ADHD and the role of Vitamin D

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD is quite common. Children with ADHD can be treated using medication but unfortunately the medication does not always do the work intended for it to do. These medications can also come with side effects and the safety of using these drugs long term is also a concern. There are studies however that are showing positive effects of Vitamin D on children with ADHD.

 

Vitamin D

There have been studies that show that a lack of vitamin D in children, while they are still growing mentally, can have a negative effect. This can leads to symptoms similar to what we call ADHD.

  

A blind parallel clinical trial that was conducted showed that in children aged between 6 and 13 who had been diagnosed with ADHD that vitamin D had a positive effect. Vitamin D increases the serum levels in children. The study was conducted by giving the children either 1000iu of vitamin D3 daily or a placebo.

 

Although these studies have shown positive results the Psychiatry industry still has been slow to embrace these nutritional and natural approaches to ADHD. The vitamin D supplements can improve some of the behavioural problems associated with ADHD and may also help to prevent the child’s behavioural issues or even worse symptoms. It could also possibly help to reduce impulsivity that comes with this disorder.

 

It is important practitioners consider the significant beneficial role of micro-nutrients such as vitamin D when finding a way to assist parents and children to control and improve ADHD symptoms through the action on the neuronal system. Also couple that with the role of genetics in the study of the causes for ADHD as well as undesirable lifestyle factors that may be contributing directly to the inattention and hyperactive symptoms.

 

What can we do to help reduce the symptoms of ADHD?

It is very important if your child has been diagnosed with ADHD to reduce the amount of time they spend in front of a screen, including television, IPad/Tablets, phones, computers and video gaming consoles as studies have shown that children with ADHD tend to spend two hours or more extra time in front of that screen than other children. This has an even more detrimental effect on their health. In exchange for the screen time let them play outside in the sunlight as the incidences of ADHD acting out is much lower in areas that have more sunny weather, so the sunlight can have a protective effect against the disease. The reason scientists think the sun has such a positive effect is because the sun rays increase serum levels of vitamin Dl. However, if your child receives plenty of sunlight but they are still found to be lacking in vitamin D there are absorption reasons for that and it may be necessary to introduce a D3 supplement of 1000iu per day. A supplement may be needed also if you live in an area that doesn’t have a lot of bright sunlight.

There are also many other supplements that will assist your child if they have an ADHD diagnosis. Also for ASD. This clinic specialises also in assisting you to promote natural healthy wellbeing in your child. Give a call or message us to see how we can help you.

Putting your fear of death aside for your child

Talking about death is never an easy thing to do but it’s important to teach your children that death is a part of life. It is inevitable that one day someone or something in their life will die. Bereavement experts say that it is important to talk about it with your child from an early age. You should remain honest and informative, let your children know that death is a natural part of the life cycle. This conversation is good to have even before a loved one or pet dies. Surveys have shown that parents can be reluctant to talk about death with their children of the ages between 4 and 6, even more so than talking about other hard to discuss topics such as sex, getting old, and illness.

 

Many parents will feel uncomfortable talking about death because they have fears and anxiety of their own. To help you could try to focus the conversation on biology to start with. Giving children biological information on the cycle of life and how our bodies work may have a positive impact on their understanding of death. Try not to use confusing language in an effort to minimize the impact of death, this can be detrimental and unhelpful.

 

Children may come across dead animals and bugs which will cause their imaginations to start running wild and they may create scenarios that are scarier than what actually happened. This is why talking to the child biologically can be good because you can talk about how the dead bug no longer moves around. From there you can lead into how when something dies it no longer does the same things as before such as eat, sleep and play.  

 

Age appropriate

 

When talking to children about anything it is important to keep their age in mind, same goes for talking about death. What you say to your teenager will be very different to what you say to your pre-schooler, Children of different ages understand things differently the younger children will find it harder to understand than the older children. Younger children may also find it difficult to comprehend that death is final. The books and television programs we have today don’t help as they may have characters that are suddenly alive again. Between the ages of 5 to 10 it starts to become easier for them to understand the finality of death. At this age they may start to associate pictures of skeletons or coffins with death. This could trigger nightmares and this is most likely when they will come to you with questions about death.

 

Answering their questions is important even if you may think that the answer is obvious. At the age of 9 or 10 through to adolescence, they start to understand that death is irreversible on a physical level and that they one day will also die. This can cause a lot of fear, which is why it is important to talk to them about the fact that everyone dies and to remind them that they will likely live a long time before dying.

 

Explaining death spiritually

Spiritually you may like to give them some ideas depending on your religion or your own spiritual beliefs. It is important to also let them know information about the soul and what your religious books say. Sometimes this can give them comfort especially if they have lost a grandparent or a pet. Ideas of the soul however need to be explained carefully so that they don’t get confused. Make sure that you deliver your messages on this clearly and easily and if you need help in this area there are many spiritual counselors that can give you insight into these things and how to explain them.

 

This clinic also does spiritual counselling and assists adults and children in their grief in coming to terms with death and dying. Why not investigate how we can help you if this is something you are grappling with right now?