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A New Breakthrough
Hundreds of thousands of preadolescents are suf–
fering from what has now become a serious problem -
hyperkinesis.
Jt's a condition which causes ch.ildren to be
overactive or hyperactive to an extreme. Affected chi l–
dren are plagued by excessive restlessness, a short atten–
tion span, and poor impulse control. Of special concern
to parents is the detrimental effect hyperkinesis has on
their children at school.
Because hyperkinetic children are so overactive
and fidgety. their learning ability at school is greatly
hampered. Hyperactive children usually fall far behind
their classmates. even though they are otherwise normal
with average. or in many cases. above average IQ rat–
ings. Their problem is that they can't sit still or pay
attention long enough to learn. The results are tbat they
Gory George
-
Ploin Trulh
may fail their classes or become such a problem that
they must be put in special schools.
Try as they might. medica! authorities have not
pinpointed the cause of hyperkinesis. l ts cause has been
attributed to cerebral lesions, the consequences of en–
cephalitis. cranial traumatisms. the lack of oxygen at
birth. and hereditary reasons. More recently, the cause
is thought to center around body chemistry.
Though the exact cause ofhyperkinesis wasn't made
certain. those concerned were elated when an apparent
solution to the problem was accidentally discovered. It
was found that ampbetamine drugs, normally extremely
stimulatíng in normal persons. acted in reverse in hyper-
36
kinetic children, calming them down. But the problem is
that the major amphetamine drugs used to treat hyper–
kinesis, like dextroamphetamine sulfate (dexedrine) and
methylphenidate (ritalin). produce harmful side effects.
Consequently, many parents have not wanted their
hyperkinetic children treated with these drugs, but have
hoped for an alternate solution. Now.
it
appears that an
alternate solution worth trying does exist.
Dr. Ben F. Feingold of the Kaiser-Permanente
Medica! Center in San Francisco discovered what ap–
pears to be a direct link between many children's hyper–
kinesis and artifical food colors and ftavors. These food
additives trigger hyperactivity in certain individuals.
To test this discovery, Dr. Feingold designed what
he calls a salicylate free d.iet , a diet free of artificial food
colors and ftavors. Hyperkinetic ch.ildren put on this
diet normalized within three weeks. Children who had
been receiving drug treatment for years for their hyper–
kinesis were taken off drugs. put on this diet, and
brought to normal in three weeks' time. Other doctors
who have religiously prescribed this no-artificial-colors–
or-fiavors diet for hyperkinetic children have had
equally rewarding results.
"Parents can try this diet," says Dr. Feingold. But
he cautions that they must be extremely careful to
el.iminate
al/
artificial food colors and flavors. "If the
child gets a single bite of a food with an artificial ftavor,
it will trigger him off. lf he takes a single bite. he will be
back to where he was within a couple of hours. lt's like
tak.ing a drug," wams Dr. Feingold. "The symptoms
recur within a couple ofhours and persist for from 24 to
48 hours. If he continues to eat such food, the symptoms
keep persisting."
Strictly adhering to this diet is not as easy as it
sounds, because 90 percent of the foods consumed in
the United States and in the Western world contain
artificial food colors and ftavors. Parents will have to
prepare most of the food themselves.
Since the diet Dr. Feingold recommends must be
carried out precisely, he asks parents to seek professional help
and ask their physicians to personally correspond with
him for accurate information about this prescribed diet.
He's willing to help as muchas possible, but doesn't have
the staff to correspond with individual parents.
- Potrick A. Porne ll
PLAIN TRUTH
January
1974