Gluten is the protein found in wheat. It gives wheat dough its elastic texture. Besides wheat, gluten can also be found in barley, rye, spelt, kamut, and triticale. Sometimes oats can be contaminated with gluten as well. There are so many foods that contain gluten, that if your child is sensitive to it, he or she may very likely exhibit ADD symptoms.

Gluten is among the top eight food allergies. Celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder caused by an intolerance to gluten, affects about 1 percent, or 1 in 133 people in the United States today. More common is a non-celiac form of gluten intolerance, which is estimated to affect up to 15 percent of the world population, according to the University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center. The number of people affected is increasing every year. Is it a coincidence that ADD symptoms in children are also on the rise?

Gluten intolerance can manifest in many different ways. There are more than 200 symptoms, and each person reacts differently. For this reason, it is often difficult to diagnose. It can be hard to pinpoint because its symptoms can mimic so many other disturbances, such as lactose intolerance, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Chronic Fatigue, ADHD, Fibromyalgia, and many more. It can exacerbate symptoms of asthma, and cause nutritional deficiencies, cavities, poor growth, and frequent illness. It could very likely be the cause of your child’s ADD ADHD symptoms.

If you suspect gluten intolerance, it is best to get tested to rule out celiac disease first. This can be done by a simple antibody test. Next, cut gluten out of the diet altogether. Symptoms of ADHD in children can dramatically improve within a matter of weeks on a gluten free diet. Adults can benefit from a gluten free diet as well, as gluten can also be a cause of adult ADD symptoms.

Because of the growing numbers of people with gluten intolerance, gluten free foods are gaining in popularity. Gluten free items are common on restaurant menus and most grocery stores now have gluten free sections. While not an easy diet to adhere to, it is becoming much more manageable than ever before.

Gluten is just one of the many foods that can cause unwanted behaviors. Children with symptoms can also benefit from supplementation because there may be deficiencies in their diet. A deficiency in this can cause ADD symptoms in children such as impulsivity, difficulty concentrating, and more.

To find out more about what’s in your food and how it may be affecting your child, click here to buy the book, Processed Kids: The Real Mom’s Guide to Raising Natural Kids in a Processed World, by Lisa Greene.

Incoming search terms:

• gluten intolerance and behaviour in children
• gluten and ADD
• gluten intolerance children behavior
• does gluten cause add
• can gluten cause add
• gluten behavior children
• gluten sensitivity symptoms in children
• gluten symptoms in kids
• gluten and add in children
• gluten symptoms children

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

When looking at ADHD symptoms in children and how different foods can be a factor, it is important to learn what you are really feeding your child. There are so many chemicals in our foods that it’s no wonder our children behave the way they do. Chemically processed foods have become the norm in our society and are creating a nation of behaviorally challenged, processed kids. When you see a child with ADD symptoms, look to the diet first.

The first thing to do is start reading ingredients. Start noticing how many ingredients are in the food and how many of them are actually food. If it’s not food, chances are it is a chemical additive. Should it really take 75 ingredients to make a cake? Should there be 100 ingredients in a frozen meal? These chemicals cause reactions in the body that can manifest as ADD ADHD symptoms.

The next step is to isolate the problematic food or foods. This is done by removing one food at a time and watching what happens. It is a trial and error process that takes time, so don’t get discouraged. When you find the culprit, the effect can be quite dramatic. It is helpful to keep a food diary and log everything the child eats for a period of time. Reviewing the diary periodically can give you helpful insight.

The following are several of the worst offenders:

Artificial Colors:  Food dyes are notorious for causing symptoms of ADHD in children. More than 17 million pounds of artificial food coloring are made in the United States each year. Just think of all the brightly colored drinks, cereals, and snack foods, in colors that don’t even exist in real food, that are available to your children every day. Not only are food dyes linked to ADD symptoms in children, they have also been shown to contain low levels of cancer causing compounds. The FDA has refused to ban food dyes, even though they are repeatedly shown in studies to cause behavior problems and hyperactivity in children.

