Health Benefits of Nature (Slide Show)

Play Outside for Improved Attention and Health!

Health Care-toon by Ed Fischer

Evidence shows how childhood ADD/ADHD, obesity, type-2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and excess stress can be positively impacted through outdoor physical activity.  Green exercise, playing outdoors has significant effect on health and learning according to the National Environmental Education Foundation.   James R. Roberts, MD assembled this research presented in a slide format.

Auditory Function in Academics

Expanding auditory digit span remediates many learning problems

Kay Ness, MS Neurodevelopmental specialist has written an intriguing article citing the importance of the auditory system for reading, conversational language, understanding complex instructions, learning long words using phonics, solving psychological problems and improving maturity. ADD, ADHD, autism and Down syndrome are mentioned. Much of the article is focused on auditory digit span. This is very interesting.

Kay said, “If I was going to pick the greatest functional problem in our society today, I would choose auditory processing.” Kay definitely made her case.

Get ADD Students Organized (video)

Base your teaching approaches on the brain part affected

Kathie Nunley from Brains.org has posted a short video, Teaching Tip 12, explaining ways to help ADD and ADHD students get organized. She relates methods based on whether the hind brain or pre-frontal cortex is involved.

Remember, low dopamine production can be raised through gross-motor movements, helping boost attention what ever areas of the brain or approach is used. Insist on more classroom activity, recess and daily physical eduction!

Top 10 Myths about ADHD

Read this article and decide on the 'real' ADHD myth

The first thing I notice as I am reading this article by Jean Rothman on the EverydayHealth website is the Concerta ad above the article, stating “Manage your child’s ADHD symptoms this school year.” Another ad adjacent to the headline says, “Get a FREE Trial.” Start reading this article and notice how many points are made justifying medication to treat ADHD. Notice how many more drug ads are posted along the side and bottom of this article. Are they trying to sell you something?

Now go back and read Thom Hartmann’s article yesterday and Thomas Armstrong’s previous article on this blog giving a different perspective. You tell me… what approach do you want to take… meds or a natural one, accommodating ADHD giftedness?

Be careful, if you or your child is taking meds, a guided approach needs to be taken before removing the drug. Talk with a specialist working with natural dietary, self-management and movement approaches before easing off.

ADD Isn’t the Problem

Attention Deficit Disorder -- a Different Perspective

Thom Hartmann, author of six books on Attention Deficit Disorder takes exception to the seriousness of ADD and ADHD. He insists that poor science casts a negative image on children, giving them a learning defect, when in reality it is the assembly-line, conveyer-belt schools that are dysfunctional. Take ADD and ADHD students out of this constrained setting and watch their learning genius and self-worth excel. Thank you Whole Family website for offering this article which is strangely absent from leading websites counseling parents about ADD.

LD Remedy… We Hold the Key!

Helping People… Unlock their Potential

Living and Learning… Movement is Central!

Neuro-education connecting Neuroscientific research and learning suggests the most effective ways to optimize body brain cells and systems to boost attention, sharpen focus, heighten motivation, enhance learning performance skills, and extend memory.

But what if, despite our good intentions and diligent work, these methods don’t work?

Then take a step backwards and return to the basics, helping the challenged learner retool their sensory, processing and motor systems that may be struggling. One or multiple systems might be involved, including the visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, reflex, tactile, proprioceptive, and vestibular systems.

Let’s explore each of these systems over the next few months. Discover what people are doing to mature the sensory input system, brain processing/memory system, and motor output system called upon to express learning through talking, writing, art, music, sport, and other life-enhancing performance skills – this will be great fun!

Pump Dopamine Naturally

Use your body to pump this essential brain-boosting chemical

Good-feeling dopamine is a pleasure/reward neurochemical that boosts attention, raises motivation, and orchestrates the prefrontal cortex – the executive brain that focuses on learning and minimizes impulsivity. Stimulant drugs are sometimes prescribed to help people diagnosed with ADD and ADHD produce more dopamine. Brisk, large muscle movements do the same, especially aerobic exercise.

Daily physical education, morning and afternoon recess, frequent physical activity breaks, and subject matter taught with movement will get dopamine pumping naturally.

This is a great fix for frittering minds!

Note: The Health Care-toon shown above is taken from the Health Care-toon Calendar, 365 Ways to Look and Feel Great by cartoonist Ed Fischer and Jeff Haebig. Visit WellnessQuest.com for a daily Health Care-toon and related wellness ideas.

Learning Challenges Unfold

When physical movement is put on hold…

Writer’s block, reading delays, LD, ADD, ADHD, and a host of other learning and behavioral challenges can result from lack of movement.

