Other Unlikely Causes of AD/HD: Too Much TV & Poor Parenting

Excessive TV watching or video game playing seems to be more of an effect rather than a cause of AD/HD. Children over-utilize these activities because it seems to help them maintain focus and control their internal sense of agitation.

Parents who are overly involved in their child’s activities or are negative about their child’s behavior seems to be more of result of the child’s AD/HD rather than a causative factor. Studies have found that improving a caregiver’s parenting techniques has little impact on improving the symptoms of AD/HD.

Unlikely Cause of ADHD: Sugar

While sugar, artificial substances in food, sugars, milk, and eggs have been implicated as causing AD/HD, the National Institute of Health, in 1982, found that restricting these items only helped only about 5% of the children with AD/HD and that most of these children were either younger or had food allergies. Sugar can create energy, but only for about an hour. The pancreas excretes insulin to counteract the sugar “high”, which makes people tired about an hour after ingesting the sugar.

However, a small number of children, especially younger children, may benefit from a change in diet. Parents may want to consult their physicians about this.

Also, some parents report that have helped a child become less hyperactive by reducing the child's sugar intake. Even if this only the parents' perception, it seemed to work for them, reducing the symptoms, which was the goal. I would gather that the child and parents were less stressed and happier, and who can argue about that?

Impact of AD/HD on Child & Parents

To grasp the importance of treating children who have ADHD, one can look at the impact of the disorder on the child. About 25% of these children also have learning disabilities. They are more likely to start abusing substances, like alcohol, illegal drugs, and nicotine in their teens. They are more likely to drop out of school and less likely to have a satisfying career later in life. They often either may have or develop other disorders later, including Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, depression, and anxiety disorders. Since these children are more aggressive, disruptive, domineering, intrusive, and noisy, about half of these children will have significant interpersonal problems with siblings or classmates.

Parents of those with AD/HD also suffer in many ways, including having more parenting-related stress, feeling more incompetent as parents, and having lower self-esteem. These parents are more likely to argue with their partners, separate, and divorce. To relieve some of the stress and blame, it would be helpful to review what probably does not cause AD/HD and what seems to cause it.

AD/HD Con't: Symptoms of Hyperactivity & Impulsivity

The two parts of AD/HD include AD, which stands for Attention Deficit or inattention, which was discussed previously, Hyperactivity, which will be discussed in this post, and the last "D" stands for Disorder. Hyperactivity also includes impulsivity. Hyperactivity, in contrast to inattention or attention deficit, may be noticeable when a child is preschool age and is almost always present by the time the child is 7. Symptoms of hyperactivity include: fidgeting with hands or feet; squirming in seat; leaving one’s seat when they are expected to remain seated; often running or climbing when it is not appropriate; difficulty playing quietly; often “on the go” or appears to be “driven by a motor”; and often talking excessively. Symptoms of impulsivity include: blurting out answers out of turn or before the question has been asked; difficulty awaiting one’s turn; interrupting others; and intruding on others (e.g., during conversations or games). It is important to remember that symptoms of AD/HD occur in many children, but those with ADHD exhibit these symptoms more frequently and in a many different places, such as home, school, or while visiting friends. To summarize, a child may have predominantly inattention, predominantly hyperactivity, or may have a combination of both. For more information, you may visit http://www.kidstherapyplace.com/newslttrdec04, which has a full-length article about the symptoms, impact, and causes of ADHD, or http://www.kidstherapyplace.com/children for info about my work with children.

ADHD Continued: Symptoms of Attention Deficit or Inattention

Inattention or attention deficit may not be noticed until a child is in school because teachers may notice many of the symptoms, which include: not following through on instructions; not finishing schoolwork or chores; difficulty in paying attention to details; making careless mistakes; difficulty sustaining attention on a particular task at school or while playing; not listening when spoken to directly; difficulty organizing tasks or activities; avoiding or disliking tasks that require sustained mental work; losing necessary objects for activities (e.g., pencils, toys, school assignments); being easily distracted; and being forgetful.

What is RSV?

A parent of an infant recently asked me about RSV.

I remember when my daughter had it. This was not one of my favorite memories.

According to webmd.com, RSV stands for Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Infection. Since I cannot give medical advice, I will direct you to http://www.webmd.com. Put "RSV" in the search box, and it will pull up info about what causes it, what the symptoms are, what increases your risk, when to call a doctor, exams and tests, treatment overview, prevention, home treatment, and medications, and more.

What is AD/HD?

AD/HD stands for Attention Deficit / Hyperactive Disorder.

There are three kinds of AD/HD:

1. Predominantly Inattentive Type
2. Predominantly Hyperactive Type
3. Combined Type (both inattentive and hyperactive)

I will post an explanation of these types and more about AD/HD, including the symptoms, statistics, impact, causes, the AD/HD brain, treatment options and issues, commonly used medications, and tips. You may view an article about AD/HD, including stats, symptoms, impact, and causes, by using the link http://www.kidstherapyplace.com/newslttrdec04

Max

Pic of me. To, hopefully, be sent to the home page.