Nutritional Inattentive ADD Help, It Really Works

[bucklipe]

Well here goes, since I found out that I have “Inattentive ADD” I’ve been in a hunt for a demonstrable solution to help me. I’ve been an Amen Clinics stalker, reading everything I can find about helping my ADD. I have tried all of the nutria-ceuticals in varying combinations, L-tyrosine, DLPA, rhodiola, ECGC, Panax ginseng, L-theanine, higher protein/low carb diet, exercise and more. Throughout all of this experimentation I used various “timed reaction” games to gauge whether anything was working. Faster reaction time equalled better effect for me. At first, caffeine worked really well (and I LIKED IT), but I built a tolerance rather quickly. Exercise was consistently a booster but I only had so much time and/or inclination to pursue that avenue long term. I finally went to a psychiatrist for meds and went through Welbutrin, Straterra and Adderall. Welbutrin worked as well as a salt tablet, Strattera worked consistently but minimally as a stimulant. Adderall worked the best but it ratcheted up my “Jerk Index” a notch or two according to family and church members. Throughout all of this I had an idea running around my grey matter; I felt as if something was being used up by mental activity. I could pretty consistently count on about 20 minutes of mental lucidity prior to feeling sleepy or befogged. Exercise could erase the fog and restore my ability to read or study. Recently I got a link to this youtube vide about a doctor and her husband suffering from Alzheimers (youtube.com/watch?v=ZZOR-Qd3QSg&sns=em) and how coconut oil is an alternate fuel source for the brain. I have tried absolutely EVERYTHING that has come across my desk and I figured, “Why not?” In the video she was VERY generous in how much she added to his food. I looked into coconut oil and found that it was used for the cognitive deficits from hypothyroidism. The coconut oil fats are not stored but are utilized immediately and give an uptick in metabolism, which can be mentally stimulatory without the negative effects of stimulants. I decided to try one tablespoon with each meal. I use the LouAna brand from Walmart. Ladies and gentleman, let me tell you what has been my experience… I have had 8 days of clear headedness. It looks like my system does not provide sufficient glucose for brain calisthenics and I have to have some ketones to provide enough power for my mental computer. I will be experimenting with taking less of the coconut oil since three tablespoons equal 360 calories extra per day. This is the longest stretch of time that I have ever been this clear headed. I will be doing more research about this issue of brain fuel. Does anyone else have any input? Before you say, “EEEeeekkk, run away!!! It will raise your blood cholesterol levels!!!!!!!!!! AAAaaakkkk!!!” Please be advised that when the studies were done on coconut oil they did not divide it into the fractions. Yes it raises the GOOD cholesterol and improves the ratio of good to bad. It is HEALTHY for you, unless you are allergic to coconut! Sooo, anybody else doing this? Any other thoughts?

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[bucklipe]

If I could get someone to delete the first post I would appreciate it…

Well here goes, since I found out that I have “Inattentive ADD” I’ve been in a hunt for a demonstrable solution to help me. I’ve been an Amen Clinics online stalker, reading everything I can find about helping my ADD. I have tried all of the nutria-ceuticals in varying combinations, L-tyrosine, DLPA, rhodiola, ECGC, Panax ginseng, L-theanine, herbs, spices, high protein/low carb diet, exercise, meditation and more. Throughout all of this experimentation, I used various “timed reaction” games to gauge whether anything was working. Faster reaction time equaled better effect for me, I realize this is not a comprehensive test but it works for me. At first, caffeine worked really well (and I LIKED IT), but I built a tolerance rather quickly. Exercise was consistently a booster but I only had so much time and/or inclination to pursue that avenue long in the long term.

I finally went to a psychiatrist for meds and went through Welbutrin, Straterra and Adderall. Welbutrin worked as well as a salt tablet, Strattera worked consistently but minimally as a stimulant (it worked but I didn’t LIKE it). Adderall worked the best (and I LIKED IT!!) but it ratcheted up my “Jerk Index” a notch or two according to family and church members, so that was out (darn, I LIKED it…).

Throughout all of this I had an idea running around in my grey matter; I always felt as if something was being used up by mental activity. I could pretty consistently count on about 20 minutes of mental lucidity prior to feeling sleepy or befogged. Exercise could erase the fog and restore my ability to read and/or study. Recently I got a link to this youtube video about a doctor with her husband suffering from Alzheimers (youtube.com/watch?v=ZZOR-Qd3QSg&sns=em) and how coconut oil is an alternate fuel source for the brain. I have tried absolutely EVERYTHING that has come across my desk and I figured, “Why not?” In the video she was VERY generous in how much she added to his food. I looked into coconut oil and found that it was used for the cognitive deficits from hypothyroidism in the past. The coconut oil fats are not stored in the body but are utilized immediately. As a result they give an uptick in metabolism, which can be mentally stimulating without the negative effects (Jerk Index) of stimulants. I decided to try one tablespoon with each meal. I use the LouAna brand from Walmart (I don’t own stock in LouAna nor do I sell anything).