Examples include a fetus frozen by excess stress in the uterus, C-section babies who fail to exert themselves during birth, infants lying on their back or trapped in a car seat, baby swing or playpen for extended periods, young children deprived of plenty of robust play, young learners sitting in their desks doing endless worksheets rather than learning concept through frequent sensory and motor activities, lack of repetitions writing, talking, reading, and primary reflexes (e.g., ATNR, STNR, grasp, spinal gallant) not integrated through repeated physical movement… the list goes on.

Daily Physical Education, morning and afternoon recess, and multiple movement opportunities during each class period will engage the body brain, helping resolve some of these learning issues taking root in body tissues. For more severe learning delays a more focused, remedial physical approach is needed to mature neural networks, helping people realize their living and learning potential. Movement is key!

Prime the Brain Before Studying

Move your muscles to produce and pump learning chemicals

Chemical messengers communicating between neurons are needed for the brain to pay attention and focus. Since attention precedes learning, it makes good sense to produce and pump enzymes, hormones, and neurochemicals needed, especially for people with ADD, ADHD, and other attentional challenges.

Large muscle movements (e.g., circling the arms overhead) produce dopamine, the pleasure/reward motivational chemical that orchestrates the pre-frontal cortex called upon to learn. Moving the arms and legs across the body engages both sides of the brain, helping with sequential and global brain functions involved with writing and math.

Daily Physical Education and frequent movement activities throughout the day will help brain cells excel. Why rely on stimulant drugs when the body can do the work!

Do the Body and Brain Cell dance to prime the brain.

Neurodevelopment Intro

Brain stem, midbrain and cortex development and problems

Toni Hager, originator of Kids Can Learn website, presents a thorough overview of brain and central nervous system, identifying stages of development, and pinpointing what learning and behavior problems result when the spinal cord, brain stem, midbrain and cortex fail to properly develop. Visual, auditory, tactile, and proprioceptive competence, as well as mobility, manual, and language proficiency are affected.

What is often perceived as learning and behavioral problems in school have neurological roots that can often be remedied naturally, targeting the source of dysfunction.

Myth of ADD

Look at ADHD in a new light with natural solutions

Dr. Thomas Armstrong is author of 13 books including 7 Kinds of Smart and The Myth of the A.D.D. Child, 50 Ways to Improve Your Child’s Behavior and Attention Span Without Drugs, Labels or Coercion. His website offers his books and articles worth pursuing. I like how Thomas Armstrong uses positive, natural, wellness-based approaches to build each child’s ultimate worth.

Isn’t it strange that leading websites addressing ADD and ADHD fail to mention Thomas Armstrong and his natural methods of remedying behavioral and learning problems? They also fail to mention how brisk exercise boosts dopamine levels in the pre-frontal cortex, alleviating much of the problem. Medications are suggested.

Stimulating the Autistic Brain

Using Motor Patterning and Childhood Reflexes

Suzanne Amanor-Wilks article explains, “how cognition and movement are really the same” and how therapies for autism, leading to higher levels of behavior and learning are centered on movement, reflexes, posture and muscle control. Suzanne briefly explains the role of primitive reflexes, motor patterns, sensory-motor integration, and brain stimulation.

Dr. Svetlana Masgutova, who is developing a body of research showing how brain structure can change after a few hours of reflex integration therapy, is offering an extensive Family Education Conference for Children and Adults with Challenges and Gifts. The program is open to children with Cerebral Palsy, Autism, Asperger Syndrome, ADD, ADHD, Dyslexia, Down’s Syndrome, Developmental Delay, Speech and Language development delay, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Emotional Instability, and other symptoms, such as chemical imbalances, metabolic disorders and allergies.

Cerebellum Key to Learning

Watch Prof Bellum's explanation about how the brain makes skills automatic.

Watch this video explaining how the cerebellum is involved with reading, writing, spelling, coordination, attention and memory. Expanded research of the cerebellum shows how movement is essential to learning. Thank you Dore.com for advancing the need for Physical Education in our schools.

Exercise ADHD Away

How Exercise Helps With ADHD Symptoms

Everyday Health features an article by Jean Rothman citing reasons why aerobic exercise helps people with ADHD. Don't be distracted by the CONCERTA drug ad for ADHD above and flashing to the side of this insightful article. Focus on how aerobics increases levels of dopamine and serotonin, naturally. Hats off to CONCERTA for making a concerted effort letting people know there are natural means to better sleep, improved focus, less depression, improved eating, stress management, less impulsivity, and a boost of attention.

