Individuals with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder may experience problems with healthy eating as a result of their specific ADHD challenges. For example:-
- Limited impulse control = an unhealthy snack is eaten quickly without thought.
- A weakness with organisation = detailed food shopping plans seem too complicated to carry out.
- Poor attention control = careful monitoring of food intake is difficult when the process seems complex and boring.
Maintaining a healthy diet require organisation, long-term planning and self-control; all areas which the individual with ADHD finds challenging.
Knowledge is power. If you are aware of why you behave as you do, it will be easier to adopt self-help strategies:-
- Many individuals will sit down in the evening to watch TV and relax, but those with ADHD will need more to do and become restless. They will reach for a packet of crisps or bar of chocolate for extra stimulus, and then continue to eat in an absent-minded way. Replace unhealthy snacks with more suitable grazing food: carrots, sliced apple, an orange, or make yourself a pot of tea. Choose an activity that offers more stimulation than watching television: knitting, reading a paper or a magazine, going for a walk, doing the ironing, a crossword puzzle, jigsaw or sudoku, having a bath or playing a game on your phone.
2. Sugary food provides a quick release of dopamine, the ‘feel good’ hormone. Anyone with ADHD will have naturally low levels of dopamine, so biscuits, cakes and sweets will provide an appealing and easily accessible source of the hormone.
3. The dopamine rush from sugary carbohydrates is addictive; it will be necessary to cut back slowly to avoid withdrawal symptoms. Take a small steps approach: change the usual biscuits with your morning coffee for a few grapes or a small banana.
4. Individuals with ADHD can experience strong emotions. If you become aware you are eating because you are upset, channel your anger, frustration or hurt into physical activity to burn off those negative feelings: clean the windows, walk the dog, sort out a cupboard, jog round the block, write in a journal or diary or clean the family’s shoes. Be aware of when you are using food to deal with your emotional needs.
5. The more time you spend out and about and moving, the less time there will be to feel bored and hungry. Cope with excessive energy and restlessness through movement rather than eating. Make exercising a regular habit by building 20 to 30 minutes of physical activity into your daily routine: walk to and from work, get off the bus at the stop before and walk the rest of the way home; go for a walk to get a paper at lunchtime; park the car a little bit further away from work; or take a different, longer route home.
6. Impulsive behaviour makes it hard to resist an appealing, but unhealthy snack. Be aware of such behaviour and try not to have unhealthy snacks such as crisps, cake, sweets, biscuits and fizzy drinks in the house. Out of sight, out of mind.
7. It is easy for individuals with ADHD to be overwhelmed, with work, chores and commitments piling up until the individual feels incapable of any action. The same feeling will stop you from changing eating habits. Work out which strategies help you most in such situations.
8. Go to places where food is not available. Make the activity sociable: if you go somewhere with a friend, you’ll be less likely to opt out at the last minute. Join a group or class, so you don’t have to think or organise anything, just appear. Choose something you’d enjoy that would be of benefit to you. Tai Chi is mediation through movement, so will suit some individuals with ADHD. Yoga is calming when you feel agitated. Martial arts develop self-control. Boxing releases feelings of aggression and frustration. Line dancing involves attention, memory, flexibility and balance as well as aerobic exercise.
9. Individuals with ADHD often experience issues with sleep. Their brains race with ideas and emotions, making it hard to fall and then stay asleep. Unfortunately, poor sleep intensifies the challenges of ADHD. A restful night’s sleep will lead to good decision-making, but a tired body will crave sugary high energy food and will attempt to slow down metabolism to save calories. Carry out your own research into good sleeping habits and see how you could help yourself.
10. Avoid black and white thinking. Set realistic goals. Instead of completely cutting out certain foods, allow yourself have one biscuit or small bag of crisps a day: feeling deprived may make you crave a specific food even more. Small steps will mean less risk of failure. Always remember that experiencing a few setbacks doesn’t mean that a whole project has to be abandoned.
Pat Guy Education Specialist & Author 