caffeine for ADHD | ADHD Information

agreed.

We dont have those issues. I would NOT go against the doctors instructions.

[QUOTE=capitol woman]you see i was told by my doc to keep her away from soda pop.confusing.[/QUOTE]

If she's on any meds I'd avoid the soda. And I'd definitely avoid the sugar rush followed by the sugar drop.

Too much for an already struggling kid to handle, I'd think?
yes i do agree .I thought i would ask anyway.

It is true you wouldnt want to treat with vaffeine, we, however, have used it to our advantage. I'm amazed how a can of Coke calms my daughter! My younger one would be bouncing off the walls. She is currently using Daytrana so we have no evening coverage. She had a school dance Friday night and said she had Mountain Dew, she was clearheaded when she came home, so it did help get her through an evening socail event unmedicated .

As everyone above says though probably not a good idea for daily use!

you see i was told by my doc to keep her away from soda pop.confusing.[QUOTE=higgy]

Theoretically, anything that is typical a stimulant could have the effect of calming down someone with adhd...case in point, adderall is amphetamine....however.....I don't know of any studies done specifically on caffiene and the adhd child....and those things that contain caffeine to a large extent would be things not really healthy to begin with, ie chocolate, soda, coffee....not things a child should have. I would suggest that if you have a child with adhd, that you speak with your child's doctor about acceptible ways to help him/her.

Sherry

[/QUOTE]

I agree although caffine has been known to help ADHD kids, It is a drug and not good for you for other reasons as well. I would ask my doctor about that one. I know people who swear by giving their kids diet coke or Mt Dew. but I don't know......

Having self-medicated for years on caffiene I would have a number of concerns doing that with a child
The amount would have to be fairly prodigious. In my case, we're talking a QUART of coffee or black boiled tea consumed in 20 minutes and thereafter every 2-3 hours. I suspect that such large amounts would cause the child to vomit or at least suffer extreme nausea.
To get caffeine, which is bitter, down a child you'd have to combine it with some kind of sugar, such as in soda pop. To consume enough the amount of sugar may very well negate the effects of the caffeine in someone with ADHD [I drink triple cream/milk NO sugar]Caffeine causes dehydration. This increases the need for water consumption. Unless the child has an iron bladder [I do] this could cause a whole other raft of problems.
As a "booster" when other meds wear off, a small amount might be affective, or so some parents here claim. I wouldn't rely on it as a sole stimulant for a child, though.That's my thoughts on it...
MetisRebel39383.3648958333

i ve briefly read that caffeine may help with AdHD is this so in children?

Sherry

My Phd told me the same thing about Coke. I thought he was tesasing me but he said in ADHD kids its calming.

I had to try it on a saturday nite pizza night. Worked like a charm. I couldn't believe it.

Coffee works for my son before his patch kicks in (he's 14). He likes it, has been drinking it for about a year and hasn't had any problems. A kazillion people in the world drink coffee and haven't had any problems. I say, if it works, use it!

I am pretty lucky in the mornings. Not too many days that I find him uncontrollable. He finds peace working with his hands and he works with perler beads, or drawings, he is using magnetic sticks right now. I swear it puts him in a trance.

He doesn't get soda daily but I am not avoiding it either. If he wants it I'm not afraid of any type of hyper reaction.

My mother used to (back in 1985, was dx'd in 80) let me drink coffee. With milk and sugar in the mornings before school. To this day, it can still calm me down in a way other things cannot. I do take adderall 20mg IR three times a day. But, at the end of the day, that cup of joe really puts me on the couch. don't you find it strange that it has the opposite effect. I was so afraid to give him soda because I didn't need him any more excited, and he brought him down.

Coffee for kids is a very old folk remedy in some cultures. My kids had a daycare provider that was originally from Cuba and she would give my youngest a small amount of her expresso in the mornings and it would calm her right down.

This is not a substitute for proper treatment because caffeine can be hard to dose, the body adjusts to it quickly and needs more for the same effect and it has more side effects than ADHD meds.

After discussions with the doc, we use cola or tea as a boost on some days for my oldest.

I sleep better with caffeine in me. It calms the busy mind and allows for sleep. The doc has opened the door for medication should my husband or I decide to stop self medicating with caffeine drinks.

It is strange how it affects people with ADHD. I now keep little cans of coke hidden in case of need.my sons Phd said that coke, etc would have the opposite reaction in a child with ADHD. instead of being hyper from it, it would be calming and it is with my son.

I am newly diagnosed at age 29 with ADHD, but caffeine was a fairly regular part of my life from college on. As a child, my parents did not allow me to have any caffeine. I had my first soda with caffeine in it at age 16. Now, I try to limit my caffeine to only 1 cup of coffee in the morning and one sode or green tea in the afternoon. I have found that too much caffeine only hurts my attention span and increases my hyperactivity.

Although caffeine is a stimulant, it doesn't work the way ADHD stimulant medications work. ADHD meds work in one fashion or another to increase the brain's levels of dopamine and norepenephrine. Caffeine stimulates your metabolic rate and heart rate. So I don't think giving ADHD children caffeine will do anything to help their ADHD and will most likely make them more restless, hyperactive, and inattentive. Also, there are a lot of studies that show that children should have as little caffeine as possible during their developmental years anyways.

~ADHDgirl

http://ijustlearnedihaveadhdnowwhat.blogspot.com/

And of course, like meds, everyone responds differently to caffeine. I think this is due to slight differences in brain chemistry that results in the variety of symptoms that make up ADHD.

It is called the paradox effect. People think it is crazy when I tell them that my evening cup of coffee puts me to sleep. Often I only get half way through the cup before I am out.

I've been drinking coffee since college. I drink what most people would consider vast amounts of coffee :o) and the joke is that no one recognizes me without one in my hand. Although I'm on Concerta (54mg), Wellbutrin (300mg) and have ritalin for the end of the day, I maintain that coffee intake. I don't think it has any effect on me, whatsoever. It may have years ago, but it doesn't wake me up or keep me up. It probably helps me focus, or it could just be that without it I spend a lot of time wondering where I left it , thereby getting nothing productive done. It's a psychological thing at this point, and I can have a XL Dunkies with a shot and go to sleep right after. I also drink caffeinated soda (sugar-free though, so it's healthy ). I think everyone is different in how they react to any stimulant. I should mention that the ritalin (just that...not the other two) actually puts me to sleep, really, plain and simple. It's the same drug as Concerta, but it knocks me out which I find bizarre. Needless to say I can't see the point in taking it and don't, but if it's driven one thing home it's that all stimulants don't have the same effect. I'd say that if a little caffeine calms a kid down, that's a bonus. Chocolate does the same for lots of people, young or old. Remember, though, if it doesn't calm them down it doesn't mean they don't have ADD. I've been wrestling with this idea for a while now as my youngest son is probably just like me but I don't want him labeled (I can't believe I say that when I see what I've been through), and the school and I can't come to terms with what the issue is or how to get to the root of it. The doc wants to medicate. I'm wishing a soda would fix it but it didn't help me...caffeine only exacerbates my symptoms..my hyperactive mind has a tenfold volume increase (if you could hear it in decibals..) It's a little worse with no meds, but either way "jkcnlehcrindkjhfakjhgjkfbk bkjahgoihtubvgslihkjhhjhfd....."

Yeah, that's what I was wondering