ADD and Dopamine

Impaired dopamine system and ADD are linked

Kathie Nunley, EdD., offers dozens of research-based body/brain articles especially designed for newsletters on her Brains.org website. Check out her Hot Topics from ADD to Violence, another great resource. Kathy is the originator of Layered Curriculum, a comprehensive sensory-motor enriching approach to meeting all learning styles.

Here is a HOT TOPIC that Kathie sends out with her free newsletters.

HOT TOPIC # 1: New research indicates that persons with Attention Deficit Disorder(ADD) may have a shortened perception of the time span of temporal events - particularly in working memory. This is suspected to be the result of an impaired dopamine system involving the prefrontal cortex. They tested this theory by checking what was the minimum tempo that rhythmic movement can be sustained in both persons with and withoutADD. It turns out that those with ADD have a rhythm cut-off that was much sooner than those without. Apparently these problems with dopamine delivery have recalibrated the internal clock that sets the time scale for our subjective thought process. Gilden, D. & Marusich, L. (2009). Neuropsychology. Vol 23(2), 265-269.

Followers of this blog know how large muscle movement over time, produces and pumps dopamine.

TV Viewing and Cognitive Development

TV Viewing Before the Age of 2 Has No Cognitive Benefit

Newwise.com reported the first longitudinal study of its kind measuring the effect of TV viewing on young children’s language and visual motor skills. According to Michael Rich, MD, MPH a pediatrician who directs the Center on Media and Child Health and contributing author on this study, TV viewing before the age of 2 does not improve a child's language and visual motor skills. The study suggests that maternal, child and household characteristics are more influential to a child's brain development.

Dr Rich adds, “TV exposure in infants has been associated with increased risk of obesity, attention problems, and decreased sleep quality. Parents need to understand that infants and toddlers do not learn or benefit in any way from viewing TV at an early age."

Stopping ADHD Naturally

STNR Reflex may cause ADHD symptoms -- Integrating STNR is one non-drug solution

Symmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex may be the root cause of Learning Disabilities and misdiagnosed as ADHD. Read the passages in the book Stopping ADHD by Nancy E. O’Dell, Ph.D. and Patricia A. Cook, Ph.D. describing the STNR reflex. It shows why many students are having such difficulty sitting still and focusing. Natural exercises from the Miriam Bender Achievement Center are used to mature this primitive STNR reflex. It’s another example of using a body brain enhancing non-drug approach to solving ADHD and other learning challenges.

Myomancy.com examines the Stopping ADHD book and comments on its validity.

What Babies and Children Really Need

Sally Goddard Blythe's book on child development is a must read

Sally Goddard Blythe has written extensively about primitive and postural reflexes, showing ways to integrate them through movement. This is especially important during infancy and early childhood. Abnormal reflexes are often the physical basis of learning difficulties, dyslexia, dyspraxia, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD).

http://www.inpp.org.uk/inpp_publications/books.php What Babies and Children Really Need, is Sally Goddard Blythe's recent book, teaching mothers and fathers how to nurture children's growth for wellbeing.

http://www.inpp.org.uk/ The Institute for Neuro-Physiological Psychology provides information on Dysgraphia (writing), Dyslexia (reading and writing), Dyscalculia (math) and Dyspraxia (coordination). Sally Goddard Blythe is one of the world's most knowledgeable educators who gets to the root of learning challenges. She is the author of a number of acclaimed books, including Reflexes, Learning and Behaviour and The Well Balanced Child.

Jeff Haebig

Move and Learn with Exercise

Raise test scores and academic achievement with exercise!

Watch this video http://www.learningreadinesspe.com/ and see why students in Naperville, Illinois are benefiting from daily exercise. Harvard University's brain researcher Dr. John Ratey explains the neurobiology behind the body brain changes that are taking place. Be sure to read his sensational book, Spark -- the New Revolutionaly Science of Exercise and the Brain. It also explains why exercise is so effective preventing and treating anxiety and stress disorders, depression, ADD and ADHD, obesity, dementia, and cardiovascular disease. A must read!

Jeff Haebig

Natural Ways to H.A.N.D.L.E. ADHD

New Perspective on ADD and ADHD with Natural Solutions!

The HANDLE Institute http://handle.org provides Highly Effective, Non-Drug, Holistic Treatment for Learning, Behavior and Other Challenges. What does HANDLE think about ADD/ADHD? Visit http://handle.org/index2.html and get their perspective. I like Judith Bluestone’s approach, addressing attention deficit as APD… Attentional Priority Disorder.

Activities are offered that strengthen the vestibular system and treat hypersensitivity of the senses including touch, vision and sound. Once again, the body brain has remarkable ability to strengthen itself through movement and exercise! Hats off to HANDLE for heading us down that natural path.

Jeff