What Is Attention Deficit Disorder - Add?

A friend of mine has a grandson diagnosed with child attention deficit disorder. When I spoke to her about it, I wondered how you could tell whether it was ADD or 'just difficult or slow'. It is very difficult to tell with boys up to the age of about 16. Where do you draw the line? My grandmother was a primary school Head teacher for many years and she used to say that boys didn't develop intellectually as quickly as the girls did.

I started to get interested at this point so I did a little investigating. I found that normal development consists of three stages. Stage one starts in babies when they get seemingly mesmerised on one thing for a long time and totally ignore everything else. If this stage lasts too long and they don't develop out of it then it might be an indication of autism in the child.

Stage two is when a toddler is constantly finding things of interest but is not able to concentrate on one thing for very long. A child who stuck at this stage of development might be diagnosed as having attention deficit disorder.

At stage three, a child develops the ability to focus their concentration for longer periods and to shift their attention when they want to. This is considered to be a mature pattern of attention and concentration and it is the level needed to be successful in the classroom.

My friend says that ADD isn't just about an inability to concentrate for very long. People with Attention Deficit Disorder aren't able to choose when or where to pay attention or when to stop. She told me that when her grandson crosses the road, even though he has been taught over and over how to do it safely, if he has to wait for traffic then he would suddenly go no matter what the traffic is doing. There is never any warning that he is going to do this; he just knows that he needs to cross so off he goes.

The funny thing is that, along side this inability to choose when to pay attention and when not, is an ability to intensely focus on a particular activity and forget to take a break. This could be repeatedly completing the same jigsaw or watching the same video to the exclusion of anything else. If this is not recognised and worked on, some people say it can lead to substance abuse, overeating, and compulsive behaviour later on.

ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a variation of Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD. People that suffer from this problem seem to be unable to relax or are constantly on the go. When seated they might be squirming or fiddling constantly, they just won't stay still. This can often be a nightmare for parents of children suffering from ADHD because the child doesn't need much sleep either. Imagine what it would be like to have a child that hardly ever sleeps and is constantly jumping around when they are awake which will be most of the time.

So what help is there? Is there a cure? Is it something that a child can grow out of? The answer to the last question is 'no', ADD and ADHD is a physical dysfunction of the brain. It does tend to run in families but it is not due to bad parenting or poor discipline.

Attention Deficit Disorder and Treatment:

If caught early enough, children suffering from ADD can benefit from therapy and medication. Diagnosing the level of the disorder is very difficult however which makes it hard to determine how much help the individual requires. The disorder has a wide spectrum, which means that mild cases may go unnoticed. Experts seem to favour a treatment regime consisting of both medication and psychotherapy. The affected parts of the brain can benefit from psycho stimulants like Dexadrine and Ritalin while psychotherapy can help the child to control their impulses, pay attention and behave properly in many situations.

Alongside this medical treatment, it is recognised that diet can be important. There is evidence to suggest that some children with ADHD can react badly to certain combinations of foods. These can include dairy products, chocolate, wheat, fruit and particularly additives. A possible link between attention difficulties and hyperactivity and the use of preservatives and colourings in food has been found.

It has been discovered that people suffering from ADD tend to be lacking in fatty acids Omega 3 and Omega 6. It is thought that proper mental function growth is critically dependent on these fatty acids. There isn't any conclusive evidence of this but a change in diet might well be worth trying. Omega 3 is found in fish like mackerel and salmon and in flax oil. Safflower oil, canola oil, vegetable oil, margarine, sunflower oil and corn oil all contain Omega 6.

To finish, it was interesting to note that on several web sites some famously successful people exhibited behaviours that now lead experts to believe that they had ADD. These include people like Beethoven, Mozart, Einstein and Pasteur.

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Steve is a software engineer and webmaster at www.what-is-attention-deficit-disorder.magicblur.com

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