Gluten and ADHD

In 2005 I graduated with a degree in Early Childhood Education. My professors told me more than once to expect that in my classroom about 10-15% of children would have some sort of exceptionality…including (but not limited to) ADHD, autism, language processing disorder, or dyslexia. That would mean in a classroom of 25 kids, you could expect 3-4 children with some type of learning exceptionality. I taught 3rd grade for two years in a very diverse setting, both socio-economically and culturally. Both years, the number of children in my room with learning exceptionalities were between 30-40% of my classroom. I then left that school and taught 2nd grade for two years in a suburban school, which was not as diverse. Same statistics. As a teacher I could see each parent flinch at the thought of having to medicate his or her child. And who could blame him?

There has to be an answer as to why we are seeing such an increase in things like autism and ADHD. I started researching as much as I could about the links between diet and ADHD. That was when I found a possible link between gluten sensitivities and ADHD, autism, and even processing disorders. Could it be that the thing that made me so sick could be making my students sick?

Studies show there IS a link between food allergies and ADHD. I understand that changing what foods we eat may not help all children, but if there is any possibility at all to avoid giving our kids drugs, isn’t it worth a try? Below are some helpful links and beginning steps to take. I’ve listed the top allergens that studies show children with ADHD to have. This list is not limited. It may include dairy, corn, eggs, cocoa, etc. I recommend an elimination diet to test potential food allergies if you find that eliminating dyes and gluten are not enough. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions or need any help!

Could a Gluten Free Diet Improve ADHD?

Dyes and additives to eliminate:

▪ Sunset yellow (E110) (FD&C Yellow #6) Coloring found in squashes

▪ Carmoisine (E122) – Red coloring injellies

▪ Tartrazine (E102) (FD&C Yellow #5) - Yellow coloring

▪ Ponceau 4R (E124) – Red coloring

▪ Sodium benzoate (E211) – Preservative that can also be found in everything from food to some soaps and toothpastes

▪ Quinoline yellow (E104) – Food coloring

▪ Allura red AC (E129) (FD&C Red #40) - Orange/red food dye[5]

One rule I try to follow is, if a food label has more than 5 ingredients, I don’t buy it. It might mean carrying a card with these dye names on it for a while as you grocery shop, but you will learn quickly what you can buy, and what you can’t.

When in doubt, go organic. With all this new research, there are many new options!

Foods to eliminate:

▪ glutens (wheat, rye, barley)

Hidden sources of gluten:

▪ condiments (soy sauce, ter iyaki ,Worcestershire)

▪ stocks and broths

▪ barley malt (or malt extract, malitol)

▪ gravies or sauces (anything that would use flour as a thickener)

The GOOD NEWS!

▪ Due to the increases of wheat allergies, the law requires wheat to be CLEARLY LABELED on wheat-containing products.

Five years ago we had to know a laundry list of scientific names for wheat. Now, it will clearly say “wheat”…even if it’s just in parenthesis.

Eat THIS, not THAT!

*Swap your whole wheat pasta for brown rice pasta. You can’t taste any difference.

*Swap Papa John’s pizza for the goodness of home-made gluten free crusts. Whip up a mix of your own using one of my recipe, or Pamela’s pre-packaged Bread mix. Or, if you’re in an hurry, Kinnikinnick makes individual pizza crusts available in your grocer’s freezer.

*Replace your condiments with gluten-free ones. Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce is gfree, and all Kitchen Basics stocks are gluten free. Check the labels on your soy sauce. Kroger and Walmart brand soy sauces are gluten free…and only $1, as compared to Kikkoman g-free soy sauces that can be around $7!

Supplements:

Studies showed that children with ADHD were deficient Omega-3 essential fatty acids and magnesium. Brain scans show people with ADHD have low dopamine levels.

Below are some safe supplements to help increase these levels.

1. Fish oil (1 tsp. for children under 80 lbs, 2 tsp. for children 80-150 lbs, 1 T. for adults 150+ lbs)

2. Magnesium Citrate (take before bed)

3. Green tea (to help low dopamine)

4. L-tyrosine (to help low dopamine)

**Please note, calming supplements make ADHD symptoms worse!

Could Food Additives Cause ADHD?

g-free and ADHD