MSG:  Monosodium Glutamate, or MSG, is an excitotoxin. It is a neurotoxin that literally excites your brain cells to death. According to neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock, author of Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills, MSG crosses the blood/brain barrier and can cause the developing nerve fibers to be miswired. In children, MSG can affect mood, cause depression, create autism-like symptoms, behavior disorders, and learning disabilities. Because it crosses the blood brain barrier, it is also a common culprit in adult ADD symptoms. MSG is in practically all fast foods, many packaged and processed foods, processed meats, frozen meals, soup mixes, potato chips, snack foods, salad dressings and many other foods. It is difficult to spot because food manufacturers are able to hide MSG under other names that consumers won’t recognize. Learning these names will make it easier to keep MSG out of your child’s diet.

High Fructose Corn Syrup:  A major factor in our country’s obesity crisis, HFCS can also be a major factor in a child’s behavior. It can cause a drastic mood change, behavior issues, and hyperactivity. Also, mercury, a known cause of ADHD symptoms, is commonly found in high fructose corn syrup. HFCS is in many foods aimed at children, most packaged/box food items, breads, ketchup, soft drinks, juices, candy, snack foods, and more. It is difficult at first to eliminate from the diet, but it is well worth it.

Eliminating these additives can be a good start to finding the root cause of unwanted behaviors. If none of these work, there is another food that is becoming an issue to up to 15 percent of the population. ADD symptoms in children are only some of the problems this food can cause.

To find out more about what’s in your food and how it may be affecting your child, click here to buy the book, Processed Kids: The Real Mom’s Guide to Raising Natural Kids in a Processed World, by Lisa Greene.

Incoming search terms:

• add symptoms in children
• child behavior symptoms
• child behavior sypmtoms
• msg and behavioral problems
• msg behavior problems
• msg behavioral problems
• MSG behaviors in kids
• ADD and processed foods
• msg symptoms in children
• processed food and add

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

It has been widely accepted for years that ADD and ADHD are caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. This has not been proven, however, and is just a theory. Other theories include low dopamine levels, genetics, low birth weight, mothers who smoked or drank during pregnancy, and children exposed to lead or other environmental toxins early in life. Only in recent years have doctors acknowledged a link between ADD symptoms and diet.

In numerous studies, it has been shown that the brains of children with ADD and ADHD are different than those of normal children. When a child is diagnosed, the doctor will typically discuss these differences with the parent. During the process of diagnosis, however, the child’s brain is not actually scanned or studied. Only the behaviors and symptoms are studied. Parent and teachers fill out a questionnaire. Then a professional observes the child and checks off symptoms from a checklist. If the child has 6 of 9, the diagnosis is made. These professionals may have never met your child and may watch them only for a short time, or it may be your family doctor, who is probably not an expert on ADD. Once the diagnosis is made, stimulants such as amphetamines or methylphenidate are recommended. While the drugs may help temporarily alleviate ADD symptoms in children, they only work for a short period of time. Your child would have to take them every day, indefinitely, to see results. Also important to consider is there have been few studies to determine the long term effects that these drugs may have on your child.

Since many other factors can cause ADD ADHD symptoms, can you really trust a diagnosis that is made based solely on a child’s behavior? Before giving your child medication, make sure he or she actually has ADD or ADHD. Don’t let a doctor that has spent 30 minutes with your child tell you that he or she must be on daily medication to control unwanted behaviors. These disorders are so widely and quickly diagnosed that today it is estimated that nearly 1 in 10 children are given the diagnosis, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Once diagnosed, our children become immediately labeled, drugged, and expected to conform.

Certain food sensitivities have been proven to cause symptoms of ADHD in children. There are thousands of chemicals in our foods, and each one can cause sensitivity in a child. A child sensitive to food may become hyperactive, impulsive, have difficulty concentrating or paying attention, may be forgetful, or have trouble sitting still. Do these symptoms sound familiar? Just as you wouldn’t treat a broken leg with a band-aid, you don’t treat food sensitivities with stimulant drugs. Yet it happens every day.

The same is true for treating adults suffering from these symptoms. Food sensitivities are not just for children. A diet change can go a long way towards alleviating adult ADD symptoms as well.

When you find what is causing your child’s symptoms, you’ll realize that getting rid of them might be easier than you think. With a few changes, you can control unwanted behaviors with food, not drugs. Click here to find out what foods can cause ADD symptoms in children and what you can do to alleviate those symptoms naturally.

