Sue Scheff Parenting Teens, Diets, Behaviors and DX's

Source: Author Jane Hersey (Why My Child Can’t Behave)

A Message to Our New Leaders

It’s human nature to believe that huge problems need huge,expensive remedies, but that is often not the case.Many of the domestic problems facing Americans today havesurprisingly simple, inexpensive, and effective solutions.The cost of healthcare, for example, is enormous -not only in terms of money, but also in terms ofhuman suffering.Below is a discussion of some inexpensive and simple solutions.

Depression - What is the cost to an individual and to society? Before it was replaced with the inexpensive generic versions, Prozac typically sold for $247.47 for a bottle of 100. But according to the U.S. Department of Commerce the actual cost of the ingredients used to make it was 11 cents. This translates to a mark-up of 249,973%. (It also helps explain why Big Pharma can afford to pay for three lobbyists for every lawmaker in Washington, DC.)Contrast the cost of Prozac to a bottle of 100 gelcaps of 2000 mg of vitamin D3, which is an effective treatment for depression. The bottle of vitamins is available for a fraction of that cost, around $7.47. This is $240.00 less than the Prozac. Or compare a bottle of cod liver oil or other omega-3 source, also shown to be an effective treatment for depression. Again, the cost difference is astonishing.That same inexpensive vitamin, D3, has been found to help protect us against a remarkable assortment of problems, including: asthma, skin disorders, autoimmune disorders, bone loss, muscle weakness (which can lead to falls in the elderly, and the many problems that follow), and cancer.

See The Vitamin D Council.Research shows that omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs) and St. John’s wort can also be used to treat moderate depression. And another inexpensive supplement, chromium picolinate, has been shown to be effective for the most common form of depression.

Offices and schools designed to provide natural sunlight have shown that productivity increases and illness is reduced because sunlight enables our bodies to create vitamin D3. The value of exposure to sunlight is another good reason for schools to be sure that recess is a part of the school day.Drugs and surgery are not always the solutions for our health issues; they are often an acknowledgement that current methods have failed.New research with animals suggests that the onset of Alzheimer’s disease can be delayed by giving patients vitamin B3. The emotional and monetary costs of addressing Alzheimer’s are staggering.

Vitamin B3 can also help patients with a history of heart disease, at a fraction of the cost of statin drugs, and without risky side effects. See Pure Facts, Nov. 2008.Of course, another way to increase the intake of important vitamins and minerals is to consume a healthier diet. A simple first step is removing the worst of the additives and gradually upgrading one’s food choices; the Feingold Association has been teaching people how to do this for more than three decades. Education - As with healthcare, the United States leads the world in spending, but trails in results. Most American communities devote the lion’s share of their tax revenue to schools, and for most schools, their largest budgetary item is special education. But some schools in the United States and Europe have shown that an effective way for a school to increase test scores and enhance learning, as well as improve behavior, is to reform their cafeteria.

New York City brought about a dramatic increase in test scores without constructing new buildings, hiring more teachers or reducing classroom size. They made some simple changes in the food served to the children. The savings in special education costs could reduce taxes as well as free up funds to build more schools, reduce class size, hire more teachers, pay them more, etc. In fact, schools can actually serve much healthier, tastier foods in their cafeterias for less than they are now spending. See http://www.school-lunch.org/.

Criminal behavior - Because the things we eat affect the way we behave, nutrition can play a key role in preventing antisocial behaviors and in rehabilitating offenders. Drs. Barbara Reed Stitt, Stephen Schoenthaler and Bernard Gesch have all shown how to do this. Simple changes in food and the addition of needed nutrients can help the “starving brains” of people whose antisocial behavior is the result of a diet filled with foodless food. ADHD, PDD, OCD, autism, seizures, asthma, ear infections, obesity, diabetes, as well as many other problems that afflict children today have a nutritional component.

Removing the worst of the chemicals in their food and adding needed nutrients is a simple first step.New research shows that the very inexpensive vitamin D3 can provide significant benefits for children on the autism spectrum.

A growing number of parents and professionals have already found effective ways to help these issues. Our government does not need to throw money at these problems, but to take a look at the programs that are already working.We can bring change!Improve health care while spending less.Improve education while spending less.Improve social problems while spending less.The Feingold Program has often been called the country’s “best kept secret” by grateful families. Now you can help to see that it no longer remains a secret.

Some Resources:Feingold Association of the United States - non-profit support group established in 1976 addressing the dietary connection to better behavior, learning and health.

School-Lunch.org - improving behavior and learning by improving the school food program.

Crime Times publication - a quarterly publication of The Wacker Foundation concentrating on the links between brain dysfunction and disordered/ criminal/ psychopathic behavior.

HRI-Pfeiffer Treatment Center - a not-for-profit medical research and treatment facility specializing in research and treatment of biochemical imbalances.Autism Research Institute

Developmental Delay Resources - a resource network integrating conventional and alternative approaches for parents and professionals who support children with special needs.Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) Foundation