In response to an article I posted which found 'no measurable effect' on children's behavior from sugar ingestion, GaryN noted that his daughter definitely reacts to certain food additives/foods WRT her ADHD (and I that type of grain supplement certainly affects horse behavior); here is a report (mentioned I think in that article) which does find some behavioral changes, not only in children with ADHD, but in 'typical' children as well, with certain food additives. [This article is 3 pages long; I only excerpt a bit.]
http://my.webmd.com/content/Article/87/99567.htm?pagenumber=1 "May 24, 2004 -- Artificial food colorings, preservatives, and other additives may play a role in increasing hyperactive behavior among young children, a new study suggests. British researchers found removing food additives from the diet of a group of 3-year-olds caused a reduction in the children's hyperactive behavior reported by their parents. And when the food colorings and preservatives were added back into the children's diets, the parents reported an increase in hyperactivity...However, although the parents reported significant changes in hyperactive behavior, the study showed no significant differences on clinical tests of hyperactivity related to the food additives..." Measuring behavior is not nearly as precise as blood glucose levels, however, as they note: "...Researchers say the parents' ratings may be more sensitive to changes in behavior because parents experience their child's behavior over a longer period of time and in more varied settings and under less optimal conditions than in a clinical evaluation. They say that in trials looking at the effects of medications to treat ADHD, parents typically report the largest benefits of the drugs..." "...But what Warner says is unique about this study is that they found an effect of food additives on non-hyperactive children as well as those with existing behavior problems. "All children had small shifts in their behavior in the same direction when exposed to the additives," Warner tells WebMD. "If the children are already normal, then that's not a major issue. But if they've already got rather difficult behavior, that might be the final straw that makes it totally unacceptable... "...During the study, the children ate a strict diet free of food additives for one week. In the following three weeks, the children drank a fruit juice drink supplemented with 20 mg of food colorings and 45 mg of sodium benzoate (a food preservative commonly used in fruit drinks and carbonated beverages) or a placebo fruit drink each day on alternate weeks in addition to the food additive-free diet. Neither the parents nor the children knew which beverage contained the additives, and the beverages were indistinguishable in appearance and taste. The children's behavior was evaluated before the study began and assessed in clinical tests and by the parents throughout the study. The study showed that the parents reported significantly more disruptive behavior during the periods when the children drank the beverage containing additives, and there was a reduction in hyperactive behavior once the child stopped drinking the beverage..." I think that when food took weeks to get from the farm to the consumer, preservatives were crucial to keep food from spoiling; now thatin many cases mere days elapse, it would probably be a good idea to reduce or eliminate artificial preservatives from these rapid-turnover edibles. Debbi who remembers those old "You Are What You Eat" posters from many years ago... Monkey Brains And Sheep Eyeballs?! Maru :P __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Friends. Fun. Try the all-new Yahoo! Messenger. http://messenger.yahoo.com/
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