Natural Remedies for ADHD and ADD

You might want to do a search on pyroluria and it's relationship to ADHD. Taking vitamin B6 and zinc may be helpful to you.

The thing is, I already take zinc supplements...

I dont think ADHD is an illness. You are up on other people and I see it as a good thing. Find your own space and time and do your own things apart from others when and if necessary. Try balancing your chakras. Go to youtube and search for them. The singing bowl is soothing and great.

If I were you, I will not poison myself with doctor's prescription.

Michelle, this site is wonderful, and I would try the supplements and suggestions for AD/HD suggested here. However, I don't agree with the majority of opinions here that all AD/HD drugs are terrible. No one but you can make that decision, and if you've tried other things and they haven't worked (incidentally, does anyone realize how hard - no, impossible - it is for those of us with AD/HD to consistently stick to a routine?), go ahead and try pharmaceuticals. When I went on Vyvanse it changed my life. Not just in terms of completing tasks, but in so many other ways I just assumed I was "bad" or "weak" at -- setting boundaries in relationships, because I was no longer highly distractible and could no longer be railroaded by more focused people in my life; having the energy to have a social life, because I was no longer exhausted from the hamster-wheel of thoughts running around my brain; having people realize I was intelligent, because I didn't ramble on like a crazy person but could follow a thought to its logical conclusion; the ability to clean a kitchen counter from one side to the other without having to consciously think through every step, paralyzed over what to do first; actually having fun with my kids (imagine that! ) because I wasn't rattled by every single sound/action they did that distracted me that I could get it together to go somewhere and be in the moment with them. Etc., etc.

I'm not on it now anymore because I had side effects and I didn't want to increase my dose when the effects wore off -- so I'm hardly an evangelist for pharma drugs, and I agree they can be over-prescribed/falsely prescribed. But now, I know what my true "normal" is like. I know what to aim for. I've ended the cycle of shame and unmet expectations that's haunted me for all of my life. Currently I'm working the supplements, diet, sleep, exercise (3-5x aerobic exercise/week stimulates the same part of the brain the pharma drugs do) and it's working out fine for me. Also an AD/HD coach helps keep me on track (look for a therapist who works with AD/HD). All good, but don't let anyone judge you for cautiously, judiciously trying something to see if it works for you and your body. You've already spent your lifetime judging yourself and being frustrated on a daily basis.

TO..04/04/2011: Been There from Washington, Dc

Amen to that!! best of luck to you.. your story just described my 27 year old son, who is now un treated (not by choice) & on a 24 hr roller coaster;/ thank you for your story;) it really touched me as so many other stories have...

Hi, I have just read "NIACIN: The real story" by Abram Hoffer and there is a lot of info about ADHD and the benefit of niacin in treatment. Worth reading I think, you can get it on kindle from Amazon.. Best of luck

Hello Greyso,

By saying that your parents disciplined you, do you mean spanking? I'm asking because there's a serious on my marriage because of that. He believes that I'm wrong for not spanking my boys who display some ADHD behaviors (they are kindergarteners). I tell him that discipline does not equal spanking and/or beating. I view spanking as the last resort...that's not to say that I won't smack occasionally but that's just not my go-to response. I'm tough on removing privileges, especially for things they take to heart. I'm just curious as to what you mean by discipline and if my husband is possibly right.

My son has been taking Melatonin for almost 4 years now. He is now taking up to 6 mgs at age 10 and he sleeps great and has had no side effects. He is ADHD and never slept well thru the night before melatonin. It really makes a difference in his behavior as well. I would strongly recommend it.

My son has been on Melatonin for a few years now. We started at 3 mg and it did nothing to help him sleep. We are now on 5 mg. My pediatrician says that it cannot harm your child. It is completely safe. I have my child on FOCALIN 40 mg. We deal with ADD as well in the mornings.

I am just getting on board with homepathic remedies b/c I do not like the side effects of this controlled substance. We have been on it for a while and it has not made my life easier at all. My son deals with ticks/twitches, has anxiety and has trouble sleeping. I need some guidance in this aspect as well. I did want to comment on the MELATONIN though. My son is also on TRAZADONE at night to sleep. This was not working until I added teh 5 mg MELATONIN to it. I think it(Melatonin) is wonderful and start off low first then increase if need be. I just want my children to be normal...

