Baby Birthmarks
October 22, 2007
As many as one in three babies are born with a birthmark. These are neither painful or harmful, although about one in a hundred will require medical treatment. If the birthmark is hidden from view it is generally not a problem, but if it is on the face or neck parents will often want to do all they can to remove the mark, especially if baby is a girl.
Types of Birthmark
- Strawberry Naevi Marks - these often appear at age 2 or 3 weeks, are red in color and may feel lumpy. They often grow in size for 6-9 months.
- Stork Bites - also called ’salmon patch’, a pinkish color, lie flat on the skin and don’t grow. Stork Bites usually disappear in the first two years.
- Port Wine Stains - as the name suggests, these marks are a reddy-purple in color and they can cover quite a large area.
Treatment
Stork Bites require no treatment. Strawberry marks are usually treated with steriod cream or in extreme cases by laser. The only treatment for Port Wine marks is by laser.
Adderall and Its Side-Effects
October 22, 2007
Adderall is a stimulant medication used in the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in both children and adults. It is made from a combination of four amphetamine compounds. Adderall is useful because it covers a broader range of ADHD symptoms than a single compound medication such as Ritalin, and because it is a “one a day” dosing. A child with attention deficit disorder usually has to take only one dose of adderall per day to get through school and get his homework done. Adderall is also often used instead of Ritalin because it is less “harsh,” having less of a reported “rebound effect” in children and teens than Ritalin.
Adderall Side Effects
All stimulants have side effects, and the side effects from Adderall can be serious. Any amphetamine can be over used and result in drug addiction.
Because Adderall is made from amphetamine, it can cause your child’s heart to race, elevate heart rate to dangerous levels, and raise blood pressure to dangerous levels.
Adderall side effects include overstimulation of the central nervous system, dizziness, difficulty sleeping, tremors, headaches, hyperactivity, and tics or Tourettes Syndrome.
Teacher Tips: Your Room Set-Up and ADHD Students
October 21, 2007
Thank you to all of our professional educators who dedicate themselves to our children! We know how difficult it can be working with ADHD children, so here are your teacher tips for the week, brought to you by the ADHD Information Library and ADDinSchool.com. You can read over 500 classroom interventions at http://www.ADDinSchool.com.
Right from day one, make clear rules and post them, with logical consequences and with rewards.
Move the ADHD student’s desk to where there are fewer distractions. Close to the teacher to monitor and encourage, or near a child who is better able to focus.
Privacy boards can work well, but should never embarrass the child.
Students with attentional problems do better in classrooms with four walls than in an “open pod” arrangement. Open pods allow too many visual and auditory distracters throughout the day.
It is usually better to use of rows for seating arrangement and to try to avoid tables with groups of students. Often the groups are too distracting for the ADHD child.
Online Education: Study At Your Own Pace!
October 20, 2007
Online Education: Study At Your Own Pace!
by: Dana Goldberg
Online education is becoming increasingly popular because it allows people who may not ordinarily have the opportunity to get qualifications, to do so. Those of us who work do not have the time to commit to full time education and with bills to pay, and family to look after it becomes even more difficult to fit evening courses into an already full schedule. However, an online education means you can study at your own pace and time while still earning a reputable and useful qualification.
Regardless of the area you want to study you will be able to find an online college or university that offers the qualification you are looking for. Start by looking around your local area because even online education may sometimes require personal tutoring or exams and these can’t always be done on the Internet.
Once you know the course you want to study and you have applied, it’s time to start working. An online education demands a greater level of commitment and you should make sure that you always offer the commitment that is required. You will have to do all your work off your own back in order to earn the qualification you want, but this means you should have a greater sense of satisfaction when completed.
How Effective Is EEG Neurofeedback Training in Treating the Symptoms of ADHD?
October 19, 2007
Many research studies have shown the overall effectiveness of stimulant medication, such as Ritalin and Dexedrine in their various forms, in treating the symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders in children, teens, and adults. Even though stimulants are not the only effective option in the treatment of the disorder, stimulants may be a good choice, and their use should be discussed with your physician.
Below is a chart showing the effectiveness of EEG Biofeedback, or Neurofeedback training. This information is from a study by Rossiter and La Vaque which used the same protocols that we used in our clinical studies with ATTEND. They used the Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA) as the measuring instrument to determine change in performance after using either medications of EEG Biofeedback training for 30 days. The TOVA is a computerized Continuous Performance Test (CPT) that has no placebo effective, and has no bias (such ahs you might see with parent rating scales).
A Comparison of EEG Biofeedback and Psychostimulants in Treating Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders. Thomas P. Rossiter, and Theodore J. La Vaque. Journal of Neurotherapy, 1, Summer 1995
How Effective Are Ritalin and Dexedrine in Treating the Symptoms of ADHD?
October 18, 2007
Many research studies have shown the overall effectiveness of stimulant medication, such as Ritalin and Dexedrine in their various forms, in treating the symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders in children, teens, and adults. Even though stimulants are not the only effective option in the treatment of the disorder, stimulants may be a good choice, and their use should be discussed with your physician.
