Hallowell Snippets on Diet and Nutrition

[FrazzleDazzle]

Meadd, this is in response to the thread you started last night on the validity of diet and nutrition in managing ADHD symptomatology, and to not hijack your thread, since these are words from someone that is well-respected in this community, Dr. Hallowell, regarding diet and nutrition as part of a whole-person strategy in managing ADHD symptomatology. I have taken the liberty of quoting from your other thread that spawned this one, and from another post as well. There is a lot more information covered in his books on this topic as well.

Originally Posted by meadd823

Okay I am fed up with the spammers and con artist that seem to invade these sections.

Does what you eat have squat to do with your ADD ?

Although I am not opposed to the ideas them selves just the way they are being promoted here. I am beginning to doubt that out side of promoting an alternative group on ADDF there is no connection between diet and ADD symptomatology.

If you want to be technical, Hallowell has treatment centers and books to sell (an agenda) so another reason I started a new topic.

Originally Posted by meadd823

This is like home to me and I forget how big this site has become - due to the number if members we are beging to attract all sorts of people who want to offer their approaches to ADD treatments. . . a least Dr Hallowells is one I already believed in.

From this statement then, (correct me if I am mistaken) we can assume that you also value Dr. Hallowell's expertise in diet and nutrition in managing ADHD symptomatology as well?



http://archive.constantcontact.com/f...878423313.html

"The Basics #1: Exercise, Sleep and Nutrition
These are the very basics of taking care of yourself - no matter what - but they are particularly important for people who have ADHD. People don't think of them as "treatments" but they have a huge impact on how your symptoms affect you. Whether or not you are also taking medication, you should be thoughtful about their exercise, sleep and nutrition patterns.

As for nutrition - there is an entire chapter in "Delivered from Distraction" on the topic (and another one on Omega-3 fatty acids.) But here are some quick tips:

* make sure that you get enough Omega-3 fatty acids. The best way to get this is through fish oil supplements, as these have fewer contaminants than the fish themselves. (For an article on this topic, go to this link.) We like both the Zone and Omega Brite fish oil supplements, but for an unvarnished look at supplement quality, go to this link. A good dose for kids is up to 2.5 grams a day and up to 5 grams a day for adults
* eat a diet that minimizes "highs and lows" (or balances insulin). We recommend a well-balanced diet that includes a small amount of protein at all meals, maximizes fresh foods, includes Omega-3 fatty acids, as well as olive oil, and minimized carbohydrates. A good example of this type of diet is the Zone Diet created by Dr. Barry Sears.

Here are a few of the recommendations from "Delivered":

* Eat lots of vitamin C in fruits. C helps modulate the synapse action of dopamine, a key neurotransmitter needed in treating ADHD
* Make sure to get vitamin B-12 and folic acid, which improve cognition and help prevent cell death in the brain
* Vitamin E and selenuim also improve brain function.
* Eat a balanced diet that includes Omega-3s, and a small amount of protein at each meal. Eat as much of your diet as possible in the form of fresh foods. Avoid junk foods.
* Avoid binging on carbohydrates. These give you a squirt of dopamine, but there are much better ways to do this: exercise, making love, meditation."


http://archive.constantcontact.com/f...878423313.html

"The Lancet paper may be the first to nail down a link between additives and hyperactivity, but as long ago as the 1970s, the idea was the basis for the restrictive Feingold diet, popularized as a treatment for ADHD. Some clinicians still routinely advise parents of kids with ADHD to steer their kids away from preservatives and food dyes. "It matters for some kids, so I tell parents to be their own scientist," says psychiatrist Edward Hallowell, author of several books on ADHD. While a similar link between hyperactivity and sugar remains unproven, Hallowell cautions parents to watch the sweets too. "I've seen too many kids who flip out after soda and birthday cake," he says. "I urge them to eat whole foods. They'll be healthier anyway.""
(bolded/underlined mine as Hallowell's direct quote-Frazzle)

from the Hallowell Center Flyer for the upcoming 2008 summer youth camp:

"Exercise, Nutrition and Sleep
Heavy emphasis will be placed on understanding the
physiological, cognitive and emotional connections between
exercise, sleep, nutrition and performance/well-being.
Students will explore practical strategies and ideas for
maximizing their health in their individual school and home
environments."

And his take on fish oil (also considered nutrition)
http://www.eatingwell.com/health/nut...ga_3_adhd.html

“Anecdotally, fish oil, which is very safe, has helped those with ADHD,” says Hallowell, who recommends fish-oil supplements to all his patients."

[Sandy4957]

Frazzle,

Now that I'm taking a break from work here, I'm really noticing how important these parts are. I was in a bad place the first three months of this year: very little sleep, eating poorly, not exercising. My eating habits are generally quite good, and I used to get a lot of exercise (relative to many people anyway), but I've been much less structured, etc. lately.

This may be off-topic, and if so, by all means let me know, but I note that Hallowell and others say that "enough" sleep is the amount that you need when you wake up without an alarm. Well.... hmmmmm... I often wake up without an alarm after about 5 hours of sleep, but then I crash again. So what does that mean? Should I only sleep for five hours? Accept that I have a broken sleep schedule? Hmmmmm... I'm just not sure about that.

