non-harmful medical and educational solutions for handling children's problems of attention, mood & behavior

There are numerous alternatives to psychiatric diagnoses and treatment, including standard medical care that does not require a stigmatizing and subjective psychiatric label or a mind-altering psychotropic drug. Sound medical care, good nutrition, a healthy, safe environment and standard educational solutions can do far more to help children than harmful psychiatric drugs. The following information is presented to let parents know there are alternatives available for them to pursue. (click here or scroll down to find links to resources)
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Please note: No one should attempt to get a child off a psychiatric drug without doctors supervision

Medical Conditions that can be mistaken for mental disorders

Here are some of the underlying conditions that may be affecting children's behavior, emotion and mood:

High levels of lead from the environment can place children at risk of both school failure and delinquent (bad) behavior.
High mercury (chemical) levels in the body may cause agitation; mercury amalgam dental fillings can affect a small but significant number of people, causing mercury sensitivity leading to headaches, restless behavior, and irritability.
Pesticides (like those used to kill insects such as fly spray or ant-killer) can create nervousness, poor concentration, irritability, memory problems, and depression.
Iron-deficiency anemia can lead to despondency, fatigue and often aggression and irritability.

W.V. Tamborlane, Professor of pediatrics at the Yale University School of Medicine, reported that when 14 healthy children were given a dose of sugar equivalent to two frosted cupcakes for breakfast, adrenaline levels rose to ten times their baseline levels, suggesting “children may be prone to such symptoms as anxiety, irritability and difficulty concentrating following a sugar meal.
Hyperthyroidism can manifest the symptoms of "hyperactivity."
Lyme Disease (a serious bacterial infection from a tick bite that attacks the nervous system) can cause symptoms of depression and psychosis.
Dr. Carl C. Pheiffer, M.D., a researcher with a doctorate in chemistry, discovered that depression and many mental and behavioral disturbances could be precipitated by vitamin or mineral deficiencies.
The internationally renowned Feingold Approach is a doctor-designed, extensively researched elimination diet that carefully cuts out synthetic additives, preservatives, artificial sweeteners and dyes/colorings from a child’s diet. In the June 2004 Archives of Diseases of Childhood, researchers tested the Fiengold diet on 3-year-old children with “hyperactive” symptoms. They significantly improved when the additives and preservatives were withdrawn, and worsened when they were restored to the previous diet. It took only 20 mg of artificial coloring to worsen the symptoms.

Read: "Ten Steps to Help Your Child’s Attention and Behavior without Drugs">>

LEARNING PROBlems

Children’s unruly behavior in class or inattentiveness can often be caused by their not understanding what they are learning—not knowing how to study or even how to read.

The U.S. Department of Education determined that 40% of the children being labeled with learning and behavioral “disorders” and placed in Special Education had simply never been taught to read.
In a study of 803 New York public schools and nine juvenile correction facilities, researchers increased fruits and vegetables and whole grains and decreased fats and sugars over a couple of years. No other changes were made in the schools or correctional facilities. Consequently, the academic performance of 1.1 million children rose 16% and learning disabilities fell 40%. In the juvenile correction facilities violent and non-violent antisocial behavior fell 48%.

Click Here for more Learning Resources>>

The Gifted child AND the creative child

Children who are bright or creative can easily be labeled with a mental disorder and put on drugs. Most parents are unaware that the criteria for ADHD is nearly identical to the criteria for a gifted child.

Stephanie Tolan, who researches the phenomenon of giftedness, says that “almost every parent I talk to has had to deal with, either as a casual observation/suggestion or as a very serious threat, 'your child can't come to school any more until you have him medicated...”
Ty C. Colbert, Ph.D., a Clinical Psychologist, says, “Creative, intelligent children often have trouble concentrating in school. Goal-oriented children have a rough time focusing unless a specific challenging goal is outlined because they much more quickly, and to a greater degree, feel the pain associated with boredom.”

According to Dr. Sydney Walker, "They're hyper not because their brains don't work right, but because they spend most of the day waiting for slower students to catch up with them. These students are bored to tears, and people who are bored fidget, wiggle, scratch, stretch, and (especially if they are boys) start looking for ways to get into trouble.”

Read: "The Gifted Child">>

Resources

alternatives to psychiatric drugs for children

The block Center

Find and treat underlying health problems in children and information on how children can safely get off of psychiatric drugs. "Most of the children I have seen who have been prescribed these drugs have never even had a physical exam." —Dr. Mary Ann Block

www.blockcenter.com

Ablechild

Ablechild champions human rights to protect all children and teens by disseminating all necessary information to educate parents and caregivers on the real risks of psychiatric drugging of children and inform them on alternative resources for behavior and attention issues.

www.ablechild.org