A study published in The Lancet Psychiatry looked at the brain scans of over 3,000 people between the ages of 4 and 63, both with and without ADHD.

The study concluded that those with ADHD had smaller brain volumes compared to people without ADHD. Interestingly, the differences are more prominent in children with ADHD and not as much in ADHD adult brains, which means individuals with ADHD likely catches up with brain growth as they get older.

Children with ADHD typically have smaller prefrontal lobe (10% smaller), which is the brain region responsible for reasoning, planning, solving problems, controlling attention, impulsivity, and executive function (ability to plan and organize), focus and complete task.

When the prefrontal cortex isn’t functioning correctly, you’ll see more fidgeting and acting on impulses.

Another imaging study done by researchers at the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) showed that the brain of children with ADHD is three years behind in maturity and with typical development as children without ADHD.

This means the ADHD brain’s development is behind the actual age. So a ten-year-old child with ADHD behaviors might be functioning at the level of a seven-year-old, which is why he or she has the attention span and impulsivity of a seven-year-old.

The delay in ADHD was most prominent in regions at the front of the brain’s outer mantle (cortex), which is essential for controlling thinking, attention, and planning.

Some babies start walking at seven months, some walk after 13 months. Some speak early, and some need more help with speaking.

My daughter had a speech delay as a toddler. She did not utter her first word until 18 months of age. And her first word was “apple,” which was at the time her favorite food. She needed speech therapy for the first few years of her life.

The good news is that the ADHD brain is not small forever. It eventually catches up with peers. That’s one reason why ADHD symptoms tend to decrease or disappear in adolescence or adulthood.

The ADHD brain also has a lower level of dopamine, a neurotransmitter (or brain chemical) associated with reward, desire, and motivation. A deficiency in dopamine is linked to a lack of motivation and poor motor control.

There are two possible causes of a deficiency in dopamine:

1. 1.  The body is not able to make enough due to nutrient deficiency and defective pathways
   2.  Defects in receptors genes and transporter proteins of neurotransmitters

Receptors are the final destinations, where the dopamine attaches to in the brain. If there is a problem getting these neurotransmitters to their destination, the brain cannot function correctly and results in ADHD symptoms.

Parents ask me all the time, “Why does my child crave sugar all the time?”

While it may not seem obvious that problems with attention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity could be related to food cravings, but there is a connection between the ADHD brain and sugar cravings.

Glucose powers all cells in the body. Glucose increases cortical activation in reward-control areas. However, the ADHD brain cannot process glucose very efficiently compared to non-ADHD brains.

That means less energy is available for the attention center in the prefrontal cortex, which we already know is smaller and behind in kids with ADHD.

The ADHD brain uses 8% less glucose than the non-ADHD brain. When the brain does not get enough glucose, it sends out distress signals to the body to demand more glucose, and that’s how cravings for carbohydrates start.

Many people indulge in carbohydrate-rich food, such as pasta, bread, cookies, soda, fruit juices, and other highly processed “junk foods” because these foods can be quickly converted to glucose for the brain to use.

Research shows that low levels of dopamine in ADHD are related to cravings for sugar and other highly processed carbohydrates.

Sugar and other high carb foods boost dopamine levels in the brain, leading kids and adults with ADHD to crave them more often when dopamine levels are low.

Since kids with ADHD have chronically low levels of dopamine, they are more likely than other kids to crave and eat sugary or carbohydrate-heavy foods.

The dopamine response from regular sugar consumption is entirely different than the dopamine response when we eat yummy foods.

While yummy foods also release dopamine, but it’s more due to the novelty of the food, and the release of dopamine decreases with subsequent exposure to the food.

You know how you eat the same food three days in a row?

However, when kids with ADHD eat sugar daily, the dopamine response to sugar slowly decreases, and you need more and more sugar to get the same “sugar high.”

In response, sugar cravings continue to increase due to their addictive effects. However, over time, the frontal lobe becomes less sensitive to natural rewards, resulting in the development of behaviors such as overeating and ADHD.

It is no wonder that those with ADHD struggle with eating disorders. Each time they self-medicate with sugary food, their brain enjoys a surge of dopamine and energy burst that improves attention and short-lived calmness.

As a result, most kids with ADHD gravitate toward a diet consists of mainly highly processed food, which also causes unstable blood sugar fluctuations that produce some of the crazy behaviors seen in kids with ADHD, such as anger outburst, aggression, emotional mood swings or meltdowns.

You know, “Hangry”?

The feeling you have when you are HUNGRY and ANGRY at the same time?

Yes…your child is HANGRY!

Knowing that the ADHD brain is behind and does not play well with sugar, the best ADHD diet should focus on brain-building nutrients and avoiding sugar, especially fructose.

The ADHD brain defects account for only a small percentage of ADHD cases. Therefore, we need to consider other possible factors that might cause or predispose individuals to develop ADHD.

And that’s the ADHD Brain …it’s smaller and on average three years behind a neurotypical brain, and it’s also low on brain chemical, called dopamine.

Ok, there you have it…

I hope you find this information helpful. Let me know what you think and comment below. 

Remember ADHD does not doom your child to a life of under-achievement. You know your child is bright, full of potential, and deserves the best. In fact, many of the world’s greatest discoveries and inventions were made by people with ADHD.

If you’re just starting out on this natural ADHD treatment journey and still in the research phase, check out my new book Eat to Focus. Inside this book, you’ll learn why your ADHD child is always hungry, why he or she seems addicted to milk and bread, the underlying causes of ADHD, and the most effective ADHD treatment that addresses all the causes to reduce hyperactivity, impulsiveness, and anxiety while improving focus and calmness in your ADHD child. 

Don’t forget to download your free gift 15 Quick & Simple ADHD-Friendly Breakfast Ideas before you leave.