Does Diet Affect Hyperactivity?

Abstract

Conflicting reports make it difficult to determine if foods, food coloring, or allergies are related to hyperactivity. Twenty-four hyperactive children were tested with sublingual foods and dyes followed by a seven-day diet omitting milk, wheat, egg, cocoa, corn, sugar, and food coloring, and by subsequent individual ingestion challenges with these same food items. More than 70% of the children had evidence of allergy in their personal and family history, as well as positive allergy skin tests. The sublingual dye, but not the sublingual mixed-food test, correlated well with repeated ingestion challenges. Twelve children improved to a moderate or marked degree during the seven-day diet. A simple sublingual food-coloring test or a one-week experimental diet can be used to detect a subgroup of children hyperactive from specific food dyes or foods. Improvement persisted in children who avoided offending food dyes or foods for at least 12 weeks.