I agree with Dr. Israel and would like to expand a few points for the record on the topic of ADHD and the Feingold Diet.

Anecdotally, the mother of a Bay Area friend worked as a secretary for Dr. Feingold decades ago. And my level-headed friend swears that her own brother used to bounce off the walls when he wasn't kept to that diet. Did he truly have ADHD or was he simply sensitive to salicylates, colors, and other items restricted on the Feingold Diet? We do not know.

We also don't know about what is in most processed food nor do we understand the idioosyncratic ways in which individuals possessing various genetic anomalies and mutations might respond to these food substances.

Consider people born with PKU (Phenylketonuria, a rare condition in which a baby is born without the ability to properly break down an amino acid called phenylalanine; A non-food source of phenylalanine is the artificial sweetener aspartame.).

Left undetected, PKU can cause severe problems such as seizures and brain damage. If detected in time, though, it can typically be managed by lowering blood ph levels and monitoring diet.

Likewise, could some children be particularly sensitive to certain ingredients in modern food, as Feingold contended? Of course! Just look at the astounding array of manufactured junk in the grocery store and on the typical American dinner table. We're learning that even a large number of adults are sensitive to such basic American unprocessed staples as wheat, corn, or dairy, etc. and that they function better (including cognitively) after eliminating those foods. Medpedia expert Dr. Charles Parker writes about these metabolic issues and more at his blog: http://www.corepsychblog.com

Does this mean that ADHD is caused by food sensitivities? No. Plenty of people with ADHD grew up with wonderfully healthful diets.

Back to the Feingold Dieg: Some of the early studies were problematic because they used only parental reports. Why is that a problem? Many parents are biased towards their chosen treatment method. I've seen this to be especially true among parents who are uneducated and unduly fearful about the medications used to treat ADHD -- or even the ADHD diagnosis itself.

More recently, some research indicates that the Feingold diet may be beneficial to about 5 percent or so of children with ADHD who also seem to be sensitive to the chemicals restricted by the Feingold Diet. You can read more about these issues in a book excerpt by ADHD expert Eugene Arnold, MD:

Arnold, L.E. (2002). Treatment Alternatives for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. In P.J. Jensen, & J. Cooper (Eds.), Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: State of the Science and Best Practices. Kingston, NJ: Civic Research Institute.

Finally, here is an except (and link) to a fact sheet from the National Resource Center on ADHD:

"While the proportion of children with AD/HD who have food sensitivities has not been empirically established, experts believe that the percentage is small. Parents who are concerned about diet sensitivity should have their children examined by a medical doctor for food allergies."

http://help4adhd.org/en/treatment/complementary/WWK6

BOTTOM LINE:
1. Children with ADHD might have food sensitivities that exacerbate symptoms.
2. Children without ADHD might manifest ADHD-like behaviors as side effects from food allergies, chemical sensitivities, etc.
3. But do these food ingredients cause ADHD? No.