Inversion Theraphy Question

[Anonymous]

Anyone ever heard of hanging upside down on an inversion table for a holistic ADD treatment? I have heard of people using it for depression. It carries more blood to the brain which ADDer’s seem to be lacking.

In February 2010, Dr. Mehmet Oz featured an inversion table on “The Dr. Oz Show,” claiming that the increased blood flow to the head increases the production of mood-boosting neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin. Dopamine plays a number of roles in physical and mental health: Dopamine deficiency is associated with attention deficient disorder, Parkinson’s disease, depression and substance abuse. It also increases blood flow to the kidneys and helps maintain proper kidney function. It is even used in yoga exercises.

I am wondering if hanging upside down before doing an activity that requires mental concentration would improve ones ability to focus? If it hasn’t been done I think it would be an interesting experiment to do. What to you think?

I

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[nellie]

Well I’ve never heard of it but it sounds a bit odd to me. I have heard that Dr. Oz is going a bit in the “fuzzy” science direction in order to get ratings. I would guess whoever does this sort of “therapy” is probably going to charge a pretty penny for it.

I’m really not trying to be flippant, but I suppose you could try and stand on your head for a few minutes and see if it helps

My daughter once conducted a caffeine study for math ability, testing subjects for their aptitude and speed on simple math problems before and after consuming coffee. You could try something similar with people standing on their heads – great party game no ?

Again, not trying to make light of your question…

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[Anonymous]

Actually it would be pretty cheap therapy. You don’t need to pay anyone. All you need to do is buy the table, and do the exercise yourself. They cost around $100 for a basic table, and probably less for a used one. Standing on your head for any length of time without the aid of an inversion table would be pretty uncomfortable, and for some according to size, and age very difficult, if not impossible. I am not making any claims that this would work. I am just curious.

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[Anonymous]

It’s not blood to the brain, it’s dopamine. So this would definitely not work for ADHD. The only thing I can see it doing is increasing your risk of stroke.

I call placebo.

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[Anonymous]

That is exactly what the inversion table therapy does, it increases dopamine and serotonin to the brain. According to Dr. Oz the increased blood flow to the head increases the production of mood-boosting neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin. But maybe he is wrong or I have misunderstood him. If so please let me know.

Oh yes do not attempt inversion therapy if you have high blood pressure, glaucoma, heart disease or a family history of stroke otherwise it should be safe.

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[Anonymous]

i can think of more enjoyable and practical ways to increase dopamine and serotonin levels than pretending to be a vampire bat. that said… maybe its worth combining the two strategies and doing that other stuff upside down.

i really wouldn’t take dr oz’s advice on anything too seriously though.

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[Anonymous]

Well Dr. J said it is a good idea to increase blood flow to the brain didn’t he? I’ve never heard of inversion therapy used to treat ADD but I did hear about it being used to relax the back. Jen… what might your other strategy be? LOL!!!

K

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[Anonymous]

uuuuummmm…. eating bananas! very tricky cos the peel flaps about. i have no idea what else you might be implying.

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[nellie]

I have been told by doctors, as well as read in a variety of books about ADD, that in order to increase dopamine levels etc and improve brain functioning that exorcise is key. I’m rather skeptical about inversion tables, sounds like something a crafty inventor came up with as a get rich quick scheme. Pesonally, I would think excercise is the better choice since it’s required for general health not just ADD.

I just googled a bit more on this and found the following.

A small study published in a Russian medical journal in 1985 concluded that while inversion raises cerebral blood supply, the brain’s use of oxygen during inversion actually decreases.

source: http://www.livestrong.com/article/338934-what-are-the-benefits-of-gravity-inversion-tables/

In an about.com article about the benefits of exercise for ADD I found the following quote from famous Dr. Ratey:

There are many reasons for exercise in ADHD. Exercise almost immediately elevates dopamine and norepinephrine and keeps them up for a period of time so that it acts like a little bit of Ritalin or Adderall. It also helps to still the impulsivity and still the cravings for immediate gratification as it works to wake up the executive function of the frontal cortex, which in turn allows for delay, better choices, a bit more time to evaluate consequences.

source: http://add.about.com/od/treatmentoptions/a/ratey.htm for the complete article

Anyway, Just sayin’, but if you wanna hang like a bat go for it …..

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[Anonymous]

I’ve owned an inversion table for about 2 months. Ran the idea past my Chiropractor, who is also a fanatic exercise/nutrition nut, like myself. He said, “no problem”, other then the allready mentioned health concerns. I use it daily at night. I have found it to be great for back, shoulder, and neck pain to the point that I’m seeing my Chiropractor less then before. It will pay for itself in a short time. I also find it helps with STRESS, and is helping my posture. It does calm my brain down to the point that when I’m upside down there are not multiple thoughts racing arround in my head, just one , and that is, how much longer do I have to stay on this dammed thing till I can get upright again. So far so good. I’m gradually increasing the time on it to see if the benefits last longer. Wish I could take it to work with me. Willl keep posting as I progress.

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[Patte Rosebank]

Then again, that “calmness” could just be the blood pooling in your brain, and making it sluggish…

Or, it could be that your brain is stimulated by the unusual view of everything upside-down, and by the “upside-down” feeling in your inner-ears. I’ve always found that the upside-down view (and the reverse view of everything in a mirror) makes me feel as though my surroundings are completely new, and that always lifts my spirits. Maybe this is so for other people with ADHD, since we are very easily bored.

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[Anonymous]

i quite enjoy dangling upside down off the couch with my legs up the wall myself, actually. it least now i have an excuse for when the bf walks back in from the kitchen with his mug of iced tea with his usual bewildered look on his face and asks me what the hell i’m doing- cushions all askew, manky socks flailing about in mid- air and cats frollicking playfully amidst my dangling hair- inversion therapy! if it works, it works- i won’t knock it!

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[Anonymous]

Wasn’t hanging upside down used as a form of torture in some culture somewhere at some point in time?

I just remember hearing a reference to it…

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[Anonymous]

probably a whole bunch of them, at numerous points. people did (and still do) some sick things to each other. waterboarding (which apparently ‘isn’t’ torture) for example, often involves having the head secured lower than the feet. i have a book on methods of judicial execution throughout history around here somewhere- its pretty disturbing reading, the creative stuff they came up with.

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[Author]

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