Joe Wicks says junk food causes ADHD

[RiffRaffBananas]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-13292511/amp/Joe-Wicks-blames-ultra-processed-junk-explosion-children-ADHD-reveals-ran-sugar-kid-thinks-love-Sunny-Delight-Wagon-Wheels-jam-sandwiches-caused-behavioural-issues.html

I politely disagree with Joe. I have a very health conscious friend who cooks from scratch, plenty of vegetables and a Mediterranean diet as recommended by all healthcare professionals and has two children. One has ADHD and one doesn’t.

Has Joe jumped the shark on this one?

@Funkyslippers are you his Mum?

No, I just asked why you are calling him that

I think it’s important to note that ADHD UK have basically said he’s talking bollocks.

He’s fame hungry, he knew his comments would get people talking about him. He’s a dick.

@Funkyslippers - what qualifications does he have, and what research has he done with a significant n number to prove his words?
He mentions his own diet, he mentions everyone these days has ADHD, he's talking bollocks

Some unnecessary nastiness on this thread. Indeed.

He doesn't need qualifications to say what he said, ie it seems as if every child has a diagnosis (I admit, an exaggeration) or that there may be some link between processed/junk food and behavioural issues, which I strongly agree with. I don't need to have qualifications to say that either. He's definitely not talking bollocks. It's about time parents took responsibility for their children's diets

Have you read the article? Which parts of what he said are bollocks?

Obviously it doesn’t cause it but it very much can make it worse, just as it makes anxiety and depression worse. I’m sure that most people realise that they don’t feel good if they eat junk.

What a silly sausage. He can come and parent my ADHD teen for a couple of weeks if he likes - feed him 'right' and take away his meds and see what happens. LOL.

I’ve read what he said. I’ve read what
ADHD UK said in response.

He said every child seems to be being diagnosed with adhd. That’s bollocks and goady af. He linked being diagnosed with adhd with diet. ADHD is not caused or cured by diet.

He could have talked about the importance and benefits of a healthy diets with fewer UPFs without an issue. The fact that he mentioned ADHD was a dick move, but he’s all about the fame, so it’s obvious why he’s done it.

It’s also very interesting that his mum had ocd and anxiety. Maybe Joe Wicks should look into the links between those things and ND, instead of talking rubbish about ADHD stemming back to food.

He has a few kids, let’s hope his words don’t come back to bite him when ADHD and other ND tends to run in families.

I honestly don't think he should have waded into this if all it was going to do was flag up his ignorance. Sadly many people seem to be under the impression that ADHD is basically kids being hyper, misbehaving and not listening in class. It is much more complex than this. Such an outdated, ignorant, lazy trope.

Joe Wicks has his own area of expertise and should probably stick with that.

Hmmm I've carefully read the Daily Mail article and he doesn't actually say junk food "causes" ADHD although the paper are trying to word it that way - he is saying his ADHD behaviour as a child was influenced by the food he was eating, which I think isn't an unreasonable statement to make.
Beware the Daily Mail twisting words to suit.

Nice example of the concept that correlation does not equate causation

All these posters that are insulting JW, just calm down, stop taking the OPs bad summary of the article as literal, and read what he actually says. He briefly touches on ADHD but most of his words are about energy, concentration and energy. I realise ADHD is emotive, but don't just pile on JW without actually reading what he actually said.

I hate to say it, but I suspect some of the offense being taken here is because people don't really like a mirror being held up.

Sugar definitely exacerbates it ime, cause it - no.

I don’t have an issue with a lot of what he says. Healthy diets with less UPFs are beneficial and should be encouraged.

However this part is problematic.

‘I was never diagnosed with ADHD but I think nowadays it's this common thing that every child seems to be being diagnosed.
And I think a lot of it can stem back to the diet and the foods that we're eating.’

Every child is not being diagnosed with ADHD and that statement is goady. And ADHD diagnosis can not be stemmed back to diet as diet neither causes nor cures ADHD. He is talking nonsense.

I don’t have children or any other relatives/friends with ADHD, so no mirror being held up here. It just annoys me when people with a platform who are not qualified to talk about a subject like this, choose to do so.

Yep.

I kind of think it can’t help! Wouldn’t say it’s the sole cause in all cases but sugar, e numbers etc definitely make it so much worse! It’s very apparent in my nephew and his friends.

@PeaceOnThePorch I don't think he was being literal and I forgive him for his imprecise language. I think "every child" doesn't literally mean all children, its a figure of speech meaning an increasingly high percentage. The only thing I think you could really pick him up on is the suggestion that ADHD is over diagnosed. But many doctors agree with that.

A mirror held up to what?

ADHD is not caused by food anymore than autism is or other neurodevelopmental disorders.

Indeed.

Seems to be lost on some on this thread.

Thank you for this comment!

But he also says he's not got a diagnosis. If he thinks he has ADHD then he should be assessed and then make judgements. Otherwise he's just a twat

He’s as thick as mince.