Did anyone hear or read the piece on NPR about ADHD and special diets?

[minnie-zb]

This weekend NPR ran a piece on a study that was done regarding the impact on special diets on ADHD.

Here's a couple of links:

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/controversial-diet-may-improve-adhd-researchers-say-2207548.html

http://www.npr.org/2011/03/12/134456594/study-diet-may-help-adhd-kids-more-than-drugs?ft=1&f=2

Our oldest has ADHD and we are currently in the process of moving to meds, but this has made me rethink. My biggest obstacle at this point would be our pediatrician and how to get started. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks!

[edurnemk]

There's a lot of moms on this board that follow the Feingold diet for ADHD and other issues. You can check out the website for more info, and to get the program. you can also search for threads about Feingold diet, there was one not long ago IIRC.

[egoldber]

Here's a link to a summary of the actual study. The results were really pretty remarkable.

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2810%2962227-1/fulltext

I have been reading a lot about this. Honestly, it highlights one of the main concerns I personally have about ADHD as a diagnosis. It is a collection of symptoms and there can be many things that trigger ADHD like symptoms. I think that many peds are not necessarily that careful in how they screen for other causes vefore they diagnose ADHD.

OTOH, the diet was pretty restrictive and I don't even think my older DD would eat the foods that were on the restrictive diet.

ETA: The diet they studied was not a Feingold type diet. From what I can tell it was a customized diet based on each child's bloodwork panel for food they had an immune response to based on igG blood test results.

[HIU8]

Having a child with sensory issues regarding food, I can tell you how difficult having him follow a special diet is. We do a modified feingold diet right now (hoping to ease him into the full diet over a period of 6-8 months).