Jeanne is the mom of a 14 year-old girl who had been diagnosed with ADD (attention deficit disorder). A doctor had recently recommended  medication since her schoolwork was really suffering.  A friend of Jeanne’s (and client of mine) told her that he thought that a change in diet could be quite effective, making medication unnecessary.  That sounded pretty good to the mom since she had heard about many undesirable side effects of medication, and she contacted me.  I recommended a whole, natural foods diet – avoiding processed and refined foods and preparing meals and snacks at home, using fresh natural ingredients.  I also recommended certain foods for her to avoid (gluten and dairy being at the top of the list). Here’s what Jeanne wrote to me 6 weeks later:

“When we first spoke with you, six weeks seemed an interminable amount of time to give up dairy and gluten. Well, here we are, and it has gone by so quickly!!! I am astounded by the changes in Katherine. Mostly, I notice the changes in her mood and energy level. I went from walking on eggshells around her, to her being so much more cooperative and happy. The underlying irritability has gone. I still can’t bring up controversial topics right before breakfast or dinner, but her own self awareness when she did have gluten (only three times during the six weeks) of her crankiness caused her to say, “I’m not cheating again… boy, do I feel awful.” The comments that came home on her mid-trimester reports were like those from a differrent child. Gone were the “distracted; lack of focus; turns things in late; chatty” comments and instead were high praises for her new dedication for her school work. Can this really all be from her diet???? Wow.”

Yes, all these changes in her daughter can be the result of eating differently!  I believe that the majority of  children with ADD or learning problems can be helped tremendously by changing their diets.  Medication is rarely necessary, in my opinion, if the parents are willing to institute the dietary changes that are necessary to help their children in a safe, natural and effective manner.