Joe Wicks says junk food causes ADHD

And I'm assuming the professionals who diagnose us know the difference between 'an acquired ADHD type condition' and actual ADHD

You'd like to think so, but so much of the diagnostic burden has become commercialised.

I had a patient who came for an ADHD assessment, who I found not to have ADHD. She then went to a private provider who disagreed and felt she did have it.

She then tried to sue my trust for £30,000 to cover the costs of her ongoing care and private prescriptions

Now, what might have motivated the private provider (who was a pharmacist and took less than 30 minutes to complete the assessment), to disagree with my diagnosis?? 🤔

It's not white noise she could tell you what was happening on the TV sing the music and update you where she was in her work her brain is wired completely different

White noise is slightly different.

I find flicking around on devices makes it harder to concentrate afterwards.

Dd has diagnosed ADHD devices help her concentrate she literally had the TV on YouTube music in the background and was focused on her uni work plus her brothers sword fighting infront of her device and noise calm her brain

Everyone ADHDs differently

As someone with diagnosed ADHD, both sugar and devices exacerbate mine. I was around 11 when I discovered I couldn’t concentrate after I’d eaten sweets.

I learnt recently that there are is a portion of the medical community that don’t think adhd exists, which surprised me.

A leading fish expert (according to QI) didn't believe there was such a thing as 'fish'. That doesn't mean we can't observe and acknowledge slimy creatures with no legs that swim in the rivers and seas.

Definitions and descriptions of disorders change all the time. The DSM is regularly rewritten as our understanding changes.

Oh and the reason ADHD is mostly diagnosed behaviourally is because although there are differences in brain activity, MRIs can't reliably diagnose yet. But I'm willing to bet they will be able to soon.

Of course diagnosis is 100% behavioural - that's the case for pretty much every condition out there Very, very few conditions are diagnosed solely on the fact that there are proven genetic links.

Diagnosis is nonetheless 100% behavioural. The genetic links are not at all provable or usable for diagnosis, i think you’d have to say ‘potential genetic links are being investigated’ rather than ‘it’s genetic’. I learnt recently that there are is a portion of the medical community that don’t think adhd exists, which surprised me. I expect they mostly think it’s a variant of something else, or that you can’t define a disease with such a vague behavioural diagnosis and very mixed outcomes to medication, that it needs a lot more understanding.

Being hyper and struggling with focus and concentration are just two of a myriad of ADHD traits. Joe Wicks appears to be saying that these traits are leading to an increased number of ADHD diagnoses, when they might actually be caused by a reaction to poor diet. But he's still talking bollocks, because no specialist is ever going to diagnose ADHD in a child based on these traits alone. If diagnosed with ADHD, they will be just two of many, many symptoms on which a diagnosis is based. The idea that children with ADHD are being scraped off the ceiling because they're so hyperactive is an outdated stereotype. My son has a few friends with ADHD (all his friends are ND). Only two of them have 'obvious' traits (eg standing ON the bus shelter instead of under it because they're bored and restless). The rest have more subtle signs which are really only obvious when you get to know them, but which likely affect them very deeply.

Food intolerance and food allergies can cause people to be a bit hyper and make it difficult for them to concentrate. A lot of people also react like that to certain artificial food colours. Sugar hype is also real. But I am pretty sure that the specialists can tell the difference.

But sure if you suspect ADD or ADHD it doesn't do any harm to eat less sugar and processed food so by all means do try that before getting an assessment. Just please don't let the test fase run for too long before you go see a doctor.

A symptom of food allergy and food intolerance is that you sometimes poop white slime as well as normal looking poo. Another symptom is eczema. They dont both have to be there for it to be food allergy.

He didn’t say food caused ADHD, that is OP’s title

What a stupid man. He should stick to shouting at children to do jumping jacks or sit ups.

Explain this then Joe - three kids, brought up in the same way by the same parents in the same house, eating the same meals prepared by the same parent and eating the same snacks... one has inattentive ADHD and the other two don't.

This is just harking back to the old nonsense about how ADHD is just bad parenting. It's so damaging to the families dealing with it.

Back in your box Joe.

I don't agree, I found some of his workouts during lockdown really funny, particularly him dressed as a huge turd

I would like to very impolitely suggest that having large muscles, being a fitness celebrity and being called Joe Wicks causes a complete and utter humour and personality bypass.

Fitness influencers are a law unto themselves. Eddie Abbew is another dangerous one. He's built up a huge following going into places likes Greg's and saying 'this is shit, wake the fuck up' or gesturing towards shelves in Morrisons 'this is not fucking food'. I agree with that part, but then he promotes his own diet which is just meat and eggs. No fruits, vegetables, carbohydrates, nothing, just a plate of unseasoned pork chops and scrambled eggs. He then posts testimonials from his followers saying that the diet has cured them of every disease known to man. I'm not sure whether he's doing it for clicks or if he has some sort of eating disorder.

why would anyone take their news from the daily mail. click bait headlines constantly. ignore ignore ignore (yes i judge celebs who do interviews with them as well. bit always thought mr j was a prick)

I mean to be honest probably most personality traits are inherited versus something we spontaneously develop or develop via nurture. I’ve believed this for a long time.

Clinical paper here. Yes, the genetics of ADHD are somewhat murky.

@Nelfif you're talking tripe.

Diagnosis means access to more SEND help and support, it means understanding that you need to parent differently, it means that a child who is struggling to learn and fit in knows it's not their fault.

Meds help said person to focus, to be able to learn, to remember, to have the same opportunities as other children, to not self medicate or seek the dopamine hit that their body does produce. Depending on the type of meds they can reduce tics, and calm disregulation.

If someone who "works in mental health" doesn't know what ADHD is or how the meds work or the science behind them then it's a huge worry.

Maybe you should read the studies @Nelfif 🙄

Or even just the NHS information on ADHD which says that it is in fact, genetic.

Joe Wicks is an utter Parsnip. The end.

Well that’s funny as the NHS says

“ADHD tends to run in families and, in most cases, it's thought the genes you inherit from your parents are a significant factor in developing the condition.
Research shows that parents and siblings of someone with ADHD are more likely to have ADHD themselves.”

I have it as do all of my dc. NHS diagnosed. Diagnosis is massively helpful.

The problem is many children (like my sons) have adhd as a co-morbidity of autism. Let’s see him try to feed an autistic child anything other than their ‘safe foods’. Believe me, I try to feed them home cooked food but they would rather starve than eat the nuggets, and beans on toast that they feel comforted by. It’s very frustrating and I assure you, parents of children with adhd already feel isolated, judged and overwhelmed. We don’t need celebs putting the boot in.

I'm thinking receptionist. Porter in a ward. Cleaner maybe. Maybe not through because IME those workers have some empathy and experience.

@Nelfif not only are there studies about heritability, there are meta-analyses. Google it.

Diagnosis for us meant parenting in an effective way, recognising behaviours, working with the behaviour not against. No meds.