To find out more about what’s in your food and how it may be affecting your child, click here to buy the book, Processed Kids: The Real Mom’s Guide to Raising Natural Kids in a Processed World, by Lisa Greene.

Incoming search terms:

• add causes and symtoms
• add symptoms in children checklist
• add causes and symptoms
• add symptoms in kids

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

There are many natural ways to alleviate symptoms of ADHD in children without resorting to medications. Many parents today don’t want to medicate their child, but don’t know what else to do. Pressure from the school and their doctor tends to make many parents opt for medication when they don’t really want to. It is not your child’s job to fit into the mold of ‘normal’, and you don’t have to give him or her medication to do so.

ADHD symptoms in children can be a distraction in a classroom and can be bothersome to parents and other adults as well. It is difficult to watch your child struggle and behave inappropriately. All parents want to see their children succeed. It may be easier to give them medication, but it’s definitely not the healthiest choice. For ADHD in children, changing the diet is a much safer alternative.

While switching to a natural diet sounds easy enough, it is by no means a simple task. It takes hard work and commitment to keep your child away from all the chemicals in processed foods that may be causing his or her symptoms. It takes a new way of cooking and feeding your family, but it can be done.

The first step is finding out what is in your food. Start reading ingredients. If you can’t pronounce it, you shouldn’t be eating it. Second, make your meals with real food using only a few ingredients. You don’t have to become a gourmet chef to do this. You can make simple meals using fresh, whole foods sometimes just as easily as you can prepare a meal from a box. For example, instead of buying a box of macaroni and cheese that is full of chemical food additives, boil some macaroni, grate some fresh cheese, then add some milk and butter and you have a quick meal with four ingredients. You can still give your kids the food they love, but by making them in a different way, you can offer a much healthier alternative. Third, and usually the most difficult, is to stop eating out in restaurants and especially don’t eat fast food. You need to know what is in everything your child eats and you simply can’t when someone else prepares it. One reason that symptoms of ADHD in children are so common today is that we have no idea what’s in the foods we eat. We are eating chemicals with every processed meal. To eliminate the symptoms of ADHD, you must know every ingredient that your child ingests.

Another way to combat symptoms is with a quality Omega-3 supplement. A diet deficient in omega-3 can cause a child to be less able to pay attention, more impulsive, and at higher risk for depression. Teenagers may be more prone to anger and violence. Adding omega-3 to the diet can alleviate symptoms and can improve the child’s ability to learn. Considering all the negative side effects that ADHD medications in children can have, omega-3 supplementation is a far better solution.

Again, this won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. Start following these steps and watch attention, memory, and behavior problems disappear. Watch your child begin to succeed in school, with friends, and at home. Give your child the chance he or she deserves, without medication. Symptoms of ADHD in children can be controlled and even eliminated naturally, it just takes commitment from you.

To find out the truth about what’s in your food and how it affects your child, along with dozens of quick, healthy recipes, click here to buy the book, Processed Kids: The Real Mom’s Guide to Raising Natural Kids in a Processed World, by Lisa Greene.

Incoming search terms:

• natural choices for adhd
• natural alternatives to adhd in children
• what can alleviate symptoms of ADHD
• natural alternatives for adhd children
• natural alternatives adhd children
• natural alternative for add
• Natural alternatives for ADD
• natural alternative for adhd children
• Natural Alternative for ADD kids
• natural choices for adhd symptoms

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

Some children are more sensitive to certain foods than others. When a child is sensitive to a certain food, many different types of reactions can take place. The most obvious is an allergic reaction. For example, a child’s tongue may start to swell or his face may get splotchy when he eats strawberries. These types of reactions usually happen very quickly, so it’s easy to pinpoint the problem. Other reactions can be caused by food sensitivities and can cause physical symptoms such as stomachaches or migraines. Another not so obvious reaction to certain foods is a behavior change. This one is harder to pinpoint because we do not typically relate unwanted behaviors with the food a child has eaten. When the child continues to get the offending food or foods, behaviors begin to escalate, and the cycle continues.

Symptoms from food sensitivities often mimic ADHD symptoms in children. For example, a child with an intolerance to gluten may be hyperactive, impulsive, and have difficulty concentrating, sleeping or sitting still. A child with sensitivity to high fructose corn syrup may have inappropriate outbursts or temper tantrums. There are thousands of chemicals in our foods that, for many children, can create behavior problems. Unfortunately, what usually happens is that the connection between behavior and food is not made and the behavior problem is eventually addressed with medications.

