Attention Deficit

What do you think of when you hear the phrase attention deficit?

Attention deficit in its literal translation means that there is a lack of attention or a shortcoming in attention.

For persons this means a lacking in cognitive attention.

There is a name for this disorder: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD.

This is a disorder of the brain that is indicated by a person’s (to include children) inability to focus (attention deficit) and inability to control impulsive behavior and emotions.

It is a disorder affecting both young and old.

It is not known for sure what causes Attention Deficit.

The theory is that there is a problem with the neurotransmitters in the front of the brain where attentiveness and emotions are controlled.

It is thought that the activity in this area needs to be higher so stimulants are used along with behavior modification therapy.

But are there other factors that could be the cause of this attention deficit?

One cause of attention deficit is lack of sleep.

A person might not have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder per se but does have a problem with sleep apnea or waking up at night.

These persons find themselves falling asleep during the day and actually exhibit some symptoms of ADHD.

Don’t think so?

Try letting your child stay up as late as he or she wants and just watch how they act the next day.

This is because certain neurons in the brain actually become depleted and begin to malfunction.

This reduction in the effectiveness of the neurons results in reduced brain activity thus causing symptoms that resemble Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Some children are very gifted and operate at an intellectual level above their peers.

But if this is not recognized by parents and teachers early on, the child might become bored with learning what is perceived as simple material.

When a child becomes bored, the same child might engage in certain behaviors that resemble Attention Deficit.

This is due to the fact that the child is not challenged.

Poor nutrition is kind of like lack of sleep in causing behaviors that resemble Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Without the proper foods daily, it can affect brain activity which in turn could cause poor attentiveness and inability to focus.

It has also been asserted that certain foods with red dye cause symptoms of Attention Deficit but there is no conclusive evidence to this as of yet.

There could be many other causes to behavior that resemble Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder symptoms.

This is why the disorder is so hard to diagnose and there is no universally-accepted diagnostic standard.

ADHD symptoms could be caused by other disorders such as dyslexia, depression and low thyroid function, lack of motivation, anxiety and just simple immaturity.

In fact, probably many parents and teachers make the mistake of expecting a child to be mature when nothing could be further from the truth.

But by setting this expectation of maturity in a child, we suddenly diagnose them with Attention Deficit when they misbehave.

In actuality all they need to do is mature.

This is probably why many just seem to “grow out” of it.