Insomnia and sleep deprevation can intensify ADD and ADHD symptoms, such as:  Difficulty concentrating, Irritability, Daytime sleepiness, Feeling grouchy, Feeling  anxious, Unable to get things done during the day, More accidents, Feelings of depression, Racing mind, General fatigue, Drowsiness, and Mood alterations just to name a few.

Lets look at some ways that food and liquids that can improve or actually worsen sleep.

Milk once thought of as being great for sleep was found to actually disturb sleep.  Author David Zinczenko, of Eat This, Not That, suggests that the protein in milk boosts alertness and the fat in milk slows down the digestive system making sleep more fitful.

Of course, knowing you have to go to sleep, and “trying” to go to sleep is always more difficult.

There are some foods that produce feel-good relation chemicals, calming down your nerves and slowing down your racing brain.

Nonfat popcorn half an hour before bedtime works nicely.  The carbs make your body create serotonin, a neurochemical that makes you feel relaxed.  Skipping the butter helps keep the digestion process at optimal levels so that you have a restful sleep.

Oatmeal with sliced bananas is rich with melatonin. Melatonin is the hormone that helps us sleep.  Stress or excitement disrupts the release of melatonin.

Plain yogurt with a handful of mixed nuts reduces the feelings of anxiety.  Scientists did a study of two amino acids, lysine and arginine.  They discovered that people giving a speech where half as nervous when they had took lysine and arginine.  Yogurt is a good source of lysine and nuts are a good source for arginine.  Be aware that lysine and arginine produce alertness, so eat them a few hours before bed, or during the day.

Tryptophan is a sleep-inducing amino acid. As a teenager, I used to eat bags of shelled sesame seeds.  Who knew it could be good for you.  It turns out that, sesame seeds are a great natural source of tryptophan, which will help you relax.

Ever wonder why they give you a handful of pretzels on the plane, its to make you tired.  Pretzels are a low-fat source of carbohydrates, which make you feel sleepy.

Doctors did a study to determine which was more effective a glass of wine or sedatives (i.e., ambien), the wine ½ to 1 glass of wine was found to be most effective.  It turns out that a glass of wine does take the edge off.  A study done by the University of Toronto found that one alcoholic drink relaxed a person’s blood vessels, while two drinks did the opposite (so limit your intake).  Blood vessels that are relaxed means lower blood pressure, slower heart rate and a greater ability to relax.

When is the last time you thought of Cherry juice as something to drink?  It turns out that Cherry juice increases serotonin, which will relax you.  A 4 oz glass of unsweetened cherry juice about an hour before bedtime will help you go to sleep.

Lastely, lets look at stress relief in general.  A study at the University of Alabama showed that vitamin C twice a day nearly stopped the secretion of cortisol, a hormone released in your body when you are stressed.  The food with the most vitamin C is Red Bell peppers.

This large study – observed 214,417 ADHD patients taking medication, and 965,668 control kids – not taking ADHD medications. They were observed over a period of 135 days for ADHD medication users, and 609 days in non-users. The specific outcomes which were being observed included sudden cardiac death, myocardial infarction (a ‘heart attack’), stroke, and cardiac arrhythmias (i.e. irregular heartbeats).

During the observational period – the rate of these events were very low in both groups.  In the group taking ADHD medication, there were 28 deaths (incidence 1.79 per 10,000 person-years) and 607 deaths in the control group (incidence 3.00 per 10,000 person-years). There were no validated cases of MI (heart attack) or stroke in the medication group and 11 cases in the group which wasn’t on medication.

This research supports previous studies which showed that kids and teens taking ADHD medications are NOT at increased risk for cardiac death. The sad reality is that there will be a small number of kids/teens who pass away from cardiac issues (i.e. a heart problem that no one knew about), and ADHD medications do not seem to worsen that rate.

There is still a warning on ADHD medications – for individuals with structural heart abnormalities (i.e. ‘holes’ in the heart like an ASD or VSD), arrhythmias, or adults with unstable coronary artery disease. If you are concerned about this – by all means talk to the doctor, and a specialist if needed as well (like a cardiologist, or pediatric cardiologist).

