Essay Example on the Effect of Caffeine Consumption on Individuals with ADHD

Introduction

ADHD is a disorder that affects 10-20 percent of children in the United States. Those people experiencing ADHD disorder have a problem in becoming attentive; the symptoms are progressive and can become severe as the condition progresses (Riccio, 2011). Caffeine is an intoxicant and has been widely used as "psychoactive" drug globally. When an individual consumes caffeine too much, it creates symptoms that are similar to ADHD and can also increase the symptoms of children with "ADHD" When caffeine is consumed in large quantities, it can make children to develop symptoms like "stomach upsets, anxieties, nervousness, and insomnia."

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Positive effects of caffeine on individuals with ADHD

Caffeine is an intoxicating substance which can be used to enhance certain chemicals in the brain, and also enhance the functioning of the brain. Several chemicals are enhanced by caffeine in mind, and they include "dopamine" this compound regulates blood pressure, improves attention and movement. Patients with ADHD are often administered with stimulants so that the levels of "dopamine" can be increased in the body. This will help the patient to feel calmer, stress-free and attentive (Riccio, 2011). The positive effects of caffeine consumption are dependent on the intake of caffeine in the body. When it is used in large quantities, it will cause negative effects on ADHD. Caffeine has been "touted" as an important treatment drug for ADHD. However, this is the case if it is taken in the right amounts as prescribed by the doctor however people violate this rule and start consuming caffeine excessively. Caffeine also increases alertness in individuals after the chemical compound known as "dopamine." Another positive effect of caffeine consumption will help in enhancing the performance of athletes. Caffeine can be used alongside other painkillers to treat simple headaches within individuals.

Adverse effects of caffeine on individuals with ADHD

When individuals consume large quantities of caffeine, they are prone to developing symptoms similar to ADHD, and in those with the condition, it will make the symptoms even severe. Most especially individuals having ADHD caffeine consumption may not have positive effects of their body (Castellanos, 2012). The first thing it will affect their sleep pattern, as most people will start to lack sleep especially when consumed excessively. There are adverse effects of caffeine consumption of ADHD with kids since it creates more sleep problems and will make them have problems staying awake during the day, it is a problem since the child should be alert during the day to enhance on their personal development. According to pediatrics in the US no child should be allowed to have energy drinks like caffeine since the high levels of stimulants can cause serious health problems in children like fast heart rate and blood pressure. Consumption of caffeine can cause shortness of breath in recent and reduced blood pressure.

Another adverse effect of caffeine consumption on individuals with ADHD are that it causes behavior change, where these individuals start to develop aggressive behaviors. They begin to solve situations in an aggressive manner. This also can impact on the psychological aspect of individuals whereby these people experience a lack of self-esteem, stress, and depression. Caffeine consumption also increases cardiovascular risks like increased heart rate and blood pressure. The other side effects they develop include lack of sleep, migraines, body shaking and "agitation."

Drinking caffeine causes people to lose sleep. A reasonable person needs roughly eight hours of sleep each night. They are not getting enough sleep affects the attentiveness during the day and the ability to focus. This explains why people turn to caffeine. Most expectant women are told by their doctors to cut back on their intake of caffeine or even to stop intake overall (Picchietti, 2016). Although the reason for this remains unclear, it is thought that caffeine connects to abridged fertility, malnourished babies, and even birth deficiencies Caffeine can be taken orally or "rectally" or with different pain killers, for simple headaches and after "epidural anesthesia." Caffeine is an intoxicant that is found in drinks such as "tea, coffee, and soft drinks." Caffeine is the maximum "grossing" and most used stimulant in the United States. It is estimated that 80% of individuals had ADAD drink caffeine daily. That means for every 90 adults, 75 of them have had a beverage that limited caffeine on any given day. Excessive consumption of caffeine will also increase an individual's blood pressure.

Reduced blood flow to the brain

Caffeine leads to vasoconstriction and vasodilation of blood vessels which reduces the flow of plasma vessels which decreases the movement of plasma from the mind to other parts of the body. The reason is the blood vessels are small and in other instances large, and this causes an effect to the blood flow from the brain to other parts of the body of individuals having ADHD (Cameron, 2010). "Amphetamine" drugs used to treat ADHD also make blood vessels smaller. Caffeine can also several effects parallel to those of common ADHD drugs. Even though the precise reason is indefinite, abridged plasma flow may aid in curing ADHD by decreasing the action of brain regions that are "overactive," consenting them to improved function and collaborate with the rest of the brain.

"How do Caffeine affect attentiveness of individuals with ADHD?"

The level of "dopamine" in mind has to be inside a very thin brim for a person to be able to focus on their work (Cameron, 2010). But in ADHD, "dopamine levels" are too low. Since it's an intoxicating drug, it "copycats "certain effects of sturdier stimulants used to treat ADHD, such as "amphetamine" medications. (Cameron, 2010).However, caffeine alone is less active than treatment drugs. Adults can use caffeine carefully for their ADHD, but caffeine consumption can harm youngsters and adolescents.

References

Riccio, C. A., Waldrop, J. J., Reynolds, C. R., & Lowe, P. (2011). Effects of stimulants on the continuous performance test (CPT) implications for CPT use and interpretation. The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and clinical neurosciences, 13(3), 326-335.

Cameron, O. G., Modell, J. G., & Hariharan, M. (2010). Caffeine and human cerebral blood flow: a positron emission tomography study. Life sciences, 47(13), 1141-1146.

Picchietti, D. L., & Walters, A. S. (2016). Restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movement disorder in children and adolescents: comorbidity with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics, 5(3), 729-740.

Castellanos, F. X., & Rapoport, J. L. (2012). Effects of caffeine on development and behavior in infancy and childhood: a review of the published literature. Food and Chemical Toxicology, 40(9), 1235-1242.