Allergies and Hyperactivity
Could Allergies in Children be the Problem?

Allergies and hyperactivity often go together. However, allergic reactions to food often go undiagnosed. Learn about the connection between ADHD and food allergies.

A number of allergies in children are often experienced, such as allergies to milk or cereals and even to the milk produced by one's mother.

A growing number of children have developed allergies in recent years, often due to allergic reactions to food resulting in ADHD symptoms.

Almost one in ten children in elementary school develops an allergy of some kind. Their reactions vary greatly, but often behavioral issues are related to it.

An allergy is simply the body's reaction to a certain substance and its sensitivity to it, the most common including asthma, hay fever or eczema.

Because many symptoms may not be initially related to an allergy, it is sometimes difficult to correctly diagnose ADHD in a given child. The connection between ADHD and food allergies is often hard to pinpoint

.

Things that cause Hyperactivity

Since research in the field is far from comprehensive, there are many factors linked to allergies and hyperactivity, such as articifial chemicals in the food, refined sugar, pollutants in the air, genetic factors or even if the mother smoked while preganant that specialists are in disagreement about.

Influences before the actual birth could, to some extent, have an impact on the well being of the child. Small size at birth may cause hyperactivity, as well as other natural, biological processes. For instance, alcohol intake during pregnancy can lead to fetal alcohol syndrome. How much you should drink or maybe not at all, remains unknown.

Temperamental differences are also considered to cause  hyperactivity, because many pediatric specialists assume they translate into chemical differences inside the brain, which lead to the development of hyperactivity.

Because the brain is a comprehensive area of nerve cells and connections between them, it receives data from the body by electrical impulses; the data is then analyzed and gathered; when a decision is made, the corresponding nerve impulse initiates the action and neurotransmitters, like dopamine and noradrenalines, enter the field to do their work.

These neurotransmitters transmit signals from synapse to synapse inside to other neurons to ensure the mesage is gradually transmitted to the neuron it should arrive to. The other parts it travels until then help the body stimulate and concentrate on activities.

Whenever there is not enough neurotransmitter of any sort, then the nerve cells in that area cannot work to their full potential, therefore creating a dark spot where the brain will not work properly.

As a matter of fact, succesful functioning of the brain as a whole relies on neurotransmitters to be released on time. Hyperactive children lack the presence of a neurotransmitter at some point, therefore, they are faced with hyperactivity from a certain age and the symptoms for the disorder will evolve, because hyperactivity improves with the passing of years.

Heavy metal poising, including metals such as copper, aluminium, lead or cadmium is also considered a major cause of hyperactivity. Since children nowadays live in polluted areas, they come in contact with these elements in the air. Because heavy metals have the potential to influence the nervous system, there are many ways a child could develop hyperactivity.

Cadmium coming from the cigarette of the parents, aluminium inside a foil container or the lead present in gasoline released into the atmosphere are all contributors to a decreasing state of health resulting in allergies in children.

Moreover, food chemicals, flavors, natural salicylates and colorants are also responsible for causing hyperactivity. Since statistics show that up to 5 out of 10 children could improve their condition by omitting certain components of their diets, doctors are now concluding some salicylates people are digesting when eating food can cause allergies, for instance asthma or eczema.

When the 'guilty' element was eliminated for the diet and the salicylate was no longer digested, an improvement in the health of the patients was noticed. It is important to learn what constitutes an ADHD diet.

Because patients allergic to salicylates are also allergic to artificial colors of flavor, then this must mean that these colorants contain something in them capable of instilling a behavioral change and effect on a patient, similar to other chemical components which may have the same effect.

Therefore, to give the example of such a chemical component, take tartrazine, which increases the density of zinc in the urine. Colorants and other flavors are contained in sausages, jams, sweets, flavored drink, luncheon meats or cake mixes. Some natural resources from where to take salicylates include apples, oranges, worcestershire sauces, tea or peaches.

In order to eliminate this connection between adhd and food allergies, alternative diets exclude foods containing chemicals, artificial flavor, salicylates. While the effects can be experienced empirically, there isn't enough scientific evidence to prove these alternative diets. The final answers needed to draw a conclusion about the allergies and hyperactivity need still to be researched in a thorough manner.

Allergic reactions to food and other substances in the environment should be ruled out before finalizing an ADHD diagnosis. These allergies in children often lead to an inaccurate diagnosis. Choosing the best ADHD specialist will put you on the right track.

Many adults and children with ADHD have found help with alergic reactions and the symptoms of their disorder with a product called Synaptol. This product helps reduce anxiety and hyperactivity as well improve alertness and concentration for those who struggle with this disorder.

You can learn more about the causes of ADHD and hyperactive behavior on our causes of attention deficit disorder page.

More than the treatment of hyperactivity and allergies on the food allergies and ADD page.