Need help?

[PJD1120]

My son Jared l0 weighs 69 lbs. He has been on several meds. I don't give him anything during summer because I want him to eat. Since he started school has lost 3 lbs. Stomach problems with Concerta 36mg. Now doctor wants him off for a week and try concerta 27 mg. He was on concerta last year no problems except not eatting. He is taking 1,000 mg of fish oil. Also on Buspar for anxiety. I would love to go natural because I am tired of this struggle. Is there a pill with all the vitamins he needs? Someone mentioned Kirkman Labs. I hate to give him 8 pills a day or whatever. He started a new school Summit Academy for children with ADHD. They said his behavior is good not focusing. Help!

[rosyred45]

Have you adjusted his diet? That helps my son BIG time.

We eliminate everything according to Feingold, which you've probably seen me mention before. That's a big thing for my son, the focusing. His behavior is getting better, I think that was more of a maturity issue, but he can not stay on focus when he has artificials and such.

Anyone else have any ideas?

[catatonic]

The Feingold diet has been amazing for us as well...mainly in terms of eliminating acting-out behaviors like tantrums, over-reacting emotionally, oppositional behavior, etc. Not enough help with focus, but we're working on it.

There are a number of things you could try for anxiety. The fish oil should be moderately useful, and the addition of a serotonin-raising supplement would probably be very helpful. 5-htp is used most commonly for this, and is supported by very good clinical evidence.

I'd also recommend doubling the fish oil. According to clinical research, your target dose is 480mg DHA and 720mg EPA per day, and this normally requires at least 2 large capsules, and as many as 4 depending on the brand you're using. So give him one in the morning and one in the evening.

For vitamins, there doesn't seem to be any real way around giving severa different things. At least I haven't found one yet. But the basic list isn't too extensive. It includes a multi-vitamin that also contains trace minerals (such as selenium, chromium, molybdenum), a B-complex vitamin (usually a B-50 is sufficient, and it may be helpful with anxiety and focus as well), a magnesium capsule (NOT magnesium oxide), and your fish oil. If you select a multi-vitamin that contains 200IU Vitamin E, you won't need to give a separate Vitamin E capsule. However, if it doesn't have this, make sure you add at least a 100IU Vitamin E capsule each time you give the fish oil.

Supplements do not work quickly, the way medications do. It can take several weeks before you notice behavioral changes. The Feingold diet, on the other hand, began working for us almost immediately. I highly recommend looking at the website:
www.feingold.org