I wonder if the increase in ADHD diagnoses can be tied to school becoming more focused on sitting still in a room for a long period of time. At least for me, I was doing really well in school when classes were ~50 minutes, and some included phsical activity like shop class and home economics. In my junior year of high school, they switched classes to 90 minutes, you took different classes on different days, and none of my classes included physical activities. My grades plummeted after the switch, and I ended up getting diagnosed with ADD when I was struggling with college in my mid-20s.
Very similar story here. Received diagnosis + transferred away from 90min block schedule and my grades immediately improved. Also that year, operation for deviated septum due to basketball. I wonder how much of ADHD diagnosis was due to not getting quality sleep at night during informative years.
I've had a similar thought: what consequences might there be from years of institutional classroom based learning on human development? Are there similar rates of ADHD in non-institutional learning? How do homeschooled kids, alternative education, or remote bush/tribal people compare?
In part sure but making anyone focus on something they're not naturally interested in in that moment is going to cause inattention that they'll have to fight to focus; it could also easily be food they're eating causing the ADHD as well.
Learning the Wim Hof breathing method changed my life for the better. And this is not meant as an advertisement for his business; you can find the same technique (with or without branding) for free everywhere online. I highly, highly recommend trying it out.
Whenever I feel scatter-brained, lack focus or creativity, when I'm feeling down, (or just feel like it) ... this is my go-to method. ~20 minutes of controlled, intermittent hypoxia. Not to mention it's an excellent "tool" to have in psychologically and/or physically stressful times, such as after an accident and being in a hospital (speaking from experience).
Seconded. For reference, Wim Hof is derivative of Tummo, which is quite an old technique and it's easy to find examples of how to practice. But like you said it is pretty easy to get the basics of Wim Hof free online without subscribing to his program.
Wim hof seems derivative of some yogic breathing practices that have existed for a while. I have learned one of them (and then another one at a later stage in my life for migraines) and can vouch for good long term effects for either one, they are:
1) Sudarshan Kriya by Art of Living foundation
2) Shambhavi kriya by Isha foundation
IMO both of these are better integrated with pranayam.
There are millions of proponents of yoga today. Many have combined various yoga techniques into different packages and made huge businesses out of it (Moksha Yoga, Bikram yoga, Isha foundation etc.)
In doing so, each business has preserved the spirit and ambience of yoga. We are all truly enriched by theses business. There is nothing wrong with promoting yoga. Yoga is not patented / trademarked to India. It belongs to the whole world.
I don't know about Wim Hof but I hope that he preserves the spirit and the ambience of yoga while imparting the knowledge and also cites references and gives credit where it is due. Yoga works on a much deeper level than just curing ADHD if done in the right ambience. Even a moderate yoga practitioner raises and expands their consciousness from oneself to being coextensive with everyone and everything.
For those - I was one - doubting that breathing can have any effect in brain activity, you would be surprised to know that voluntary hyperventilation is a common tool to diagnose epilepsy[1].
My kid went through a battery of tests that included light - no reaction - and hyperventilation - that triggered some jerky movements in his legs and a clear alteration of the EEG readings.
On an aside, I have struggled with reading focus these past few years I have found that when I read I get a jittery panicky feeling like I need to stop and do something else. What seems to help is, when that feeling occurs is to use diaphragmatic breathing and continue to read, my focus is better and the feeling subsides. I am hoping I can retrain myself to focusing like I used to as I loved to read.
Growing up, adults used to say... "Remeber your breathing!" Perhaps they were right :-)
Valid comment but take a week and learn Wim Hof breathing and among the other benefits just see what it can do for your max pushup score. Most people nearly double their result which is extraordinary.
I got way into eastern spirituality in my 20's, taoism especially. Not a religion, more like a way of life.
Taoists believe that the spirit and the body connect through breathing because it is both a involuntary and voluntary action at the same time.
Now that you're thinking about it, you're probably personally controlling your breath, where before you clicked into this comment section it was just happening naturally.
I read several books, starting with one written by a Westerner and the later ones that were over a millenia old. All focused on all sorts breathing exercises.
Even during love making, controlled measured breathing. Centering yourself, focusing your attention/sensory tools inwards rather than the outside world.
From my limited experience, I'd say if you're having issues with focus it is a great tool to have.
If you want some book recommendations I can give them, just ask. I don't want people to think I'm here to market anything.
As someone who used to 'self-medicate'[1] my (then-undiagnosed) ADHD with breathing techniques and Yoga – mostly Hatha and Kundalini Yoga – for 15 years I am - personally - very skeptic of these claims.
Don't get me wrong, I still love breathing techniques and Yoga and practice both on a daily basis.
But I DON'T see how stimulating your nervous system this way will do what ADHD medication actually does: Inhibit dopamine/norephedrine reuptake / increase dopamine/norephedrine secretion.
In other words, in my n-equals-one world, the difference the right medication has made in managing ADHD has been an order of magnitude greater compared to regular, intense and consistent breathing, Yoga and meditation.
I’m in the same boat. I love meditating, and I have noticed positive effects, but it is no comparison to actual medical treatment. I think that meditation extends my capacity for focus in one sitting, but it never helped with the “ugh” factor, the actual push to do things I didn’t want to do.
Medication helps with the latter part. Meditation helps me capitalize on it further.
>But I DON'T see how stimulating your nervous system this way will do what ADHD medication actually does: Inhibit dopamine/norephedrine reuptake / increase dopamine/norephedrine secretion.
Why do you assume thats the only way to mitigate behaviors associated with ADHD?
While I absolutely believe that breathing techniques can be beneficial for ADHD (I’ve got it, and our almost-7 y/o daughter does, too), the mechanism posited here seems… questionable.