Ladies and gentleman, let me tell you about my experience… I have had 8 days of clear headedness, there has been NO evidence of my inattentive ADD. I’m not prone to responding to placebos, so I am 99% certain of the oil working. It looks like my system does not provide sufficient glucose for brain calisthenics and I have to have some ketones to provide enough power for my mental computer. I will be experimenting with taking less of the coconut oil since three tablespoons equal 360 calories extra per day. This is the longest stretch of time that I have ever been this clear headed since early childhood. I will be doing more research about this issue of brain fuel.

Does anyone else have any input?

Before you say, “EEEeeekkk, run away!!! It will raise your blood cholesterol levels!!!!!!!!!! AAAaaakkkk!!!”, please be advised that when the studies were done on coconut oil in the past, they did not divide it into fractions of good and bad. Yes it raises cholesterol levels, it raises the GOOD cholesterol and improves the ratio of good to bad. It is HEALTHY for you, unless you are allergic to coconut!

Sooo, anybody else doing this?

Any other thoughts?

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[kc5jck]

It’s a new one on me, but I’ll give it a try.

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[Sleepy Jean]

I have been on an anti-inflammation diet for arthritis. One of the ingredients I cook with is coconut oil (which is a funny name for such a semi-solid substance). On a side note, coconut oil is also a wonderful lotion/moisturizer/lip balm. Maybe I get more benefits from ingesting it as well as slathering it all over my face so that it soaks straight through my skin to my brain. Or not.

Also part of the diet: eliminating SUGAR! A combination of less gluten, less red meat, more fresh fruit and vegetables and a gob of Omega 3s, I’m feeling pretty darn good. I’m 60 this month, have osteoarthritis in my knees, have high cholesterol and am new to the wacky world of adult ADD. Well, all this no-sugar (NO high-fructose corn syrup) and I have lost 30 pounds easy as pie (ha ha) this past year. And, my overall cholesterol has improved dramatically (from ridiculously high to perfect).

As an extra bonus, I am sleeping better, less restless, calmer, and my brain isn’t so foggy. Coconut oil? Why not! It’s pure, simple and natural. I’ve even replaced milk on occasion with coconut milk or an almond+coconut milk combo. Inflammation is sneaky, laying just under the surface of just about ever malady it seems. My ADD seems to manifest itself with anxiety, inability to focus and piles of stuff all over the place. I’m feeling so much better with sugar out of my system. (It’s a horrible addiction!) My brain is happier without inflammation bogging it down, too.

Recently, my Naturopath suggested a glycine (amino acid) supplement to help with focus. So far so good. I am making lists, checking things off as they are done and not feeling so overwhelmed.

That’s what I know so far. Good luck on your journey. Oh, every single doctor, naturopath, counselor, and bystanders tell me to WALK and get aerobic exercise every day. So even if you are consuming lots of coconut oil calories, get out and walk to burn off some.

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[bucklipe]

I’ve been thinking about my history and one thing popped up. My gall bladder was removed about 9 years ago. I wonder, since I no longer have a place to store bile if my ability to process fats in my diet has been compromised to some degree? Ordinarily the bile would store up in the gall bladder until a meal with fats was eaten. Then the bile would be discharged into the alimentary canal and would mix with the food. The bile would break down the fats and facilitate absorption.

I wonder what the impact of a gall bladder removal would have on the availability of ketones for use by the brain? Would it be possible that blood glucose levels might not stay level enough to power the brain optimally? What are the fuel sources for the brain? I vaguely remember three, glucose, ketones and lactate? To be more accurate, the brain uses glucose but the body converts other stuff to glucose. Apparently coconut oil is a medium chain triglyceride which does not require bile to be absorbed and eventually changed to glucose. Sorry for the ramble…

In any case I’m curious about what is happening since I have been without brain fog for nearly two weeks and SOMETHING is working better. I’m not on any meds for ADD so it isn’t that…

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[ashockley55]

How do you consume the coconut oil? Just spoon it up and take it? Or do you cook with it?

