CYLERT ALERT!!!-FDA issues new warnings!!Abbot Laboritories has also issued a statement regarding the deaths due to liver toxicity that have been connected to the drug.
If you or your children are using Cylert, you need to go to your doctor ASAP for more information regarding possible alternatives.
ADD and Diet
What about those claims of dietary supplements and their effectiveness?
I would certainly far rather find a reliable natural alternative to drug usage, both personally and for the society at large. Although I am convinced that nutritional points are
very important, I can find little verifyable concensus other than
high prices....LOL...it seems that those who have "found the cure" are bent on selling it for profit....not that the prescription drugs are not expensive, but I find that I automatically distrust the evidence when it is presented by someone trying to market their own product. (If you do a search for "ADD"+"nutrition", you will find an absolutely huge number of links, but if you read far enough, almost all of them are trying to sell you something!)
I also find it interesting that so many people who are appalled at using chemicals (medication) to help ADD people adjust their systems are almost fanatically gung ho when it comes to supplementing their diets with chemicals (supplements), albeit "natural". (Incidently, many prescription medications are also derived from natural ingredients, and many OTC supplements are made up of synthecized nutrients...check those labels!) I guess that I've just become very suspicious of sales tactics. I've yet to see any guidance as to how to get these supposedly necessary dietary nutrients in any manner other than fairly hefty financial investment...if they are true nutrients, and so important to our natural diets and well-being, why is there so little shared about how to improve our eating habits to include the foods in which these essential natural chemicals occur? --sigh-- I guess the only profit in that would be to the health and welfare of the world...seems few people are into providing for that.
I'm sticking with adding more fruits and veggies...at least they taste good (although, there is room for argument there too, LOL). And,we're cutting way back on the refined sugars that we and our children consume. If you read those lables, you will be astounded at how much sugar is added to everything from peanut butter to ketchup. And then, there's soda....hmmmm... I think it likely that our sweet tooth is meant to be satisfied by the natural sweetness of fruits (preferably not the waxed and sprayed variety), and it seems that natural diet proponents agree. Although sugar may not be directly identified as an antagonist in the ADD situation, it has been very definitely linked to increased agitation in my kids...LOL...and my husband and I have noted its detrimental effects on our own abilities to function, let alone the preservation of waistlines, so on this "anectdotal evidence", (which has been confirmed on numerous occaisions by many, many other mothers I've talked to) I present an hypothesis: "It ain't good fer ya, it ain't gonna hurt too awful much to git rid uv it, an' it's gotta improve on the nutritional side of the e-quation, don'cha know!?"
Here is a list of Fruits and Vegetables that have been identified with nutritional treatment of ADD:
If you have actual experience, positive or negative, with any supplements or dietary adjustments for treating ADD, and you do not profit financially from their sale, I would love to hear from you.
Harry R. writes that,"I can't say for sure that I have ADD because I have'nt been professionally diagnosed
with it. However I have a high number of the symptons as well as my four year old boy having the same. My wife was watching a local t.v. show on the subject of ADD about four years ago and the person was talking about the way magnesium affects the ADD mind. At the time I was an (brand name supplement) distributer, and we had a pproduct called CAL/MAG. I started taking two tablets every six hours(each tablet has 108 mg) and the difference in my behavior is like night and day. I don't want to sell you any but I know what you mean about those adds. I'm sure other vitamin makers have a similar product. Any way there it is, my two bits, take it our leave it." - Thanks, Harry, I'm supposed to take it for my sciatica anyway, so all the more reason for me to pop that in with a meal.
Sheila B writes, "They tell me my 8 yr old has add and wanted to put him on drugs. At this time I said no and contacted my holistic dr. He recommended doing a
blood allergy test for delayed food allergies on him. I had the test's run and he was badly allergic to 3-4 things. I have been following the diet Dr. B. recommends and his teachers have told me they have
noticed a radical difference in his behavior and temprement in school. These are the same teachers that poo-pooed the idea that diet could maybe work in place of drugs. Don't misunderstand, the child is not
perfect, but he's a lot better." - That is wonderful news. I suspect that a lot of 'teacher diagnosed' ADD is actually food allergy.
Debbie G. writes, "I was just perusing your website for the first time and was very interested in your section regarding ADD and Diet. I do have some experience and will not make any profit!!! My daughter was never diagnosed with ADD but we had a lot of sleep problems, she was always VERY emotional and at about 4 she became very compulsive. These symptoms were present at different degrees at different times in her life. At 4 we hit a crisis point and I thought that we were going to need serious help. I then discovered the Feingold diet. It begins by removing chemicals added to foods as preservatives or food colors. This diet has changed our lives. It is recommended for ADD/ADHD symptoms as well -- of course, it does not "work" for everyone, but it is definitely something to be considered in the whole scheme of things. As you say it does cost money to actually join the organization, but they are a non-profit organization. We tested the diet by doing research at the library and realized its benefit to our family before we actually shelled out money to join. Once you join they give you a detailed researched list of brand name foods that can help you follow the diet more easily. Foods can be researched by request and the list is always updated. It is not the only benefit to joining, but one of the best." - I have heard good things about the Feingold Diet.
CYLERT ALERT!!!-FDA issues new warnings!!Abbot Laboritories has also issued a statement regarding the deaths due to liver toxicity that have been connected to the drug.
If you or your children are using Cylert, you need to go to your doctor ASAP for more information regarding possible alternatives.