Over the couse of these newsletters we will be presenting information on the relative effectiveness of the three most effective treatment options: Stimulants, EEG Biofeedback training, and ATTEND homeopathic nutriceutical medicine.
A study by Rossiter and La Vaque which used the same protocols that we used in our clinical studies with ATTEND compared the effectiveness of Ritalin (stimulants) to EEG Biofeedback training.. They used the Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA) as the measuring instrument to determine change in performance after using either medications of EEG Biofeedback training for 30 days. The TOVA is a computerized Continuous Performance Test (CPT) that has no placebo effective, and has no bias (such ahs you might see with parent rating scales).
A Comparison of EEG Biofeedback and Psychostimulants in Treating Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders. Thomas P. Rossiter, and Theodore J. La Vaque. Journal of Neurotherapy, 1, Summer 1995
Should Your Baby Sleep In Your Bed?
October 17, 2007
Should baby sleep in her own cot or in bed with you? There are arguments on both sides.
Advantages:
- Breastfeeding is easier, you don’t have to get out of bed to feed baby.
- Many mothers say baby sleeps better - if she wakes she is more likely to be comforted by your presence and heartbeat and go back to sleep.
- You will probably get more sleep.
Disadvantages:
- Other mothers can’t sleep for fear that they will roll over and suffocate baby.
- They wake any time baby makes the slightest noise.
- Baby’s presence could disrupt your sex life.
According to the Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths:
- The safest place for baby to sleep for the first 6 months is in a cot in your room.
- Never sleep together on a sofa or armchair - it is easy to suffocate baby who can sink into the soft surface.
- Do NOT share a bed with baby if you smoke, have drunken alcohol or take drugs that make you drowsy, are ill or are exceptionally tired (how many mothers are not exceptionally tired in those first few months?!!).
How Effective is the Nutraceutical ATTEND with ADHD?
October 17, 2007
I really like all natural remedy for Attention Deficit Disorder called ATTEND, and the other Nutraceutical products made by VAXA International in Tampa, FL.
In fact, I spent nearly two years studying the effectiveness of ATTEND on children and adults with ADHD. It was a big undertaking, but was well worth the effort. At the beginning of the study, I was very skeptical about the effectiveness of anything other than stimulants and therapy. However, as time as gone by I have learned that the ATTEND does work well, as do some other non-traditional treatments, such as EEG Biofeedback training.
I found that 70% of the subjects who tried ATTEND for 30 days made statistically significant improvements as measured by the TOVA computerized test. Over 80% of the subjects made significant improvements as reported by the parents. But the key was using the nutraceuticals for at least 30 days. At 15 days (the point when most people give up trying) there was little measurable improvement.
The longer the subject used the nutraceuticals, the bigger the improvements. In other words, we saw more improvement at 45 days than at 30 days, and more improvement at 90 days than at 45 days. We stopped testing everyone at 90 days. The details of the study are available at our ADHD Information Library site.
Co-Morbidity Rates: Other Problems That May Come With ADHD
October 16, 2007
Diagnosing children and teens with ADHD can be a challenge. Very often the child or teen that comes to the office will have both a neurologically based Attention Deficit Disorder, as well as some other clinical condition that requires treatment. There are commonly two reasons for this:
First, because of a “fragile” brain. With the ADHD, some parts of the brain may be under-active, while other parts of the brain may be over-active. When the brain is already “out of balance,” it is not uncommon to see neurologically based depressions, obsessive-compulsive disorders, learning disabilities, or even panic disorders.
Second, even if ADHD is the only neuologically based problem, constant failure at home, at school, and socially, can result in sadness, depression, anxiety, fear, worry, and giving up.
In children and teens diagnosed with ADHD we see these other problems:· About 50% also have an Oppositional Defiant Disorder, or as teens a Conduct Disorder; · About 30% have a Mood Disorder such as Depression; · About 25% have problems with Anxiety, Worry, excessive fears, or Panic Disorders; · About 25% have a specific Learning Disorder, making school even harder. As a result of these kinds of problems, added on top of the problem of Attention Deficit Disorder, we get these results in the real world:· Nearly 60% of students with ADHD will fail at least one grade in school; · 30% of teens with ADHD will not graduate from High School; · Only 5% of teens with ADHD will go on to graduate from college.
What About ADHD Teens and Driving?
October 15, 2007
This is one of the most common questions asked of me by parents of teenagers who have ADHD.
“Should I let my teen drive when he turns 16? He seems so immature. But it would mean so very much to him.”
Wait. Where did our wisdom as parents go? Should we let an immature 16 year old, with poor impulse control and poor judgment get behind the wheel of a 3000 pound vehicle and drive at 65 miles per hour through town? Ummm, no.
Since ADHD teens typically have emotional, physical, and developmental delays of from 3 to 6 years, compared to their peers, allowing a 16 year old with ADHD to drive your car is roughly the same as letting an 11 year old drive your car. You can expect to get the same results. What would you expect the results of an 11 year old driving your car around the city be? Tickets? Accidents? Yes!
And teenagers with ADHD have 400% more tickets and traffic accidents than do teens without ADHD. This is exactly the results that you would expect to get because of the developmental delays.