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[kc5jck]

Hey Amber, experiment with some of your customers. Put it on their toast, in their salad, butter their hamburgers with it, use it to top off their chocolate sundaes. See if it wakes up their brains to realize how disrespectful they have been. (I read your blog a while back. )

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[Patte Rosebank]

Coconut oil is the stuff you pop popcorn in, when you really want the absolute best-tasting popocorn.

Unfortunately, the self-appointed health police got their knickers in a twist about coconut oil, and, as a result, most movie theatre popcorn is now popped with “healthier” canola of safflower oil, which simply doesn’t taste as good.

Besides, the only people who should be worried about eating popcorn popped in coconut oil, are the ones who are eating mass quantities of it, daily. In which case, it doesn’t matter what oil it’s popped in; you shouldn’t be eating mass quantities of popcorn every day.

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[Anonymous]

Wow, I’m definitely going to try this for myself and my son. I’ve heard of fish oil and evening primrose oil but I haven’t heard of this before.

I might check out earth balance’s coconut oil margarine too. If its not over processed I may get it for my son (who won’t eat it from a spoon)

One thing that know helps us a bit is limiting carbs (absolutely no refined carbs and smaller servings of whole grains and legumes and fruit, lots of veggies), and including protein with each meal.

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[bucklipe]

I use it on anything I can think of AND I take a tablespoon of the (liquid state) oil and drink it 3 or 4 times daily.

It is a bit tough for me to eat it when it is solid…

Kind of a yuck factor when solid, might be OK if it were flavored up like a candy.

When liquid it is very neutral and easy to drink.

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[kc5jck]

Day three since my initial post saying I’ll try it. It’s still on my list. I mentioned it to my wife who showed me a jar of the stuff sitting on a shelf in the refrigerator. . . . Interesting.

I guess I must be waiting for the right alignment of the planets of something. Maybe a recipe for coconut shrimp would help. Or if my wife were younger . . . 😆

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[bucklipe]

kc5jck: Day three since my initial post saying I’ll try it.

Funny, it took me days to try it too…

No need to refrigerate it. It sets up about as hard as concrete and resists all efforts, short of using power tools, to assimilate it.

The Borg said, “Resistance is futile.”

Coconut oil would successfully resist unless it was heated above 76 degrees…

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[Anonymous]

I’m the same. Once I decide to do something it takes me so long to actually implement it, and even then its often irregular. I’ve had the stuff in my house for months (I moisturize with it) and now that I’ve decided to take it I either keep forgetting when the need arises, or my anxiety kicks in and I talk myself out of it.

Its supposed to be stable at any temperature (up to175 I think) and can solidify and melt over and over again.

I finally tried it from a spoon and, though I’m not sure it did anything for my ADD symptoms yet (too busy to notice) it soothed my sore throat.

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[nellie]

By virtue of the title of this thread I thought it was another spam add for something, so was glad this turned out more interesting after all!

Now I have no idea whether coconut oil has any beneficial uses for ADD but I did find the following article has some useful information related to its nutritional value as well as good recipe suggestions for if you want to experiment with it.

Now that said – if you were to take it as a supplement in hopes of it helping to alleviate ADD symptoms, the question is – is it better in its pure form or hydrogenated form? And does cooking with it destroy any of the whatever it is that might be beneficial to reducing ADD symptoms?

On the bonus side if you don’t find any symptom relief at least you can cook with it unlike all the other hocus-pocus vitamins and supplements one might be tempted to try!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/dining/02Appe.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

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[bucklipe]

nellie By virtue of the title of this thread…

I’ve been doing this for close to three weeks. I took a day off of imbibing the oil and returned to the brain befogged state.

I would think that anything hydrogenated would be no good. No experience here, just an opinion.

I use it in cooking and spoon it straight from the jar and down the hatch. I have read that the oil is extremely stable up to the smoking point. I would expect that regular cooking would not be an issue.

I have a feeling that the coconut oil is providing brain fuel to areas that are not adequately processing glucose. This whole thread started from a video about Alzheimers effects on the glucose uptake by the brain. I’m wondering if ADD brains have either a genetic predisposition or a trauma induced glucose uptake deficiency. I’m wondering if the coconut oil provides another source of fuel and we get normalized brain function.

Do any of you out there have any indicators for whether your inattentive ADD is “working hot and heavy” or is in “remission”? My primary indicator is that I can compose and type at the same time. I used to have to think about what I wanted to say and then type it. I also subscribe to lumosity.com and in the timed games I’m much quicker. Another thing is that I can hold a thought/plan for a much longer time. There are other signs as well. How about you??

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