Review by BRIGITTE ROZARIO
THE ADD AND ADHD CURE
The Natural Way to Treat Hyperactivity and Refocus Your Child
By Jay Gordon, MD, with Jennifer Chang
Publisher: Wiley
What a brave title to have for a book. Can ADD (Attention-Deficit Disorder) and ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) be cured? The doctors will tell you no, however both disorders can be controlled with medication.
Yet, here we have paediatrician Dr Jay Gordon writing a book on ADD and ADHD with such a title. Dr Gordon is quite the controversial and outspoken doctor.
His book comes from his own experiences as a doctor as well as through his study of nutrition and alternative medicine. In addition, Dr Gordon has lived with ADD all his life.
I'm not sure about the “cure” for ADD and ADHD but I do think his advice might be helpful.
Dr Gordon says because of all the media attention, there are probably cases of overdiagnosis. Parents worry too much and when their children are a bit more energetic and unfocused they think the children have ADD/ADHD.
He says that perhaps the children just need to change their diet to one with less sugar and less processed foods. Or maybe the child just needs more exercise or sleep.
He says that through his own experiences, he has seen the detrimental effects of medication on a child's development.
According to Dr Gordon, the catalyst to the child's bad behaviour at birthday parties is sugar. So, in order for the child to have a good time at the party and be able to participate in the games, parents should do all they can to keep the child away from sugar.
Another tip is to get the child out of the house and to a park where they can run and play instead of adopting a lifestyle of just playing videogames.
His argument, which I agree with, is that we should avoid giving the children drugs (medication) if we can help it. Unlike medication, a change in lifestyle with proper diet, exercise and sleep does not have harmful side effects.
In addition, he advises parents to allow their children to develop at their own pace instead of pressuring them to do well at school. Additional stress just makes children anxious and nervous.
He says:
“Very simply, there just aren't that many kids that need to be medicated.”
Dr Gordon explains that he has seen children who did better in school, at home, in sports and in parties after they had a change in diet.
He takes parents to task for giving their children a choice of what they want to eat. It's great that parents want to leave choices to their children but there are certain things you cannot leave to the kids to decide like when to cross the street and how to choose a nutritious diet.
He emphasises that you're not a bad parent for giving your child fruit instead of cake. After all, how can wanting your child to be healthy be equated as bad parenting?
And the other parents should understand instead of trying to persuade you to allow your child to have chocolate, cake, cookies and candy.
He advises parents to firstly get a proper diagnosis from a doctor as soon as possible so that they can start addressing the problem and to avoid treatment that might not be necessary and may even be harmful.
I love what he says about teaching children to eat vegetables. Firstly, kids understand the importance of eating vegetables if you explain it to them and use humour or your own personal stories to lighten the situation rather than scold and nag them to eat their vegetables.
Secondly, kids learn from their parents. So if you're not enjoying eating your vegetables, they'll know and they won't want to eat theirs either.
Thirdly, keep serving sizes small and keep the pressure low.
He also has tips on how to get kids to eat their vegetables – from cutting up fruits and vegetables into snack portions and keeping them in the fridge for easy access to pureeing the vegetables and adding them to pasta sauce or mashed potatoes.
When shopping for food, parents of children with ADD or ADHD have to be extra careful. Read all the labels and avoid foods with artificial food colours and artificial flavourings. Don't be fooled by labels that scream “All Natural” - do still read the ingredients.
I love that he offers real lists and not just generalisations. There is a great list of substitutes – sugar, cheese and candy substitutes. In this case, you can also use these lists for the whole family and not just for your ADD / ADHD child.
If you really don't know what to cook, the author even has meal plans for four weeks!
To go with those meal plans are recipes. And, they're not all complicated; some are fast and easy.
The author reminds parents of the importance of taking care of the issues as well – getting a support team, educating family and friends and addressing the needs of the siblings.
He also dedicates an entire chapter on additional natural treatments like yoga, tai chi, acupuncture and herbal remedies. Being a doctor and a person with ADD, he takes a bit of time to discuss the benefits of each treatment instead of just rubbishing it.
If your child has been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD or if you suspect your child has these disorders, then you really need to get this book.
Try out some of Dr Gordon's tips and advice. It might just work. The tips are practical and the book is very readable. He talks plainly to parents.
Highly recommended.