Leading The Natural Health Revolution

Looking for supplements to help with ADD in children.

I suspect that my son may have ADD and I have been advised by some people to not have him tested by a doctor if I don't want to medicate him with drugs. I would much prefer to use natural supplements and did have him taking high doses of omegas and at one point a supplement that was first labelled as ADD and later changed to ABC. My son is afraid that I think he has ADD and refuses now to take anything. I have noticed a difference in him as well as his teacher. My exhusband disagrees and that becomes a problem with consistency.
Any suggestions are very much appreciated.

Tags: ADD, children, in

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Ali Bisset on June 14, 2011 at 9:47pm

My friend's son was diagnosed with ADD and is somewhere on the autism spectrum.

She started him on a very healthy diet for one, but also gluten free. Apparently it's had

really wonderful effects on his attention and mood. It's not bad for the rest of the family to

try either, there are some delicious recipes out there and lots of gluten free options in

restaurants more recently.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Donalyn Harris Vaughn on June 15, 2011 at 12:09am

My son has Asperger's Syndrome and ADD. I have had him on a gluten-free cassein-free diet for years - it really helps. It also helps to have him on a supplement with plenty of Omega 3s. I am also a school teacher, so I have seen it all when it comes to ADHD. One of the best things you can do is makes sure that he doesn't get food dyes - especially the red. Watch the sugar. If you see any one food that he tends to crave, that can signal an intolerance to that food.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sheri Stack on June 15, 2011 at 12:50am

Thank you very much. I noticed sugar was a trigger for him a few years ago so we try hard to avoid it. I bake using half the sugar, unsweetened apple sauce or agava nectar etc to substitute. What I keep hearing though is "sugar is sugar" in all forms. Isn't it true though that your body processes different sugars different ways?

I will definitely try to avoid the dyes. We try to follow basically a "clean" eating diet and I make my own breads, and baking almost always.

The biggest problem for me is my exhusband who is the "fun" one and allows the junk food and sugar when the kids are at his house. Nothing I can do really because he doesn't believe me since he spends less time with the kids than I do and doesn't recognize the benefits. Sometimes getting my son back on track is a real chore, especially with summer coming and he will be spending more time with his dad.

Thanks for your help.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sheri Stack on June 15, 2011 at 12:52am

Ali Bisset said:

My friend's son was diagnosed with ADD and is somewhere on the autism spectrum.

She started him on a very healthy diet for one, but also gluten free. Apparently it's had

really wonderful effects on his attention and mood. It's not bad for the rest of the family to

try either, there are some delicious recipes out there and lots of gluten free options in

restaurants more recently.

Thank you! I had no idea that gluten caused problems with ADD. I have had heard that it has its mood issues but never put it together. Recently 3 people in my family (sister, aunt and nephew) have all been diagnosed either gluten sensitive or gluten intollerant. I will look into it for us all.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sheri Stack on June 15, 2011 at 1:00am

Donalyn Harris Vaughn said:

My son has Asperger's Syndrome and ADD. I have had him on a gluten-free cassein-free diet for years - it really helps. It also helps to have him on a supplement with plenty of Omega 3s. I am also a school teacher, so I have seen it all when it comes to ADHD. One of the best things you can do is makes sure that he doesn't get food dyes - especially the red. Watch the sugar. If you see any one food that he tends to crave, that can signal an intolerance to that food.

I replied below but just did a little bit more research too on what exactly a cassein free diet is. I think that may be a trigger as well. When my son what born he had a milk allergy, not lactose but allergic to the protein in cows milk so we had him on goat's milk until he was 3. I had thought he had grown out of it because he was not having the same skin issues that he had that lead to his original diagnosis. The puzzling part is that hard cheeses didn't seem to bother him at all. Now I have more to think about... Thanks for the advice. :D

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jess Etcell on June 20, 2011 at 11:30pm

Hi Sheri,

Unfortunately as movie producers and not health practitioners legally we are unable to offer any specific health advise, nor can we endorse any specific products. We are here to help guide you in the direction of those who can offer you these things and offer you a support system for healing yourself.

We suggest working with a natural healthcare professional who specialises in Nutritional and Environmental Medicine. Please use our practitioner directory guide (http://www.foodmatters.tv/_webapp/Practitioner%20Directory).

Also have you heard of Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT)? A lot of our health concerns are caused by our emotions and past baggage. We have a film called ‘The Tapping Solution’ which is a great tool to help release these emotions that may be contributing to patterns of illness http://www.foodmatters.tv/_webapp_424207/The_Tapping_Solution

I can't comment from personal experience, but I've heard of success treating ADD with the GAPS diet - you might like to check it ou http://gapsaustralia.com.au/

Hope this helps!

Jess @ Food Matters