My son tried the 3 mg of melatonin because he was staying up all night and it did put him to sleep, but he developed a rash on his body that really bothered him so he decided he's rather stay awake. He is 11.

Debbie, I think that flavors can contain MSG or not, that is the misleading bit. In the book Excitotoxins the author includes a few lists of what is indeed MSG and what may contain it so in the end unless they really state it with its real name there is not really a way for you to know. The best thing is to eat as little processed food as you possibly can.

Francisca, I agree it is best to avoid processed food, but apparently they are putting MSG in meat and even spraying it on crops! It is also in milk powder which is in yoghurts. You think you are eating healthy but you are not.

They are putting it in baby foods and even in baby formula. Apparenty there is even MSG in most vaccines!

Here is a list of the hidden names that MSG comes under.

http://www.truthinlabeling.org/hiddensources.html

Hi Debbie, you are right, MSG seems to be everywhere nowadays. My question is why? Does anyone have any idea why they are doing it? Someone must have a lot to gain from it? And why can't these people be stopped? As far as yogurts go I make my own. I agree that one can try to eat healthily only to discover one is not. Sad world..... It is an ongoing worry, what to eat, what to drink, where to live...... Trying to protect oneself from all the attacks. We will be moving to the countryside soon but don't think that we will be in paradise. Searching for a house in a not too polluted place, a bit away from all the pesticides, etc was a pain. We will have a lot of sun flower crops near the house though but they don't seem to spray a lot of stuff. We just hope for the best, nothing more we can do! I would have prefered to be somewhere in the woods but we liked this house. And to think that we are supposed to live in the free world.... We are maybe free to worry!

Hi Francisca, the best thing you can do to ensure you eat healthy is to grow your own wheatgrass and juice it. There is a great book by Ann Wigmore on wheatgrass. It is a "superfood". She said that you could live on wheatgrass juice and be healthy. It also remove radiation and heavy metals from the body. It is wonderful. If you grow some wheatgrass you can also harvest the seeds for future juicing or even grinding and making bread.

Why are they adding poisons to our diet... I have my own theory. It's called eugenics and it is happening worldwide.

Hi again Debbie, the problem with wheatgrass is that it is something not really known in Europe. At least I have never found any seeds or anything and I have access to four countries (France, Germany, Switzerland and Britain). I wouldn't know where to start although my juicer, an Oscar, does make wheatgrass juice.

You are probably right about the poisons in foods and everywhere but then, why are they so keen on saving people in the third world? My husband says that they do it in order to make sure they will have enough slaves to mine mineral resources. Why are they seemingly always searching for cures for illnesses? Yesterday I read an article in a paper suggesting that if you take Paracetamol every day you will have a lot less chance of dementia and men will have a lot less chance of prostate cancer. Such an article is enough to have hundreds of thousands of people heading for the pharmacy with no regards of the side effects of constantly taking such a drug for the rest of your life (yes, because you are not going to stop if you know you will get dementia or prostate cancer?). Just imagine the profits.... Not only Big Pharma but also pharmacies and the governments through taxes on all of them and on us and moreover the treatment of all the illness that will come from the excessive taking of medication! One such article is the equivalent of a gold mine!

Hi Francisca. Are they so keen to save people in the third world? How long have these poor people been without infrastructure. What about desalination plants for water? The country is on the sea.

Scientists know all about excitotoxins and how toxic they are for the brain. That will cause dementia for sure but they are not warning people about it. Google "Abstract Excitotoxins" to see all the studies that have been done.

The author of the book I read said that reporters attempting to write about Excitotoxins are fired or demoted. Why? People need to research for themselves.

Francisca, you can easily grow wheatgrass in Europe. I have. Just buy wheat (the grain itself, that IS the seeds! ) in a health food store and grow it! I did it in earth and cut the young grass with a scissors, and I also did it without earth, by sprouting - only water (soaking, then rinsing a few times a day).

Also mmsg, and Francisca in Ann Wigmore's book about Wheatgrass, she put some wheatgrass juice in water and it took the flouride out of the water. They did a test on the water. It would be worth reading her book.

This message is for Francisca from Michelbach-Le-Bas: Francisca, Wheatgrass is grown from Wheat Berries, the same grain which is ground into flour to make bread.

Hard Red Winter Wheat is the best to grow wheatgrass from, but if it were me, I'd grow whatever I could get. Surely someone near you has got it, even if you go to an animal feed store, or maybe a bakery.

Barley is another grain which grows a highly nutritious grass which you can juice the same way.

The grass juices are very healthy, and Wheatgrass takes about 9-10 days to grow from seed to juicable harvest.

Wheat and Barley for grass-growing can also be ordered online. There is an excellent and informative website called "Sprout people" which should explain how to do this further.

Or you can google "how to grow wheatgrass"

I grow my Wheatgrass in cafeteria trays in the kitchen.

It's a great and easy thing to do, especially if you have an electric juicer to juice it.

Regards, Linda

To everyone talking about wheatgrass, while it is excellent for you, the greens from barley or barley grass is even better. Barley greens contain every enzyme known to man. I came across that when I was researching for natural cancer cures and I grew it in my basement under lights and cut it with scissors and just put it in my blender with whatever else I was using. At that time I was on the "Budwig Diet" and it cured my cancer. Unfortunately, I carried on with chemotherapy after and became disabled by that for a substantial period of time. I would urge you all to try grape seed extract for ADD/ADHD but start with small doses - no more than one mg per pound of body weight per day.

Happy Day! I am glad you are doing well after Chemotherapy. Thank you so much for sharing your insight on wheat grass and Grape Seed Extract.

I bought a bottle of Grape Seed Extract from Trader's Joe for my ADD, but only took one capsule 3 times a day, so did not see much effect. I am 162 lbs. Do I need to take 3 capsules each time? If so that would make 9 capsules a day. The servings size is 3 capsules and serving per container is 50.

I would highly appreciate if you give me your thought.

sara

I thought I would make you aware that I cannot ingest any capsules because I am highly sensitive to hidden sources of MSG and one capsule can be 11-13 mg. of MSG. I have to open all capsules and takes dry ingredients either with water or sprinkle on unsweetened applesauce. Whatever the amount, it is still a toxin. Minute amounts can accumulate so by the time you have a reaction you don't recognize it as an MSG reaction.

MSG is rampant in fast food. They do it for a few reasons. MSG is a flavor enhancer. Processed foods are heated to such a high temperature that there is no color, no flavor, and no nutrients left in the final product. It is cooked at high temps to kill the enzymes. This way, the food will not rot after being stored for years. Canned food is cooked right in the can. God only knows how much metal ends up in the "food". Now, they coat the inside of some cans with plastic. Yum plastic flavored "food".

They may have started with real food, but when they are done, it is not really food anymore. Just some bulk to make you feel as if you have eaten. Since this "food" is devoid of flavor, They have to analyze the food to make it seem like food.

First, they make a recipe with real food by real cooks and then cook it in a regular oven.

Then they run it though a chemical analyzer which lists the chemicals they will need to make the food taste like the original item, lets say a chocolate chip cookie. The machine will also spit out a list of chemicals need to make the cookie look like a cookie. and finally, we need some vitamins and minerals, so the machine spits out a list of more chemicals.

The MSG lets soup companies use less meat, because the MSG make the soup taste more meaty. Vegetarians can even buy flavor packets to make food taste like meat.

So far sounds yummy huh?

They bake up the cookie and then add the petro chemicals (chemicals derived from the by products of making gasoline, kinda sounds like you are eating plastic) to make it seem like food again. OK bad enough right!

MSG is very addictive. This a huge reason fast food restaurants love MSG so much. It keeps you coming back everyday if you addicted enough. This of course causes obesity. For a few reasons, you can't stop eating the food, so you eat too much, plus you are very hungry for real food that God put on this planet with all the nutrients that you need to survive. Ah, but you say the soil is depleted. Well chemical fertilizers do not provide the plants with enough to make non organic food nutritious, so that is why people take vitamins. Most vitamins are not natural made from food but UN-natural chemicals.

Your body treats these as poisons, as if you drank some motor oil. So, if you choose to take supplements, take food based ones with no added chemicals. Standard process makes food based supplements, and are available at doctor's offices. Mostly alternative doctors. like chiropractors.

Remember when coke always came in a glass bottle. this is because when they tried to put in a can, it ate through the metal can. God only knows what soft drinks do to your insides.

If you think unprocessed organic real food, is expensive, consider this. Processed food is expensive. I do not even eat organic processed food. If you cook your own food, it tastes better and it is better for you.

If you do not have time, use a crock pot and cook at night or while at work. Cook larger quantities and freeze the extra. I freeze in individual sized servings.

If you can not afford pastured raised meat, try pasture raised eggs. Eggs are cheap. My eggs are 63 cents for 2. A cheap source of protein. Cholesterol is not bad for you, as long as it is not hydrogenated. This was a myth propagated by the vegetable oil companies. Eat butter and meat fat. Free range is not what you are looking for. This just means the farmer left the barn door open so they can go outside if they choose. And outside could be a slab of concrete. But they won't go outside since they feed them inside.

Hens need to eat grass and bugs for the eggs to have a nice orange yolk and not end up all runny. Broth made form pasture raised meat or poultry is also inexpensive. I just fill the pot with bones and water. I use joint bones to make the gelatin quality marrow bones for the nutrients in there, and meaty bones such as necks or ribs for flavor and more gelatin. I leave it on the stove for 2 days, and never let it boil. If it boils it does not jelly up. I strain it and keep it in the frig uncovered till it jellys up (a day or two). I store the fat that solidifies on top to use instead of oil or butter, which I can't eat. I store broth and fat separately in canning jars and store in the freezer If you eat pasture raised broth and eggs and can't afford anything else organic, use non organic but buy fresh or frozen. Canned food is dead.

I saw a show about the making of a new snack food long ago that explained the process of making processed "food". It was kinda hard to believe. I wish I could link to the show but have never been able to locate it on-line.

Even if you never go organic or pastured raised, eat whole food not packaged. Packaged food is not food. If a product list a bunch of vitamins at the end, this food was devoid of vitamins after processing. The government will not allow them to sell empty food and require them to add a few vitamins.

You will save a lot of money on medical bills if you eat whole foods.

OK, now I am stepping off my soap box.

HI U MARY from Texas,,,,,,,,,,, as far as Coke Cola is concerned, you got the right string, but the wrong yoyo. Soft drinks today are light years from their start. A Pharmacist named John Pemberton from Columbus, Ga. first concocted the drink in the 1880's. It initially contained coco leaves which added a small amount of cocaine. He sold his formula to the Candler family in Atlanta.

However, the first bottler, Joseph Biedenharn, was from Monroe, La. and he was the one who got the show on the road. The old coke was highly carbonated and the glass bottles were designed to handle this extreme pressure. Back in 1954 I measured the pH of a coke and it was 2.3. Today, if you have an upset stomach then you dissolve two alka seltzers in a glass of ice water. In my youth you just drank a cold coke cola, which did the same thing.

Now, all soft drinks have little carbonation and are just a sweet syrup. The cans of both soft drinks and beer are now like tissue paper because both have little carbonation.

Years ago, you had to be a strong man to bend a beer can. Now your six year old can handle that chore.

I get a kick out of folks who only know the history from the date they were born. My grandkids are like that. Makes me want to cry.

As far as orange hen yolks are concerned..... they come about because of the carotene in the grass they eat. Even in the South, your eggs will have yellow yolks in the winter when there is no green grass to eat. The orange carrot gets it's name from the carotene it contains.

Mary,,,,,,, you have given some very sound advice in your post that folks should heed. I just thought that some additional info was needed to explain why you said what you said. Hope that is good with you.

======ORH==========

About Robert Henry's comment.

Thanks for your additional info. It is good to have the most info on a subject that you can find.

I guess I am wrong about the carbonation thing. Could coke ever eat though eat through a can, or is that a myth?

