Teen Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder - ADHD

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most commonly misdiagnosed conditions in existence, and teen Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) carries the risk of unsuccessful years in school. Of course, this is not as serious as the issue of medicating a child or teen to “calm” him or her down instead of finding the underlying cause of the problem. 

 What Is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a neurological condition in which the ability to focus on one thing and maintain one’s attention is impaired. In teen Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), this may mean constantly being on the move (hyperactivity) but being unable to focus on a single task for any length of time. For a teenager, this can create problems not only in school, but also in relationships with friends, peers, and parents as well.

What Causes Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?

Though it is thought to be genetic, there are no documented facts to support that theory at this time. Some have even questioned the possibility that teen Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is related to a food allergy such as the preservatives that are used in processed food or an overindulgence of processed sugar products. Though there does appear to be a correlation between the two, it may not be that ADHD is caused by an allergy to certain foods, but rather than a food allergy is misdiagnosed as ADHD.

How Is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Treated?

Doctors believe that the best treatment is a combination of proven drug therapy and behavior therapy. One must be careful, though, because some doctors are way too quick to use drugs to treat teen Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) based on the request of a parent or teacher. Drugs should not be used as a means to calm an aggressive child or teen, but should be used only as necessary to provide a quality of life for the teen or child with this condition. Previous research showed that the use of Ritalin was actually worse for the child because of the side effects, and parents were advised to be more discretionary when requesting their children be put on drug therapy.

In the final analyses of teen Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, one must look at the potential for improvement resulting from drug therapy. It’s important to be certain that it is necessary as many of these drugs have addictive tendencies that cause more problems than they solve. Before any course of treatment is started, it needs to be documented that the child or teen is suffering from ADHD and not a food allergy that is mimicking the symptoms of ADHD. However, the only way to know this is to have allergy tests run or to use a process of elimination by switching to natural foods and fresh vegetables in order to pinpoint the cause. If the condition truly is teen Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, as a parent, you must decide if you feel drug therapy is necessary or if another course of treatment might be more effective. Many now think that drug therapy should be a last resort for this condition.

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