Dietary Treatments For Adults With ADHD
ADHD might be the most common mental disorder found in children, but don’t get ahead of yourselves just yet. Men, adults can have ADHD too! An adult’s attention can go haywire. Everyone knows it! Like kids, adult men are going to want the safest ADHD medication. This often means a non-stimulant med for ADHD! Although meds are the most common treatment, many, many men are going to want alternatives to ADHD meds. Thankfully, there’s some good news: diet helps!
Change Meal Sizes
Eating 3 large meals a day is what most men do. But you know what? It’s not the best for those with ADHD! Large meals put men at risk of energy crashes. Men, this also means you’ll see your ADHD symptoms get even worse. You won’t be able to pay as much attention to things, and you’ll be even more irritable. So what’s the fix? Change the sizes of your meals and how often you eat. Eat more meals with smaller portions. What does this look like? Try eating 5 times a day instead of just 3! The difference will astound you. It absolutely will!
Drink More Water
What does ADHD mean? You’re not going to be able to concentrate, men, that’s what! And wouldn’t you know it, but not drinking enough water means your concentration goes down too. Your brain won’t be able to work right! So the goal here with your diet, men, is to drink more water than you are. Just about everyone doesn’t drink enough water! 8 glasses a day is the standard, but you might need more. Being active and sweating a lot means you need more water. Is it hot out? Drink more water! Men, don’t let yourself get thirsty. It means you’re already dehydrated!
Eat Healthy Protein And Fats
Keeping energy stable for as long as possible is crucial. Without this, it’s going to be a dangerous and difficult game with ADHD. So what helps? Healthy protein and fats! Men, you need lean protein. Find this in eggs, chicken, seeds, and nuts. Your energy will release slower, and your blood sugar won’t spike. But don’t forget about the healthy fats omega-3s and omega-6s. Eat some eggs, salmon, yogurt, spinach, and flaxseed for these. Avocadoes are good too! Eating lots of healthy protein and fats mean your energy won’t drop out of nowhere. This stops ADHD symptoms from getting worse!
Eat Complex Carbs
Men, you know what to do to manage ADHD: eat the right kind of carbs! Yes, there’s a right kind! Complex carbs don’t let energy spike and crash, and instead, it’ll keep it steady for much, much longer. Everyone knows keeping energy stable is so, so important for ADHD. So important! Brown rice, whole wheat bread, and whole wheat pasta are all complex carbs. They’re full of fiber! This means they’ll fill men up and release energy slowly over time. It won’t increase the mood and energy swings of ADHD. Keep everything, absolutely everything, steady men! You have the power; you can do it!
Get Lots Of Fruits And Vegetables
Complex carbs don’t just stop at whole wheat and grains. Many, many fruits and vegetables are also complex carbs! So men, eat lots of apples, oranges, and pears. Sweet potatoes and pumpkin count too, just like spinach and berries. The best way to control ADHD with fruits and vegetables is to eat a lot of them and to eat a variety!
It’s more than complex carbs at play here. The vitamins and minerals in these fruits and veggies also keep ADHD under your control, men. Include something in every meal! Struggling? Smoothies with many, many fruits and vegetables pack a powerful punch in one simple drink. Have one after a workout!
Avoid Refined Sugar
Refined sugar won’t help adult men with ADHD. It simply won’t happen! Refined sugar is found in chips, chocolate, candy, baked goods, and even in white bread. The body can’t use it for long, men, it just can’t. This is why the refined sugar makes energy spike and then crash. Everyone knows this makes ADHD much, much harder to control! Men can even miss the nutrients they need because they’re filling up on junk food.
But men, instead of refined sugar, look for natural sugars! This means fruits and vegetables, among others. Avoiding refined sugars helps the body stop constant energy spikes and crashes. This is good for ADHD! It’s a fact!
Drink Less Alcohol And Caffeine
Many, many men love drinking coffee to wake up and beer to relax. But this can cause a lot of harm, a lot of harm, to men with ADHD. Why? Caffeine makes sleeping harder, and it can also trigger the jitters. Both of these make dealing with ADHD tougher! ADHD already makes it hard to sit still, don’t make this worse with the jitters!
Alcohol is a significant threat here as well, because it keeps a man’s inhibitions low. One of the major symptoms of ADHD is being impulsive. Lowered inhibitions from alcohol make this effect even more intense than before! So men, not drinking as much caffeine and alcohol will keep ADHD steady. Good, very good!