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The benefits of a gluten free diet for ADHD1 are effective for helping children or adults with ADHD, a kind of disorder that affects mainly children and stays till adulthood.
A gluten-free diet is linked with the treatment of ADHD to some extent. If you are someone looking for the benefits of a gluten-free diet 2for ADHD, then this is the right place for you.
What is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)?
Have you ever observed a kid or teen not paying attention properly or with a careless attitude? If yes, you may have observed someone with ADHD. We can’t say that all children or teens with such attitudes are affected by ADHD, but these are the symptoms of ADHD.
ADHD is a kind of brain disorder that controls your behaviour, especially how you pay attention to anything. This disorder is majorly seen in children and teenagers, hence could continue to adulthood.
There is medication and talk therapies for ADHD, but diets are always preferable for mothers for their children.
Gluten Free Diet: Is It Helpful For ADHD?
Gluten includes a family of proteins found in barley, wheat, cereals, etc. Gluten is found to create some type of discomfort in many people, therefore some folks try a gluten free diet.
Gluten is also linked with celiac disease, according to a study published in 2018 by the National Center for Biotechnology Information 3(NCBI), gluten diets may increase the chances of celiac disease. Celiac disease is found to be an immune disorder that causes various reactions.
Gluten free diet is extremely helpful for children or adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder4. According to the report published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information(NCBI) in 2011 gluten, few diets improve some abnormal symptoms of ADHD.
The main reason behind the benefits of a gluten free diet for ADHD is that gluten free diet would not trigger careless behaviour by aggravating aggression.
Gluten can also cause various mental disorders in children 5with ADHD. This is the reason doctors recommend a gluten-free diet for ADHD affects children.
Benefits of a Gluten Free Diet For ADHD
You have to cut down gluten (protein) from your child’s diet. Many food products are available to substitute what (the source of gluten) you could add to your child’s plate.
A gluten-free diet will help your child improve attention and concentration. There are many other benefits of a gluten-free diet for ADHD.
Here is a list of benefits of a gluten-free diet for ADHD:
1. Reduces Hyperactivity Behaviour
You would see the benefits of a gluten-free diet for ADHD, as it will reduce the abnormal behaviour of your child. Hyperactivity symptoms 6are generally seen in children with abnormal activity. You may see symptoms such as:
- Aggressive behaviour
- Impulsive behaviour
- Easy to get distracted attitude
- Repetition of movements or constant movements
These symptoms could become more visible with gluten in their diet, therefore eradicating gluten from their diet is vital.
A gluten free diet promotes normal activity and behaviour in children and helps with hyperactivity symptoms, according to a study published by the National Center of Biotechnology Information in 2011.
A gluten free diet is capable of lessening all the hyperactivity symptoms and improving your child’s brain health.
2. For Concentration
Have you ever seen your child unable to concentrate on something sometimes and getting distracted repeatedly even after trying a lot?
This is another symptom that your child may show in ADHD. A gluten free diet will help in bringing your brain into a stable state and improve your concentration power.
Gluten protein in your diet could also cause anxiety and depression resulting in a lack of concentration. If you try to remove the gluten protein from your diet then your brain will function in a better manner without any stress or tension on your muscles reducing your concentration power.
3. For Energy
Energy is another important factor in helping your child to recover from ADHD. Energy is required by your brain and whole body to function properly.
Children following a gluten free diet would be active with high energy levels and hence, with good brain functioning.
Your brain requires energy for signal processing and transmitting, and a lack of energy could disturb your brain’s functioning. Therefore, a glucose diet would help in improving your brain condition and reducing ADHD symptoms.
4. Improves Calm Attitude
Hyperactivity would host various aggressive symptoms that could be controlled by a gluten free diet. Children with ADHD should follow a gluten free diet for calm and peace.
In a gluten free diet, the foods are free of aggressive behaviour triggering protein (gluten), hence would encourage peace of mind and stability.
5. Prevents Hypertension
A gluten free diet is also recommended for reducing high blood pressure or hypertension. There are many unexpected cases of hypertension coming up in adults or people with ADHD due to gluten intolerance, as hypertension could be a result of gluten sensitivity.
Hypertension could be linked to hyperactivity, especially aggressive behaviour, and irritation.
Therefore children with ADHD could start their treatment by following a gluten-free diet at an early age for preventing hypertension that could increase ADHD symptoms.
6. Prevents Celiac Disease
Eating gluten could cause celiac gluten sensitivity, a kind of immune reaction that affects your small intestines. Eliminating gluten would not only improve ADHD symptoms but also prevent your body from hosting ADHD symptoms.
Celiac disease could cause various symptoms like inflammation and would also affect your small intestine very badly.
Inflammation could make ADHD symptoms worse as it would result in tension and stress on muscles. Therefore, you should try elimination diets (by eliminating gluten) for the diagnosis of ADHD.
Foods To Avoid in a Gluten-Free Diet For ADHD:
For claiming the benefits of a gluten-free diet for ADHD you must not eat the following foods:
- Wheat
- Rye
- Barley
- Cereals
- Bread and pasta
If your child is diagnosed with ADHD you should try not to give your children grains mainly. As they would improve the symptoms of ADHD in your children.
EndNote:
Gluten and ADHD are not a good match together keeping the health of a child in mind. Gluten would not help in the treatment of ADHD but would aid the ADHD symptom to worsen.
You must try a gluten-free diet or elimination diet (not including gluten) for the treatment of ADHD.
If you follow the gluten diet from the beginning your child tests positive for ADHD, and it will improve your child’s condition. Taking medical advice or expert recommendation is pivotal before deciding your take.
Go ahead and try out the benefits of a gluten-free diet for ADHD!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can I ever live a normal life with ADHD?
Tracking the signs and actively seeking out the solutions that work best for you are important aspects of living with ADHD. You can build a life that enables you to realize your full potential with the appropriate support and care.
2. Is eating hard with ADHD?
It’s possible that people with ADHD are less conscious of or concentrated on what they eat. For instance, people might not realize they are hungry during the course of the day and end up overeating. They might also ignore their satiation signs and continue eating.
3. What age does ADHD peak?
Once a child is seven or eight years old, the severity of the symptoms may reach a peak, however, following that, they frequently start to wane.
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- Cruchet, Sylvia, Yalda Lucero, and Verónica Cornejo. “Truths, myths and needs of special diets: attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism, non-celiac gluten sensitivity, and vegetarianism.” Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism 68.Suppl. 1 (2016): 42-50. ↩︎
- El Khoury, Dalia, Skye Balfour-Ducharme, and Iris J. Joye. “A review on the gluten-free diet: Technological and nutritional challenges.” Nutrients 10.10 (2018): 1410. ↩︎
- Sayers, Eric W., et al. “Database resources of the national center for biotechnology information.” Nucleic acids research 49.D1 (2021): D10. ↩︎
- Lange, Klaus W., et al. “The history of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.” ADHD Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders 2 (2010): 241-255. ↩︎
- Polanczyk, Guilherme V., et al. “Annual research review: A meta‐analysis of the worldwide prevalence of mental disorders in children and adolescents.” Journal of child psychology and psychiatry 56.3 (2015): 345-365. ↩︎
- Yoo, Hee Jeong, et al. “Attention deficit hyperactivity symptoms and internet addiction.” Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences 58.5 (2004): 487-494. ↩︎
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