This article pooh-poohs the idea of food affecting the behavior of children with ADHD.
http://my.webmd.com/content/Article/88/99694.htm?printing=true "Any parent that has ever witnessed the aftermath of a child's birthday party has probably blamed sugar for the mayhem that followed the cake and ice cream. But the fact is that sugar may actually be an innocent victim of guilt by association. Experts say the notion that sugar causes children to become hyperactive is by far the most popular example of how people believe food can affect behavior, especially among young children. "However, despite years of debate and research on the relationship between food and behavior, no major studies have been able to provide any clear scientific evidence to back up those claims. "The biggest myth of all is that food has any connection to behavior," says Steven Pliszka, MD, professor of psychiatry, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Wesley Burks, MD, professor and chief of pediatric allergy and immunology at Duke University Medical Center, agrees. He says, "There haven't been any good scientific studies that show that there is an adverse effect on a child or adult's behavior chronically with the ingestion of foods..." Hmm, yet there _are_ documentable brain chemistry changes in frex women eating chocolate (admittedly chocolate has far more complex chemicals than say cola)...so I'll reserve judgement on this for now. I don't have any experience with ADHD children, but I have plenty with hot* horses, and I guarantee you that the type of grain supplement they receive _does_ affect their behavior. On "sweet feed" (usually a mixture of corn, oats, and barley or other grains, with molasses) all three of my horses were higher-strung, spookier, and more disobediant/uncooperative; changing to a grain-based supplement reduced all of these behaviors (although people watching me work Darby on a hot* day might not think so!), yet caused no weight loss or sluggishness. The amount of supplement also affects their behavior: I just had one of my students cut back on the oats given her horse (a very hot* Arab-mustang cross), and in only 7 days he's already bucking and otherwise challenging her far less often. And the same supplement I've had such good results with causes another friend's horse to buck, bolt and have nasty ground manners -- yet she is fine on a 'senior' supplement (more hay, less grain in these types of formulations). *hot: the euphemism for this is "high-spirited" ;D These horses respond best to firm yet kind handling; few will submit to abusive practices, and will frequently find ways to "get back at" those who treat them poorly. U U! Debbi Gimme My Chocolate NOW, Or Face My Wrath! Maru ;) __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Friends. Fun. Try the all-new Yahoo! Messenger. http://messenger.yahoo.com/
_______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
