Posted on 01/09/2008 11:21:34 AM PST by bs9021
ADHD Breakthrough
by: Amanda Busse, January 09, 2008
A new study suggests that Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children may be a matter of maturity.
According to the study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, ADHD in children is caused when portions of the brain mature at a slower pace than normal. For many, the condition eventually normalizes and nearly 80 percent of children grow out of the disorder, the researchers found.
Researchers used a new image-analysis technique to measure the thickening and thinning of thousands of cortex sites in 223 children with ADHD and 223 children without the disorder for the study. Scientists found that the cortex sites in children with the disorder reached peak thickness three years later, on average, than those in children without the disorder.
“There has been debate about whether ADHD is a delay or deviance from normal brain development,” the lead author of the study, Dr. Philip Shaw, told the Los Angeles Times, “This study comes down strongly in favor of delay.”
The cause for the delay in brain maturation which causes ADHD is unknown, but there is evidence that both genetic and environmental factors influence brain development.
At early ages, environmental factors that influence the inattention and lack of self control associated with ADHD may include certain parenting and teaching techniques, according to another study published in the same month in Developmental Psychology. The study found that self-control and maturity levels were affected by family life and filtered into the classroom setting.
(Excerpt) Read more at campusreportonline.net ...
what you are describing is especially detrimental to little boys.
When we were growing up, half day kindergarten was the rule as well.
Now, they are expected to spend the entire day at school, without a nap, and one recess period (althought they do go to gym too)
When we showed up at school, we didn’t know ‘nothin.
The kindergarten teachers taught us our letters and counting.
Now the kids are expected to be close to reading level before they enter school.
You should see how the kindergarten screening process has changed just from the time my oldest (18) went through - until my young ‘uns.
So - more is expected out of them.
I think if they had expected the same out of us - we might have gotten ants in our pants too.
On the other hand - I have seen genuine cases where a kid would literally rip the blinds off a window if she didn’t get her ritalin on time.
I think it is real - but I think there are too many teachers trying to “diagnose” this themselves.
That should be reserved for the pediatricians.
Sorry! I reread your comment and don’t mean to imply you beat your kids.
I am saying that ADD/ADHD, like any other disorder, can be moderate to severe. I do not believe that any kid should be immediately drugged as a substitution for discipline and motivation. But many severe ADD/ADHD simply do not respond to traditional methods and would most likely benefit from the medications.
Again, I am sorry for reading your comment out of context.
Drugging a child with a controlled substance that is known to cause aberrant behavior in others not ordinarily so inclined is a very serious intervention to simply force an active student to sit still in class.
http://www.addforums.com/forums
Generic forums with sources listed.
http://www.add.org
Same for here.
I can dig up more technical stuff, but it’s something I live with everyday...some folks out grow it, some don’t.
And again, it’s a brain wiring issue.
I wasn’t talking about your self-medication, I was referring to what your child and others like him felt about having been so treated.
That’s like saying giving a child insulin (which will kill a normal child) is wrong.
Its called Mindcare. My wife orders it over the internet. The results have been good so far. She says that the kids don’t like the tablets because they taste horrible so she orders the gelcap instead.
http://www.ayurvedicherbsdirect.com/mindcare-himalaya-p-56.html
Einstein was a very slow child and was often reprimanded by his teachers due to his stubborn unwillingness to study as they saw fit.
Grandma Moses wasn’t born at 70, she just made it look as though she had.
Probably a good article, but I got distracted while trying to read it.
Twice in previous posts you have alluded to your own continued use of “meds,” do you become inexpressible, unorganized, anxious and dysfunctional when you neglect or forget to take them?
>>The male human brain doesn’t mature until about age 24, so for ADD/ADHD males that means he should not touch any alchohol until he is nearly 30-years old.
What happens if he does drink earlier than that (errr, you know hypothetically speaking ...)?
Why are the additional 3 you list not on the CDC?
The brain isn’t wired, it grows into then logical networks that behave as though wired; we seem to have become impatient with nature’s plan.
You wouldn’t turn on the circuit breaker while your electrician had his hands in the box, would you?
LOL
That looks very familiar. There was also some leather shows I dis not get along with.
Yes....
The disorganization is the worst...Anxiety is second.
Disfunctional? If all hell breaks loose for 1 and 2, yes.
For me they were a Godsend.
For my brother, they make a mean person well, almost nice ;)
BTW, I’m am a ADDer of the easily distracted, short attention span, inattentive, easily bored, always late, daydreaming, slow mover type.
And yes, the meds have made me a better and more productive person. All those dreams that got lost before now find life-— in projects, in schedules, in writing, in dances. I’m not embarassed for ‘zoning’ out. I’m late less and actually on time most of the time! Mostly, I’m not losing something every other minute or literally feeling lost inside my own head. IOW, my thought processes I can organize and control.
So yeah, this is one adult who says that I have a far far better quality of life than I did before.
Not at all, the use of each drug should fit the patient; it has been our job all along to properly define the need, not just the effect; which is why this latest study was conducted and why its conclusions are so important.
Even more important is what the medical community along with the school systems do with this new knowledge.
I agree 100%. My youngest son was diagnosed with all this crap in the early 70s. He was hyperactive and liked to fight. In the first grade he was forbidden metal lunch pails because they were his favorite weapon. Doctors insisted he be placed on drugs. We denied this treatment. at about age 8 one of his fighting episodes cost him $40.00. He has not had a violent moment since and is now a priest with a chemical engineering degree plus MBA in finance. SF
Having read your honest answer, I can only say, keep on dancing.
Wish you the best.
Those are very rare cases. The hundreds of thousands that you see or hear about are not quite as fortunate.
I was using a metaphor.
BUT! Considering I did a lot of the wiring in my house, I’ll use it again.
It’s about having a house that’s been wired with NM 12-2 Romex with too many outlets on the circuit (Lets say 12).
The breakers constantaly flip, maybe an outlet stops working (after smoking up the house) things don’t work, sometimes the switch that’s supposed to turn on the chandelier turns on the back door light (don’t look at me, my brother wired that one).
SO, you can go in and add another line, use different/better wire, put a lower load on the circuit. Heck! Maybe put a GFCI in the breaked box instead of using it as an outlet! Put in new outlets. Whatever it takes.
A house, like brain, can have wiring issues-— and problems. And most of the time, a new outlet, some new wires or even going to the source== the breaker box, can fix the problems.
And no, turn of the main breaker switch before I tinker with any outlet.
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