ADHD From Allergy? Study Shows Benefit From Diet Changes

Feb. 4, 2011— -- Many parents will acknowledge that too much soda and candy makes their kids bounce off the walls on a sugar high, but what if a child's persistent hyperactivity was caused by tomatoes, eggs, gluten or some other seemingly innocuous food?

That is what a Dutch study published Thursday found: In kids with ADHD, researchers found that putting them on a restrictive diet to eliminate possible, previously unknown food allergies or sensitivities decreased hyperactivity for 64 percent of kids.

It isn't the first time researchers have tried to link ADHD to things kids eat, such as sugar, food dyes or other preservatives, but even with this recent study, pediatricians remain skeptical of a true connection between diet and hyperactivity disorders.

For Lynne Edris, 45, of Mechanicsburg, Pa., an elimination diet was one of a series of non-pharmacological interventions that she tried with her son, Bobby, in hopes of keeping him off prescription meds.

"He was about three at the time and his hyperactivity symptoms were pronounced. I tried food elimination, [which] basically takes you back to white meat chicken and few other things that they can eat," she said.

Edris spent three months trying the diet and slowly reintroducing other foods, but never saw any effect on her son's symptoms.

Now Edris is a ADHD coach working with parents of children with ADHD and said that while every once and a while a parent will have a lot of success with food elimination, for the most part, hopeful parents are disappointed when it fails, especially because of the amount of effort that has to go into keeping a young child on such a strict regimen.

Bobby, now 15, currently is being treated with ADHD medication and behavioral interventions.