At rest under 36h it produce a lot of adrenaline that effects.
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Too much adrenalin in a stressful situation is the last thing you need. This is when your nerves get the better of you. You forget the question, lose your train of thought or your mind goes blank.
This means that they are over-responsive to stimuli.
“Most of us have some idea of what adrenalin is and how it affects the body, but what happens when you produce too much of it and what are the effects.
We should be able to extract what we need from food and discard the rest without physical side effects but this doesn’t always happen in every child or adult. Other behavioural traits in children include over-reaction, a lack of social awareness (everything is ‘me, me, me’ indicating that the survival mode is key)
How too much adrenalin can affect you and your child*
David Mulhall, a neuro-developmental consultant specialising in behaviour and learning difficulties, explains
“Most of us have some idea of what adrenalin is and how it affects the body, but what happens when you produce too much of it and what are the effects. Adrenalin is what the body produces in the face of danger. It’s the primitive “fight or flight” mechanism in action. While our very early ancestors depended heavily on adrenalin for self-preservation, these days life-threatening situations are much less common and yet many children and adults still produce far more adrenalin than is good for them.
We all like a good rush of adrenalin
An appropriate amount of adrenalin at the right time is very helpful. It is what makes you perform well at interview, in exams, at sport or gets you out of a tight spot. It gives you an edge that enables you to respond to a situation in a manner beneficial to you when it matters most. Too much adrenalin in a stressful situation is the last thing you need. This is when your nerves get the better of you. You forget the question, lose your train of thought or your mind goes blank.
So how does it affect children and what’s the connection with hyperactivity and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)?
A child (or adult) with very high levels of adrenalin is effectively stuck in the primitive survival mode – ie a state of ‘high alert’. This means that they are over-responsive to stimuli. These are the children who seem to be programmed to react to every noise within earshot and can’t remain still even if they want to. They fidget constantly, talk and question excessively and interrupt when you’re speaking. They find it virtually impossible to concentrate because it’s so easy to be distracted. They seem to get by on very little sleep but occasionally will ‘zonk out’ for up to 11 hours. These are just some of the classic signs of pretty severe ADHD. It’s an exhausting business for the child as well as the parents. It can make you despair or feel inadequate as a mother or father when really it’s not your fault at all. Neither is the child to blame. A pattern of poor behaviour can develop simply because they’re into everything and require so much discipline to control that they begin to feel picked on. Their confidence and self-esteem suffers. In later life, the effects of over-adrenalising continue to manifest themselves in behaviour. These people are the ‘workaholics’, unable to switch-off even when they’re on holiday. They never seem to want to relax and often have a rigorous exercise regime – a good means of controlling the adrenalin when they’re not in the office.
Preventing adrenaline production
It may be that your child displays a few of these symptoms some of the time in which case other factors are triggering a response. Artificial light, particularly strip lighting that flickers minutely, can raise adrenalin levels in some children and adults. Television and computer screens do the same. You may notice that your child’s behaviour deteriorates after eating certain foods. This has more to do with an immature digestive system rather than the effects of food additives or colourings. We should be able to extract what we need from food and discard the rest without physical side effects but this doesn’t always happen in every child or adult. Other behavioural traits in children include over-reaction, a lack of social awareness (everything is ‘me, me, me’ indicating that the survival mode is key), being over-friendly in situations that don’t warrant this response as well as over-anxiety and a tendency to be a bit of a perfectionist.
So what are the causes of ADHD?
Well, if ‘early’ reflexes such as the Moro remain active in a child (or adult) instead of fading away naturally at around 14-15 months then it can result in increased levels of adrenalin. This will lead to developmental delay or learning difficulties for some children in later life, but parents need to be aware that it’s not all bad news. Learning difficulties have nothing to do with lack of intelligence or ability, in fact these children are very often brighter than average; a short attention span, memory problems, rushing things, restless ness, under-achievement and low self-esteem are very common among the children and adults I help.”
--Published by Families SW (London) Magazine--
