Is there an alternative herbal remedy to treat ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)?

My 11 year old nephew has suffered from ADHD since he was 4 years old and is currently on quite a high dose of Ritolin to help balance his behaviour, however we have noticed side effects in him and he is very emotional, depressed sometimes and has trouble concentrating. His Ritolin dose is going up every year as he gets older and we are looking for any help or advice from people who know of any other alternative medicines that we could look at?

Homeopathy offers an alternative to Ritalin. The homeopathic holistic approach examines the symptoms of each part of the person, and the conditions around those symptoms, and tries to find correlation or meaning in the inter-relationship of those symptoms. A homeopathic remedy is found that covers the unique characteristics of the child. Homeopathic substances are derived from all of the botanical kingdoms; they may be plant, mineral, metal or animal substances, or they may be 鈥榠mponderables鈥?such as moonlight, sunlight, magnetism. There is no single cause for ADHD; if we take a holistic perspective and examine each child as an individual, we find that many different factors are involved in this disease, and that each child manifests an individual set of symptoms. The complexity of the homeopathic medical chest of over 4000 remedies allows every child to be treated with the remedy that best suits their individual symptom complexes. It is, therefore, necessary to visit a Registered Homeopath so your nephew can be assessed and monitored, rather than just purchasing herbal treatments over the counter. If you would like to find out who your local Registered Homeopath is, please contact The Society of Homeopaths at: www.homeopathy-soh.org
The website below is worth a visit, as it contains a lot of information. I do hope this will be of some help to your nephew and his family.

I've heard that Omega 3 fish oils work well for behavioural problems. My friend has a 6 year old girl who is/was extremely hyperactive and always up to mischief! She gave her some Omega 3 fish oil and it really made a difference to her behaviour and calmed her down. It may take at least 4-6 weeks to start making a difference, but it can only be good for them.

Another alternative would be going to see a registered homeopath, they have been known to treat similar symptoms.

Yes, you can try herbal remedies and even therapy. I don't know the exact remedies to try, but you can find them out through searching and speaking with a good doctor or herbalist/nutritionalist.

At 11 years old, I wouldn't doubt that he's snorting the stuff already. You might want to look into abuse as the cause of the side effects. It's very common in children who are prescribed the junk. In a few years, it's likely that he'll be selling or giving it away to his friends for a cheap high.

I don't think it could be a replacement for Ritalin, but Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids help with brain function and are proven to make a difference in children with special needs. Taking supplements can only benefit him.

I hope you find a good solution! : )

Hi,
My son who is 6yrs old suffers from ADHD..
We have not put him on Ritolin so far, but tbh I think the time is coming where he really needs to go on it.
The doctors have been trying to get us to agree for the past year or so, and its only because he is doing so well in school despite the ADHD that we have refrained.
He has however been taking QI fish oils - and they work wonders... I gotta admit I was so against them at first, I didn't think that they could work.. but I was wrong.. I think that if we hadn't used them daily then he would be in a much worse state than he is now. His concentration is much improved with the QI, it is noticable if he doesn't take them!
It's not cheap, but boots usually have a 3 for 2 offer on them.. so make the most of it!!
I really don't think that there is a truely herbal remedy that would take the place of Ritolin, but these QI fish oils are a good start..