Sensitivity to food additives and gluten intolerance are the two main culprits that can create symptoms of ADHD in children. To find out which foods are causing your child’s symptoms is a process of elimination that is difficult and time consuming, but well worth the effort. An elimination diet, eliminating one food at a time and watching the results, is really the best way to find the culprit. Keep in mind, though, a child that is sensitive to one food is often sensitive to others as well. If your child has other gluten intolerance symptoms, start by removing gluten first. A list of common symptoms can be found here. There is also a simple antibody test that can pinpoint a gluten intolerance. Eliminating gluten from the diet is difficult, but can produce dramatic results. The good news is that it is easier than ever before to find gluten free options at restaurants and grocery stores. Next, try removing high fructose corn syrup. It is a common cause of behavior issues in children. It is in practically everything so you’ll have to become an avid ingredient reader. The good news here is that anything your child may want can be made without it; you just may have to make it yourself. Eliminate food dyes next. These are also a common cause of ADHD- like symptoms. There are too many chemicals in our foods to mention them all, but these are the most likely candidates. Although a painstaking process, if more parents knew that diet can be the cause of symptoms, ADHD in children might not be the widespread problem it is today.

If your child is exhibiting symptoms of ADHD, try changing his or her diet before resorting to medication. ADHD medications in children can cause serious side effects, and while they may put a band aid on the problem, they are far from a permanent solution. Eliminating behaviors through the diet is a much safer approach for your child. Click here to learn ways you can control symptoms of ADHD in children naturally.

To find out more about what’s in your food and how it may be affecting your child, click to buy the book, Processed Kids: The Real Mom’s Guide to Raising Natural Kids in a Processed World, by Lisa Greene.

Incoming search terms:

• gluten and adhd in children
• corn syrup in children with ADHD
• corn intolerance or adhd
• gluten intolerance symptoms in toddlers adhd
• could a gluten allergy cause adhd symptoms
• gluten intolerance cause adhd symptoms?
• does gluten cause hyperactivity in children
• adhd symptoms in kids
• gluten and hyperactivity in children
• gluten adhd in children

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

ADHD in children is diagnosed by using a number of subjective methods with specific criteria. The child must have exhibited symptoms before age 7 and for more than 6 months, symptoms must be beyond the extent normal for the child’s age and they must persist in more than one setting, and other possible causes for the behaviors must be ruled out. To determine if all criteria are present, a professional will collect information from parents, teachers, and other involved parties, and observe the child in a number of settings. If, after observation and evaluation all criteria are met, a diagnosis of ADHD is made.

Once the diagnosis is made, typical treatment options include medication, behavioral therapy, and counseling. Symptoms of ADHD can be controlled with medication to make a child better able to behave and concentrate in school, but this is far from a cure. All medications have side effects, and some can be serious. First, the doctor will have to try a particular medication and play with the dosage to see what works. It is common to have to try more than one medication before the right one is found. This process can take weeks, if not months. ADHD medications are stimulants and side effects may include reduced appetite, sleep difficulties, depression, anxiety, and psychosis. It is common practice to treat these symptoms with sleep aids and anti-depressants, which create more side effects. Another effect of ADHD medications in children is that the child becomes calmer, sometimes to the point of becoming ‘spaced out’. While this may be great for the adults who don’t want to deal with unwanted behaviors, changing a child’s personality with drugs so he will conform is not the only answer.

If you are a parent of a child with ADHD and are looking for an alternative, look to your child’s diet. Your doctor will probably not be able to help you much in this area because, unfortunately, there is very little teaching on the subject of nutrition in medical school. He or she may even dismiss the topic and say there is no merit to it. Doctors are trained on illness and disease, and how to minimize them with drugs. They are simply doing the best they can with what they know.

