Food Intolerance & Allergies in the ADHD Child

With advances in medical research, there is some evidence to suggest children with ADHD will also suffer from co-morbid allergy complications or specific food intolerances. For children with ADHD, finding methods to control allergies and food intolerances, commonly associated with ADHD, may work to improve health, both mentally and physically.

While traditional medicine commonly views the connection of allergies and ADHD as unrelated, alternative and holistic medicinal approaches are moving forward to research the dynamics of each condition and how they may be related. In fact, many healthcare professionals, especially those treating children with ADHD, are looking to a more natural approach to treating children who exhibit not only co-morbid complications of allergies and ADHD but also co morbidities including arthritis and migraines.

In terms of food sensitivities, nutrition specialists are now working with psychiatrists in the assessment of food and the connection to provoking symptoms of ADHD. In the research of diet and the connection to ADHD, nutritionists commonly find the elimination of foods such as oranges, chocolate, corn, wheat, eggs and milk, may work to improve a child's mental functioning and, thereby, alleviate, to some degree, the symptoms associated with ADHD.

In addition to food, seasonal allergies may also promote the sensitivity of the physiological balance in ADHD children, thereby, increasing the risk for developing more complicating ADHD symptoms. So, what is the culprit behind these reactions in ADHD children?

During an allergic reaction, or food sensitivity reaction, the body releases a chemical known as histamine. Histamine, in physiological terms, works to increase the removal of blood serum from around the brain tissue, thereby reducing adequate blood flow to the tiny capillaries which nourish the brain. When this reaction of histamine occurs within the body, the brain becomes unbalanced and the first indications of complication, from a psychological aspect, involve loss of memory, attention and cognitive function.

For parents caring for a child with ADHD, there are some basis methods which can be utilized at home to discern what, if any, food or natural allergies may be creating this histamine response in your child and, thereby, boosting the ADHD symptoms. Using a diary or journal to log the activities and foods of your child, over a 30 day period, will often provide great insight into the natural culprits which may be creating more complex ADHD symptoms; being mindful that food sensitivities, generally, take several hours to appear following consumption. Once the foods are identified, steps can be taken to remove those exposures from the child's diet and, thereby, remedy the symptoms of ADHD.