How to Understand the Feingold ADHD Diet

Dr. Benjamin Feingold developed his diet to relieve allergic reactions to salicylates, and later discovered that his diet also helped hyperactivity disorders in children. The diet helped children and adults with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. As of 2002, nearly 1.6 elementary school children in the U.S. were diagnosed with ADHD, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Feingold diet is considered an elimination diet, and may be a way to avoid ADHD medications. Most food additives, dyes and preservatives are eliminated from the diet. Many researchers are critical of the reported success rates of the ADHD diet. Always discuss extreme dietary changes with a medical professional.

Instructions

• 1

  Understand how the diet was developed. Dr. Feingold was the chief of allergy at San Francisco's Kaiser Permanente Medical Center. As a pediatrician and allergist, he redeveloped the diet in the late 60s and early 70s when noticing people sensitive to aspirin also showed sensitivities to foods high in salicylates. Feingold realized that when chemicals, such as food additives and dyes, were removed from the diet, allergies decreased, and also hyperactive behaviors declined. Feingold claimed to be able to help about 50 percent of hyperactive children with the diet. The diet was originally called the KP diet after the Kaiser medical center where Feingold worked. The diet was later changed to the Feingold Diet by the media and support groups. It is now the most common ADHD diet.

• 2

  Define salicylates, and learn which foods contain the chemical. Salicylates are a common natural substance found in plants, and closely related in aspirin. Plants naturally produce salicylates for additional protection against pests, bacteria and rotting. Though commonly safe, some people cannot tolerate high amounts of salicylates, and are highly sensitive.These foods are also avoided as part of the Feingold Diet. Some fruits and vegetables contain salicylates, including strawberries, tomatoes, plums, peaches, berries and grapes.

• 3

  Eliminate artificial food colors and preservatives which may cause hyperactivity. Look for names such as "Red 40" or "Yellow 5" on food labels, suggests OrganicConsumers.org. Preservatives including butylated hydroxyanisole, or BHT, butylated hydroxytoluene, BHA and others are also excluded from the Feingold diet. The preservatives are commonly found in very small amounts in packaged foods, crackers, breads, shortening and snack foods.

• 4

  Eliminate artificial flavors and sweeteners. This includes artificial sweeteners, such as aspartame and saccharin. Artificial flavors mimic natural flavors, and many food labels read "artificial orange flavor" or "artificial strawberry flavor" when a synthetic flavor chemical is used. Real fruits allowed on the diet include bananas, kiwis, honeydew melon, mangoes and pineapple. Vegetables allowed include potatoes, beans, broccoli and celery.

• 5

  Ask for help from an expert in ADHD diets. According to the University of Michigan Health System, the Feingold Diet is complex and rigid. It may be difficult to follow without guidance from an expert in the field. The university suggests patients interested in the diet speak with a dietician or nutritionist familiar with the Feingold Diet. The diet may help adult ADHD, as well as children suffering from the condition.

• 6

  Partner with the Feingold Association, or a nutritionist familiar with Feingold's research. The association is a non-profit national support group of Feingold supporters including medical professionals and parents. The Feingold Association also offers support through a network of members across the country. The University of Maryland Medical Center states that some parents have great success with the Feingold Diet, despite it being difficult to implement. The university states generally that it never hurts to decrease the amount of food additives and artificial colors in one's daily diet, and to replace such foods with more natural and fresh foods.