One region of the brain getting more oxygen? If that were the explanation, surely other regions of the brain would be performing poorly due to insufficient oxygen as well. And further, taking oxygen might be expected to yield improvements. Is any of that the case?
> “For children with ADHD, as a rule, the part of the brain that is responsible for the regulation of brain activity – the reticular formation – is deficient,” said Sergey Kiselev, head of the Laboratory of Brain and Neurocognitive Development at UrFU, head of the study.
This is news to me, and I'm having trouble finding any good sources that talk about it. Anyone have any suggestions?
Our pediatrician told us that, too, but also said that confirming it with scans costs mid-five-figures (in the US) so nobody actually diagnoses it that way, but instead with surveys and self-evualation and such.
I wonder what criteria they used to measure the improvement in focus. Was it the children themselves saying "yes, I feel more focused now", or was it a test of the children's ability of focus, or something else?
Not so sure about the Yoga (easily subbed with cardio) but I can see breathing exercises helping. That said, I would like to see these kids just having less screen time and more outdoor activity and compare the results to this study.
[+] [-] hn8788|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] drdunks|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] zozbot234|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] decasteve|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] loceng|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] 908B64B197|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vekker|4 years ago|reply
Learning the Wim Hof breathing method changed my life for the better. And this is not meant as an advertisement for his business; you can find the same technique (with or without branding) for free everywhere online. I highly, highly recommend trying it out.
Whenever I feel scatter-brained, lack focus or creativity, when I'm feeling down, (or just feel like it) ... this is my go-to method. ~20 minutes of controlled, intermittent hypoxia. Not to mention it's an excellent "tool" to have in psychologically and/or physically stressful times, such as after an accident and being in a hospital (speaking from experience).
[+] [-] trts|4 years ago|reply
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tummo
[+] [-] DesiLurker|4 years ago|reply
IMO both of these are better integrated with pranayam.
[+] [-] connectsnk|4 years ago|reply
I don't know about Wim Hof but I hope that he preserves the spirit and the ambience of yoga while imparting the knowledge and also cites references and gives credit where it is due. Yoga works on a much deeper level than just curing ADHD if done in the right ambience. Even a moderate yoga practitioner raises and expands their consciousness from oneself to being coextensive with everyone and everything.
[+] [-] notdang|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] new_guy|4 years ago|reply
You're better going straight to the source: http://www.yogebooks.com/english/atkinson/1903sciencebreath....
[+] [-] fasteo|4 years ago|reply
My kid went through a battery of tests that included light - no reaction - and hyperventilation - that triggered some jerky movements in his legs and a clear alteration of the EEG readings.
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6546426/
[+] [-] 2wrist|4 years ago|reply
On an aside, I have struggled with reading focus these past few years I have found that when I read I get a jittery panicky feeling like I need to stop and do something else. What seems to help is, when that feeling occurs is to use diaphragmatic breathing and continue to read, my focus is better and the feeling subsides. I am hoping I can retrain myself to focusing like I used to as I loved to read.
Growing up, adults used to say... "Remeber your breathing!" Perhaps they were right :-)
[+] [-] falcolas|4 years ago|reply
Not worth reporting.
Totally worth doing a few bigger studies before shouting to the world that we're just not breathing right.
[+] [-] swader999|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tacocataco|4 years ago|reply
Taoists believe that the spirit and the body connect through breathing because it is both a involuntary and voluntary action at the same time.
Now that you're thinking about it, you're probably personally controlling your breath, where before you clicked into this comment section it was just happening naturally.
I read several books, starting with one written by a Westerner and the later ones that were over a millenia old. All focused on all sorts breathing exercises.
Even during love making, controlled measured breathing. Centering yourself, focusing your attention/sensory tools inwards rather than the outside world.
From my limited experience, I'd say if you're having issues with focus it is a great tool to have.
If you want some book recommendations I can give them, just ask. I don't want people to think I'm here to market anything.
[+] [-] alostpuppy|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] amirkdv|4 years ago|reply
I certainly knew nothing about it until I read this feature article [0][1] and the resources it pointed to.
[0] https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/jul/26/every-b...
[1] HN thread: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23962638
[+] [-] interleave|4 years ago|reply
Don't get me wrong, I still love breathing techniques and Yoga and practice both on a daily basis.
But I DON'T see how stimulating your nervous system this way will do what ADHD medication actually does: Inhibit dopamine/norephedrine reuptake / increase dopamine/norephedrine secretion.
In other words, in my n-equals-one world, the difference the right medication has made in managing ADHD has been an order of magnitude greater compared to regular, intense and consistent breathing, Yoga and meditation.
[1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=interleave
[+] [-] nefitty|4 years ago|reply
Medication helps with the latter part. Meditation helps me capitalize on it further.
[+] [-] loveistheanswer|4 years ago|reply
Why do you assume thats the only way to mitigate behaviors associated with ADHD?
[+] [-] allenrb|4 years ago|reply
One region of the brain getting more oxygen? If that were the explanation, surely other regions of the brain would be performing poorly due to insufficient oxygen as well. And further, taking oxygen might be expected to yield improvements. Is any of that the case?
[+] [-] 0xcde4c3db|4 years ago|reply
This is news to me, and I'm having trouble finding any good sources that talk about it. Anyone have any suggestions?
[+] [-] moshmosh|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] aantix|4 years ago|reply
Magnesium deficiency should be part of this discussion.
[+] [-] 1MachineElf|4 years ago|reply
I wonder what criteria they used to measure the improvement in focus. Was it the children themselves saying "yes, I feel more focused now", or was it a test of the children's ability of focus, or something else?
[+] [-] sarabad2021|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pmlnr|4 years ago|reply