Hyperactivity

As any parent with a hyperactive child knows, a child who suffers from this condition can be quite a handful. It might not be so bad if these children were simply lively, but they are easily distracted, unable to concentrate, have a tendency to act impulsively and become aggressive without apparent reason. Parents may hesitate to take their hyperactive child anywhere, and teachers constantly struggle to get the child to concentrate. Such children are routinely given drugs such as methylphenidate, which can have serious long-term effects, including a drugged, docile state, appetite and weight loss, insomnia and an irregular heartbeat.

Natural treatments for hyperactivity are much more popular in Europe than they are in North America. The Germans have treated hyperactive children with valerian since the 1970s. In one German study, more than 100 hyperactive children experienced improved learning skills, muscle coordination and reaction time after only a few weeks of taking valerian. They were also less anxious, less aggressive, less restless and less fearful. Even more amazing, over 25 percent of these children recovered completely. Because valerian has an unpleasant taste, you should administer valerian-based formulas in tincture form. Another European remedy for hyperactivity is catnip, which contains compounds similar to those in valerian. Linden flower tea is a traditional afternoon drink given to French country children to settle them down. Linden is not widely available as a tincture, but it is sold in natural food stores and even in many grocery stores as a French or an English herb tea.

Hyperactivity Tincture

1 teaspoon tincture of valerian rhizome

½ teaspoon each tinctures of catnip leaves and passionflower leaves

¼ teaspoon each tinctures of peppermint leaves and linden flowers ( if available)

Combine ingredients. For a 50-pound child, give half a dropperful several times a day.

When children at the London Children's Hyperactive Clinic took evening primrose oil, they were much less hyperactive, and two-thirds of them experienced fewer nightmares. Evening primrose oil is better known for successfully treating premenstrual syndrome (PMS), but the clinic has found a possible link between hyperactivity and PMS, and even alcoholism—problems that many hyperactive children eventually develop and that seem to run in their families. Researchers believe that this connection is due to an overproduction of certain hormonelike substances in the body called prostaglandins, which are reduced by evening primrose oil. This oil is sold in natural food stores only in capsules; to adjust the recommended dosage on the package for your child, use Clark's Rule.

While herbal treatments can reduce hyperactivity, children benefit most when dietary changes are also part of their program. Both the New York Institute for Child Development and Princeton's Brain-Bio Center are investigating the relationship of food and food additives, such as nitrates and food dyes, to children's behavioral and learning imbalances. Over half the hyperactive children treated at the Pain and Stress Therapy Center in San Antonio, Texas, began to function more normally when sugar and caffeine (which is present in colas and other soft drinks) were removed from their diets and they were given nutritional supplements such as magnesium and vitamins C and the B-complex, especially B₆.