|
SitesADD FocusAdders.orgADHD NewsAdults Seeking
|
|
|
| advertisement |
(November 12, 2003) - Steve
Plog travels the country telling kids with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and
their parents that drugs, like the commonly prescribed Ritalin, aren't the only
cure.
Plog's message: By cutting back on sugar, white bread and milk, taking vitamins, drinking lots of water and changing study habits, children can overcome the symptoms associated with ADHD in 12 weeks.
Plog -- who said he was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult -- said doctors prescribe too many unnecessary drugs to combat the disorder's symptoms. He said that in most cases a healthy lifestyle can alleviate the need for prescription drugs.
Some local doctors and national experts aren't buying into Plog's theory.
"That's all nonsense," said Dr. Ivan Lopez, a pediatric neurologist at the University of South Alabama.
Lopez said the sometimes controversial disorder is both "overdiagnosed and underdiagnosed." Some children who don't have ADHD might be advised by a doctor to take medication. But as often as that, he said, children with the disorder never go to a doctor and are never identified as having ADHD.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a neurobiological condition in which a child's shortened attention span, difficulty concentrating, hyperactivity and distractibility affects daily activities. It affects 3 to 5 percent of all school-aged children and is often treated with psychostimulants, such as Ritilin, Adderall and Dexedrine.
Strictly genetic?:
Lopez said 90 percent of ADHD patients need drugs to function normally in society.
While it would be easier to cure the symptoms by simply changing a child's diet, Lopez said, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder has nothing to do with sugar. It's genetic, like blue eyes or diabetes.
"You cannot avoid having sugar. Carbohydrates are sugar. That's our energy," said Lopez, who added that he only advises ADHD patients who are overweight to cut back on sweets. "Everything has sugar, except for water. Even fats will turn into sugar."
Plog said most of the participants in his 12-week program will see a difference in their behavior. Many will be able to drop the drugs, he said. But, he cautions, "if you need drugs, you should take them. What we are trying to do is address the word 'need.' We need to find out the causes of ADD, not just the symptoms."
Plog's 12-week program costs $99 and includes free dietary supplements and vitamins.
Out of 1,800 children who completed Plog's program last year, he said, 1,500 got off drugs. The remaining 300 kept their prescriptions, but many cut back on the number of pills they had to take, he said.
'Self-esteem went up':
"Their grades went up. Violence went down. Behaviors improved. Self-esteem went up. Prescription drug use went down drastically," said Plog, who is not a medical doctor. "Conflicts went down. Classroom participation went up."
Terry Matlen, who serves on the board of directors at the national Attention Deficit Disorder Association, said combating the disorder is not as simple as changing a child's diet. Studies show that medications are effective 70 percent of the time, she said.
"If a doctor prescribes a drug for the disorder, you should follow the recommendation," she said, adding that the drugs should be accompanied by counseling. Healthy diet and exercise contribute to a child's overall well-being, she said, but staying away from sugars has not proven to help ADHD patients.
Matlen's organization encourages parents to carefully study the drugs that their doctors prescribe.
In addition, she said, parents should not necessarily trust an ADHD diagnosis if a doctor gives it after a quick 10-minute exam. Matlen said the condition is a complicated one and that symptoms for depression and anxiety are commonly confused with ADHD.
A good, thorough exam can take hours. Doctors should ask about current symptoms, past behaviors, current behaviors, how things are going at school, home and with friendships, she said. "They need to phase out all other possibilities before they say it's ADD," she said.
Lopez said the symptoms must be present in at least two environments -- such as in the home and at school -- before ADHD is diagnosed. If a child is hyperactive only at school, for example, it could be because he has social anxiety, because the other children are picking on him, or for a variety of other reasons, he said.
Plog calls children with the disorder "quick smart" because they use the right side, -- the "creative side" -- of their brains more than the average kids. Plog encourages patients and their parents to focus on the positive traits.
ADHD patients, he said, typi cally have higher IQs than most of the other students in their class, Plog said. They think almost twice as fast as other children and sometimes get bored in classroom settings, making school work difficult.
"We work with mom, dad, children, teachers on how to look at the kid as a right-brain positive person, not as a deficit kid," he said. "We want them to feel good about themselves."
Through programs like Plog's, said Dr. Karen Kelley, a Foley physician who practices holistic medicine, "in just a few weeks, we're able to give parents their children back."
Kelley, a local coordinator of Plog's program, said Plog "teaches these children how to shine. We don't call it a disorder. We call it a challenge."
Plog has written a book on attention deficit disorder and has opened three schools, two in Texas and one in New Hampshire, for ADHD kids.
Source: The Mobile Register
|
Home to HealthyPlace.com Chat
Forums
Communities Healthyplace
Radio
Support
Groups © 2000 HealthyPlace.com, Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Use Privacy Policy Disclaimer |