I hate all carbonation and never drink it. Coke was not the the main topic of my rant anyway. In any event, it is not good for you, because of phosphorous, content and corn syrup (although you can find with real sugar if you look), amount other ingredients that aren't good. Here is a link that can explain everything you need to now about dangers of soft drinks, way better than I can.

http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/soft-drinks-americas-other-drinking-problem/

one more

http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/old-fashioned-healthy-lacto-fermented-soft-drinks-the-real-real-thing/

You are so correct about the orange egg in spring and summer. I love these orange one so much better. This winter I was longing for those great orange eggs. But Even if yellow pasture raised eggs are best.

This was a question about MCS and I did wander off topic. I was hyper that day.

Looks like it's found in eggs. Just a higher dose maybe? I would also recommend sticking to pasture raised eggs and not industrial caged chickens who don't get nutrients.

How is the Pine Bark extract working for you and your son? What is the dosage and how do you give it to your son? Thank you so much!

Is there a particular brand that's better with pine bark extract? And can you take it with Zoloft? I'm thinking about trying it on myself before trying it with my 6 year old son.

ADD and ADHD are the same condition - ADD is just an antiquated term for it (someone used to be diagnosed with ADD, with or without hyperactivity). It was officially replaced with the term ADHD in 1987 in the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), which is the "bible" of all psychiatric, psychological & brain disorders. It's not been a legitimate label for the condition for 36 years! It wasn't "lumped" into anything. It was updated and replaced. I've seen professionals still refer to it as ADD, and I lose faith in anything they have to say about it if they haven't even updated their understanding enough to use the correct term nearly 4 decades after it changed.

In fact, ADD only existed as an official term for the condition for 7 years (1980-87). Since then, you can be diagnosed with ADHD inattentive type, hyperactive type, or combined type (both).

At one point, my 8 year old's supposed ADD/ADHD was at it's worst peak. He would throw "big kid" trantrums and become very easily frustrated. At this particular time, I realized he wasn't getting enough sleep. So I had him go to bed earlier, and the tantrums mostly stopped. He's still fidgety and has issues focusing, especially in school, but whenever he has a poor night's sleep, I know it's going to be a bad day. I don't know about his diet, but I suppose it's what might be considered normal, and without much sugar or fast food. No plans on changing that.

I am skeptical on the medical stance of ADD/ADHD. Of course, most of us here want to stay away from drugs. But I'm sure some children do have real issues, and some children just need real boundaries. This is a world where children gain instant gratification from tv, video games, internet, ipods, cell phones and the hundreds of other electronics they are exposed to. I mean, why does a 7 yr old even need a phone, let alone their own Firefly? It's so rare to see the child whose daily life consists of the enjoyment of reading, hiking in the woods, fishing, and the like. Even sports have, for many, lost its value of just playing the sport. I am not surprised to hear so many more of these ADD/ADHD cases in today's world. And here I am, young myself, in my 20's. My son, how surprising, is very calm and focused on the occassions he plays video games. Imagine that!

I tell him to turn off that tv and go play outside.

My son, now 7 years had sleeping problems since a few months old. Started with colic. After almost 3 years of ear infections, stomach viruses and not sleeping well... I researched possible issues. I took him to a neurologist because that is what his pediatrician suggested. He said he thought he had sleep apnea. He wanted to do a overnight $5,000 dollar test on him before trying anything else. I brought up to him the idea of food allergies. He dismissed it instantly and said there was no proof of that. So I decided to try an elimination diet, before we had this test. Within 2 days of taking wheat, dairy, nuts, soy, corn, sugar, food dyes, etc. From his diet he slept peacfully through the night. Never in 3 years did he sleep so good. His digestive system was out of balance from all the antibiotics he had taken every month for almost 3 years. I have had to help with enzymes and supplements and diet to restore his digestive tract to normal. I give him a gluten/dairy free diet. It is hard, but worth all the work to keep my son from having nightmares and get some sleep myself too :)

As far as the sugars go, would natural sugars be ok. I buy REAL honey from the natural food stores for my daughters herbal teas. And we do push for fruit. Are natural sugars ok?