[meadd823]

I began my thread to get ADDF members opinions as to their own thoughts and experiences, with diet and ADD.

Sense you wanted to approach this from what Dr. Hallowell has to say in his public writings then beginning a second thread was an excellent idea. I do not mind Dr. Hallowell's input as he to is now a member of ADDF like the rest of us as long as it is from personal persecutive minus any alternative agendas. . .


I believe in Dr. Hallowell's strength based approach to ADD - he has always approached ADD as some thing that can have both negative and positive traits - even as early as his first book "Driven to Distraction" he presented ADD as a condition with both positive and negative traits - depending upon the environment and individual temperament.

I believe he has always been a proponent of living and eating healthy. I also know he and his son went through the Dore program.

I have read "Driven to Distraction"," Answers to Distraction", and "Delivered from Distraction"

- so I am pretty familiar with Dr Hallowell's work . . .

[FrazzleDazzle]

I agree with both of you, and with Dr. Hallowell. He approaches treating/managing ADHD in a more holistic approach, that may not be the right word, but they embrace the mind, body, and soul. We are a body made up of individualized parts that interact and interrelate with each other. If one part is not working well, other parts are affected. I have always believed that treating a condition with only one method may not be the most effective way to handle most conditions. Finding an underlying cause or causes, dealing with those, and building on those. It's a difficult process, but usually well worth the effort. When ALL or MOST identified medical issues are dealt with, it would not be uncommon for a few symptoms, not even necessarily one would think would be related, start to alleviate or resolve, and I believe that ADHD is no exception.

Sandy, I certainly don't mind if anyone would like to just expound on any of the things I quoted on the first post, as they all came together in a batch, so sleep and exercise, as far as I am concerned, would be welcome topics here too. Mods?

[meadd823]

Eat lots of vitamin C in fruits.

Citric fruits cause me to get a rash so I must supplement with ascorbic acid

Avoid binging on carbohydrates. These give you a squirt of dopamine, but there are much better ways to do this: exercise, making love, meditation."

Must turn off computer and try second suggestive way of dopamine increase. . .

I quoted on the first post, as they all came together in a batch, so sleep and exercise, as far as I am concerned, would be welcome topics here too. Mods?

Tis your thread Frazzle - we frown on thread hijacking but thread evolution is normal just like conversation evolution is . . .

[Sandy4957]

"Tis your thread Frazzle - we frown on thread hijacking but thread evolution is normal just like conversation evolution is . . ."

AH! This is an important point! So if OP is cool with a shift, it's ok.... Good to know.

You know, Frazzle, I remember reading that section in Hallowell's book, but I'd forgotten it. So bingeing on carbs increases dopamine? I thought that it increased serotonin (hence the sleepiness factor).... That's interesting. I've always binged on carbs (candy, mainly) when I work... Who knew that I was inadvertently self-medicating! (Hint: buy stock in peanut M&Ms 'cause sales in a particular region of the midwest US are about to spike!)

[FrazzleDazzle]

I'm not sure the dopamine squirt from carbs was correct (as Hallowell was quoted-maybe a misquote? I lost my actual book); it's protein that gives the squirt of dopamine for alertness, and Sandy, the carbs give a "squirt" of seratonin, which "calms," from my basic understanding of this.

I found this great article that explains the food groups and the effects on the neurotrasmitters, etc. AND in layman's terms! YEaH! :-)

http://ezinearticles.com/?Mood-Contr...alm&id=1032604

[Andrew]

Originally Posted by Sandy4957

"Tis your thread Frazzle - we frown on thread hijacking but thread evolution is normal just like conversation evolution is . . ."

AH! This is an important point! So if OP is cool with a shift, it's ok.... Good to know.

I don't mean to thread-jack, but its important to note that the reason we're so insistent upon threads staying on topic is that hundreds of thousands of people (if not more) search this forum every day for answers to their questions...and to find topics that they can relate to. Keeping threads on topic makes these searches more relevant and keeps members (more) focused. Yes, there's always room for some leeway and drift, but we really need threads to stay as focused as they can.

Thanks

Now that I've violated the one tenet I'm actually talking about....back to the OT!

[Sandy4957]

Frazzle,

Sears does not explain why protein induces alertness in terms of dopamine, but what he says may interest you. I'm working off of a 13 y.o. memory here (and may never have fully understood it in the first place), but as I understood it, he says that when the overwhelming source of calories in any particular meal is carbohydrates, OR when the meal is sufficiently calorie rich, one's blood sugar spikes, and then the body releases insulin to convert excess blood sugar to fat, and this sets up certain eicosanoids (or super-hormones) that are sort of "feast" eicosanoids (as opposed to the "famine" eicosanoids). Those eicosanoids say "store excess energy as fat and use sugar for energy." They also promote inflammation, etc.

When you eat protein and certain fats (not animal fat), you get the opposite effect. Blood sugar goes up slowly and the body releases a different set of eicosanoids that say "access excess fat for energy." They also reduce inflammation, etc. He says that aspirin affects these good eicosanoids (or suppresses the bad ones, I can't recall which) which is why aspirin has such broad-ranging effects.

Just interesting stuff. I found the book Enter the Zone to be fascinating that way. (Yeah, I get fascinated by weird things; I'll grant).