This study, hopefully, will help reassure some people with ADD/ADHD who are concerned about this very serious side effect.

Young men with early or heavy use of Marijuana appear to have a 70% greater risk of Testicular Cancer.  This risk is even higher the younger the age of first use.

Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research center in Seattle found an association with Nonseminoma, a fast growing and aggressive subtype of testicular cancer.  Of all testicular cancer, 40% is Nonseminoma and the rest are slower growing.

It appears that hormonal changes during puberty make young men more vulnerable.  The findings were independent of other known risk factors, such as family history, cigarette smoking and alcohol use.  It appears that the testes, like the brain, have receptors for tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical component of marijuana.

I found this information very interesting.  In our center, we have seen so many young people with ADHD attempt to self-medicate with Marijuana.  It appears the dangers of Marijuana are greater than we initially understood.

Once again the myth that ADHD does not exist is busted…..

By Redaksi Web
Harian Global — Published: Saturday, 04 July 2009

Hundreds of variations in genes which more frequently occur among attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) sufferers have been identified by researchers, many of which were known about previously as crucial for behavior and learning.

The variations seen have a broader impact on DNA structure, involving copy number variations (CNVs) which involve repeated or missing stretches of DNA. Many diseases, including schizophrenia and autism, are known to involve CNVs.

Psychiatrist Josephine Elia, M.D., said: “Because the gene alterations we found are involved in the development of the nervous system, they may eventually guide researchers to better targets in designing early intervention for children with ADHD.”

I recently found this quote in my notes.  It triggered some thoughts about my clients that I wanted to share with you.  Clients frequently and mistakenly have a magical belief that good judgement just happens.  Let me clearly state that good judgement comes from the learning experiences of life.  We are so afraid of what others think and the way others view us, those thoughts drag us down and frequently add to our stressers.

Emily did not have enough money to pay for her car insurance.  She was embarrassed, she didn’t want anyone to know about her financial situation.  Emily needed about $150 to pay the $400.00 auto insurance. Emily’s auto policy lapsed and she had a car accident.  Because she had no insurance, her license was suspended, she had fines for driving without insurance and of course the cost to fix both cars.  This experience taught Emily to always maintain her auto insurance.  A year later Emily found herself in the same situation.  She questioned whether to let the auto policy lapse or borrow the money. This time she reached out and borrowed the money she needed to keep her auto policy in effect. A week later, her son was in a minor accident.  She was thrilled that she had made the decision to maintain the auto insurance, rather than let it lapse.

Ironically, we only learn through our experiences and it is those experiences that help us make good decisions.  Let me know your thoughts and experiences relating to how you used the learning from bad judgments to do something successful.  We will post your comments and stories.

ADHD expert Russell A. Barkely, Ph.D. notes that “recent research suggests that those with ADHD cannot sense or use time as adequately as others in their daily activities, such that they are often late for appointments and deadlines, ill-prepared for upcoming activities, and less able to pursue long-term goals and plans as well as others. Problems with time management and organizing themselves for upcoming events are commonplace in older children and adults with the disorder.” This is confirming evidence of the tyranny of time faced by so many us and our children today.

Adults with ADHD generally had a higher number of jobs over the course of the past 10 years than adults without ADHD.  On average, those with ADHD had 5.4 jobs in a 10 year period.  Of those surveyed only 52% of the adults with ADHD are currently employed and 43% report that they lost or left one or more of their jobs in some part because o their ADHD symptoms.

Adults with ADHD have less stable relationships than those adults without ADHD.  Individuals with ADHD are twice as likely to be divorced and/or sepeated.  Less than half of those surveyed who are currently in relationships say they are “completely satisfied” with their relationship partners or loved ones, compared to 58% of those people surveyed without ADHD.

Adults with ADHD are twice as likely to have been arrested, with 37% of the adults with ADHD surveyed acknowledgeding a prior arrest.