"ADHD.org.nz - Alternative Treatments"

"Alternative Treatments of ADHD"

"Alternatives" is an ambiguous term because it encompasses a wide variety of treatments from non-western medical traditions to the application of experimental treatments.

Alternative treatments are sought for many reasons:

Many parents are concerned about the risk of giving their children powerful psychoactive medications (especially over an indeterminable, prolonged period of time).
Negative press about main stream treatment regimes can often be a catalyst for turning parents to seek alternatives.
Some parents are simply looking for natural treatments and greater involvement in the therapeutic process.
Finally, for many children, traditional treatments may not work - therefore alternatives have to be sought.

Publications of alternative treatments are rare in scientific journals, but plentiful in popular press and on the internet. Some of the published material is well researched while other publications are based on opinion alone.

It is important to appreciate that alternatives to the normal medication regimes are available. On this page, we will explore some of the alternative treatments of ADHD and the scientific research backing it:

Dietary treatments are discussed on a separate page, and will not be addressed here.

Visual therapy

Visual problems have been implicated in several developmental conditions, such as dyslexia. There is no scientific support for any theory claiming specific ocular exercises or coloured lens can alleviate ADHD (Lennerstrand & Ygge, 1992; Baumgaertel, 1999). There is also no evidence to support anecdotal reports of improvements in ADHD symptoms after introducing prismatic lenses (Baumgaertel, 1999). Any concerns about a child's vision should be referred to an optometrist immediately.

Homeopathy

200 years ago, Fr Hahnemann developed a therapeutic system based on the concept that illness resulted from an imbalance of "vital energies". This therapeutic system is now known as Homeopathy. Homeopathic treatments generally consist of highly individualised blends of plant, animal and/or mineral extracts. Homeopathic treatment regimes have become very popular throughout Europe and the United States. But does the scientific empirical evidence support it.
Linde et al (1994) conducted a careful review of homeopathic treatments and found them to be more effective than a placebo for various conditions. Several homeopathic studies have also been conducted on ADHD children (Lamont, 1997) and statistically significant improvement have been shown. But these studies were no blind (the investigators knew which children were getting which treatment and this may have influenced the outcome). The mechanisms at work in homeopathy are unknown and, therefore, further research is required before any definitive answer can be given on homeopathic treatments.

Auditory Stimulation

For a long time there has been a growing movement concerning the role of music in emotional and cognitive processes. However, there is only one study (that we know of) that has explored auditory stimulation as a possible treatment for ADHD. Abikoff et al. (1996) reported that the ability of ADHD boys to solve arithmetic problems improved when they were allowed to listen to their favourite music.
A French otalaryngologist, A. Tomatis has developed the Tomatis Metohd of Sound training. This system is based on the theory that auditory integration is critical to brain maturation and learning. It proposes that improvements to focus and attention can be achieved by combining auditory stimulation and listening training. There are no scientific investigations into this technique and the number of training sessions required (at least 75) is a turn off.

Hynotherapy

Look deep in to my eyes,...
We all know that children are very sensitivity to the power of suggestion. However, it seems that hypnosis is not a very effective means of controlling ADHD (Baumgaertel, 1999). Hypnosis has little to no effect on the core symptoms of ADHD. It is effective, though, in removing problems associated with the ADHD, such as sleep disturbances or tics (Sugarman, 1996).

Biofeedback

Biofeedback sounds more complicated than it actually is. The goal of biofeedback is the self regulation of physiological processes. This is achieved by monitoring a physiological process using a computerized feedback system. The threshold for a particular physiological activity is set and the patient's task is to maintain or better the threshold. Generally biofeedback has been used (successfully) on people trying to lower their blood pressure. More recently, however, the technique has started to show positive results with children that have ADHD (Lubar, 1991). Lubar (1997) demonstrated that 12 out of 19 children with ADHD Mann et al.(1992) demonstrated that children with ADHD have increased theta (4-7.75 Hz) and decreased beta 1 (12.75-21 Hz) when compared with children without ADHD.

Most of these treatment all state that they are most effective when part of a multi-modal treatment.

Reference

Abikoff, H., Courtney, M.E., Szeibel, P.J., & Koplewicz, H.S.(1996).
The effects of auditory stimulation on the arithmetic performance of children with ADHD and nondisabled children.Journal of Learning Disabilities, 29(3), 238 - 246.

Baumgaertel, A.(1999).
Alternative and controversial treatments for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.Pediatric Clinics of North America, 46 (5), 977 - 992.

Lamont, J.(1997). (Sorry, no link available for this reference)
Homeopathic treatment of attention deficit disorder. British homeopathic Journal, 86, 196 - 200.

Lennerstrand, G. & Ygge, J.(1992).
Dyslexia; ophthalmological aspects 1991. Acta Ophthalmol (Copenh). 70 (1), 3-13.

Linde, K., Jonas, W.B., Melchart. D, Worku, F., Wagner, H., & Eitel, F.(1994).
Critical review and meta-analysis of serial agitated dilutions in experimental toxicology. Human Exp. Toxicol., 13 (7), 481 - 492.

Lubar, J.F.(1991).
Discourse on the development of EEG diagnostics and biofeedback treatment for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders. Biofeedback and selfregulation, 16, 202 - 225.

Lubar, J.F.(1997).
Neocortical dynamics:Implications for understanding the role of neurofeedback and related techniques for the enhancement of attention. Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, 22, 111 - 126.

Mann, C.A., Lubar, J.F., Zimmerman, A.W., Miller, C.A., & Muenchen, R.A.(1992).
Quantitative analysis of EEG in boys with attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder: controlled study with clinical implications. Pediatric Neurology, 8 (1), 30 - 36.

Sugarman, L.I.(1996).
Hypnosis in a primary care practice: developing skills for the "new morbidities". Journal of Developmental Behavioural Pediatrics, 17 (5), 300 - 305.

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