There are many other causes for symptoms of ADHD in children. There are thousands of chemicals added to our foods, and many can cause behavior changes in a child. In The NDD Book, How Nutrition Deficit Disorder Affects Your Child’s Learning, Behavior, and Health, and What You Can Do About It  – Without Drugs,  by the well known and respected doctor William Sears, Dr. Sears says “You put junk food into a child’s brain, you get back junk behavior, junk learning, and junk mood.” Dr. Sears believes nutritional deficits are causing children to be widely diagnosed with ADD and ADHD. The symptoms of this Nutritional Deficit Disorder are mood swings, temper tantrums, restless sleep, poor attention span, impulsive outbursts, behavior problems, learning difficulties, hyperactivity, frequent infections, intestinal problems, vision problems, allergies, and more.

Chemical food additives in our foods can be a cause of all these symptoms. Many of these chemicals have not had proper testing. Many have been determined to be safe because we ingest them in such small amounts. The problem with this thinking is that these small amounts have a cumulative effect over time. As our children gradually accumulate these toxins, we sometimes start seeing negative affects in behavior and learning. These disorders have been on the rise at alarming rates for decades and all the medications are not making the problem go away. There is another way. Click here for part 2 on how to treat symptoms of ADHD in children naturally.

To find out more about what’s in your food and how it may be affecting your child, click here to buy the book, Processed Kids: The Real Mom’s Guide to Raising Natural Kids in a Processed World, by Lisa Greene.

Incoming search terms:

• how to treat adhd naturally in children
• natural ways to treat adhd without medication
• how to treat kids with adhd naturally
• ways to cure adhd
• how to treat children with adhd naturally
• how to treat adhd naturally
• is there another way to help adhd in children without medication?
• natural adhd treatment for kids
• natural cure adhd kids
• natural treatment adhd children

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

Renew Life - Ultimate Flora Critical Care 50 Billion - 30 - Veg Cap

Health and Beauty

• $37.99 List Price
• $23.60 at Amazon.com

Product Description

Probiotics

Ultimate Flora Adult Formula 15 Billion - 60 - VegCap

Health and Beauty

• $38.99 List Price
• $23.68 at Amazon.com

Product Description

Ultimate Flora Adult Formula 15 Billion High-Bifido Daily Support Probiotic Supplement for Adults 9 billion Bifidobacteria 6 billion Lactobacilli & Lactococcus cultures 15 billion active bacteria per capsule Enteric-coated vegetable capsules Formulated for people ages 15 to 49 Ultimate Flora™ Adult Formula 15 Billion is a daily maintenance probiotic formulated specifically for people aged 15 - 49, with the probiotic strains adults need for daily maintenance. Ultimate Flora Adult Formula contains 15 billion live cultures of 10 different strains of bacteria. The 10 different strains were carefully chosen for their proven health-promoting benefits and their prevalence in the healthy digestive tract. Ultimate Flora Adult Formula was formulated to maintain a balance of Bifidobacteria in the colon by providing 9 billion live cultures of Bifidobacteria. Ultimate Flora Adult Formula also provides probiotic support for the small intestine with 6 billion live cultures of Lactobacillus and Lactococcus.‡ The Lactobacilli produce enzymes to help digest foods.

Incoming search terms:

• ultimate flora reviews
• ultimate flora 15 billion reviews
• review of ultimate flora adult formula
• formula flora review
• ultimate flora daily care probiotic review
• ultimate flora daily care probiotic reviews
• information about ultimate flora ultimate flora
• ultimate flora adult formula 15 billion reviews
• ultimate flora adult formula reviews

© Processed Kids for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

Renew Life - Ultimate Flora Critical Care 50 Billion - 30 - Veg Cap

Health and Beauty

• $37.99 List Price
• $23.60 at Amazon.com

Product Description

Probiotics

Renew Life Ultimate Flora Critical Care 50 Billion, 60-Count

Health and Beauty

• $64.99 List Price
• $43.78 at Amazon.com

Product Description

Probiotics

Incoming search terms:

• Ultimate Flora Critical Care 50 Billion reviews
• ultimate flora critical care 50 billion review
• ultimate flora critical care review
• reviews of ultimate flora critical care 50 billion reviews
• ultimate flora 50 billion reviews
• ultimate flora critical care safe breastfeeding
• ultimate flora testimonials
• ultimate flora review
• ultimate flora critical care safe for children
• ultimate flora critical care probiotics review

© Processed Kids for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

Incoming search terms:

• gluten interrupts msg
• kids msg
• MSG kid symptoms

© Lisa Greene for Processed Kids, 2011. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh