Sunday, October 14, 2007

How Running & Exercise Can Impact the Behavior of ADHD Children

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)is one of the most common mental disorders in children. Neurologist Dr. Fred Bauman reports on adhd-report.com that in 1985, 500,000 children were diagnosed with ADHD. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates 3-5% of American children today have ADHD- approximately 2 million.

While the medical community studies possible causes and solutions to this growing problem, Dr. Michael S. Wendt, Ed.D. thinks he has found a primary cause.

"The first indication that I was onto something surfaced when I compared the decrease in fitness and activity levels of children with the rising incidence of psychosomatic disorders over the past ten years. There was a direct inverse relationship."

This great article on kidsrunning.com summaries some of the work done by Dr. Wendt, including a 6-week study that linked significant improvements in the behavior of ADHD children when enrolled in a supervised exercise program.

No kidding.

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