Good info, but not the whole story...

The most helpful information provided in this book might be summarized in one sentence: Eating a healthy diet will help your family in many ways, and supplements can be helpful as well. Those supplements--more familiarly known as omega-3 fatty acids, the EPA and DHA of other nutrition-oriented books--have largely been lost in today's typical American diet.

Few people would disagree that there are genetic components to ADD, ADHD, dyslexia and dyspraxia. But that isn't the end of the story. Family members that live together also tend to eat similar diets, and eating habits are transmitted (though they may evolve) from one generation to the next. So implement a better diet, and add those LCPs. Just don't stop there.

What this book lacks is a meaningful discussion of a third factor: the role of situational determinants of behavioral response. That's a fancy way of saying that how the adults in a child's life manage and respond to the child's behavior does matter! No pill--Ritalin or LCPs or anything else--can make up for a chaotic environment or for inconsistent parenting. Developmentally appropriate structure and routines in any child's life support good behavior in the classroom and at home--and do it with empathy for the child's struggles to learn this new way.

For an excellent understanding of how to implement the third factor, see Dr. John Gottman's superb book, "Raising An Emotionally Intelligent Child: The heart of parenting." As a social worker, I recommend it highly--not only for parents of children with challenges, but for parents with children of all ages. Gottman (a psychologist) advocates what he calls 'emotional coaching' as the way to address problematic situations. If you read it and apply its principles, your life and that of the children with whom you interact with be forever changed in a better way.





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Must have for ADDers

This is an excellent book. The basic idea of the book is that there is link between lack of Omega-3 in the diets of people with ADD and other differences. The book offers research to help proove this theory. It also offers a suggestions on how to add omega-3 to our diets.

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If you don't get this book...

Is it possible to rate a book higher than 5 stars? When I first read this book, my first reaction was anger. I was mad, because I had never heard of most of the information in this book. This stuff SHOULD be in the public domain. Why hasn't the media reported on any of these studies? Then I thought about it. If this stuff really does work, many companies stand to lose significant billions of dollars in revenue from the sale of ritalin and aderall.
My next reaction was great joy. Finally, there was hope. No drugs, and still helpful. This was too good to be true. So, I tried it. First on myself (I was diagnosed as hyperactive and put on ritalin when I was 5 - there was no ADHD yet in those days.). After a week of supplementing, I found I was able to concentrate like never before. Both the quality and quantity of my work have greatly improved. I figured if it helped me, maybe it would help my son. He has sensory integration dysfunction, ADHD, and a few other problems. I started supplementing him on Sunday. When I dropped him off to school the next Thursday, his kindergarten teacher took me aside and asked if my wife and I were doing anything differently with him, therapy wise. At first, I forgot about the LCP's and said no. I asked her why. She said that it had been my son's best week of the school year (it was April). He was concentrating much better. He was able to complete his school work. He was speaking much better and much clearer. He was able to follow directions. He was getting along with the other kids. He had far fewer fits. In her words, it was like we had transformed him into a different child. I then remembered the LCP supplement and told her about it. We came to the conclusion that since that was the only different thing, that must be responsible for the difference. Our family life is also improved. He has fewer fits. He is able to handle change much better. When he wants to, he is able to concentrate much better. He is also learning at a much more rapid pace and has caught up to and surpassed many kids his age, academically.
Thank you Dr. Stordy.

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