…

The post Sleep Tips for ADHD Kids appeared first on ADHD Notebook.

1. At the top of the list is getting the proper amount of sleep. Sleep deprivation can be a common side effect of having a child with ADHD. You must work at setting up your life and training yourself to go to sleep—and stay asleep—for at least seven or eight hours a night.

2. Build in stress reducers into your schedule. These may include a regular walk, an evening out with your spouse, time alone just to think. A stress reducer is whatever helps you relax and enjoy something for yourself.

3. Try to be open-minded and admit when you are wrong. This is an important element of good mental health. This can be particularly challenging when parenting a child with ADHD, but cultivating this attitude will contribute to your own mental health.

4. Eat properly and try to keep your weight at the appropriate level.

5. Take time to exercise—even a short daily walk will help you stay in shape.

6. Get organized. Use an organizational tool, such as a calendar organizer, to help you stay on top of your appointments. Again, this is a way of reducing stress—one that will ensure that everyone in the family of a child with ADHD will reap benefits.

7. Drink enough water. Staying well hydrated is important to good health.

8. Get regular checkups. With all of the appointments you may have with your child with ADHD, you may not feel like seeing another doctor, but regular checkups, including PAP smears and mammograms, are vital to caring for yourself.

9. Limit or eliminate alcohol and tobacco use. These are substances that may make you feel better in the short term, but in the long run they are bad for your health and even for your mood.

10. Try to be optimistic. Studies have shown that people who have a positive attitude towards life tend to live longer. Being discouraged wears you down and can influence your health. As Winston Churchill said, “Success is measured by your ability to maintain enthusiasm between failures.”

Mom’s Take

I was so tired of calling and making appointments for my daughter that I didn’t think I could pick up the phone and schedule my own yearly checkup. I had let it slide six months past when it should have taken place. When my friend Gina pointed out that it was not going to do anyone any good if I get sick, I forced myself to call. While everything was fine, it felt good knowing that I was doing the responsible thing—for myself for a change!

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