Fact About Chocolate For Kids

'The 'Fone' on fishing, life, learning

I didn’t say anything to Max, and I tried not to be disappointed that he wasn’t interested in fishing. It’s always been important to me to be more understanding of my children than my parents were of me. So I told myself to be patient and to let my son enjoy the trip his way. Perhaps he will want to fish later. Maybe he will actually pick up a rod and, by some miracle, cast a line.

As we floated down the river, I was glad to see Max take out his earplugs and turn to our guide, Jim, a very helpful and professional fellow, who always has the right tool or piece of gear when you need it. I was hoping Max would ask Jim for a fishing tip, a lesson on how to use the rod and reel.

Instead he said, “I’m hungry.”

Jim, being Jim, quickly produced a bite-sized Milky Way bar and handed it to Max. I had neglected to warn our guide that my son was hypersensitive to sugar. Giving Max even a tiny candy bar was like putting high-octane racing fuel in a go-kart.

Eight minutes later, my son was standing up in the front of our fishing boat, belting out the entire score of Les Miserables, his favorite musical.

I’m fairly certain Jim had never seen or heard anything quite like this, nor had the cows and moose along the river. All creatures big and small were quite stunned. I swear I saw a bear’s jaw drop in shock and a fish fall out! Jim was so unnerved, his eyes resembled those gag glasses with the eyeballs dangling on Slinkys—they were practically shooting in and out of his head. He could not believe what Max was doing to the serenity of his river valley.

Jim gave me a pleading look, hoping I might pull the curtain down on Max’s riverboat show.

All I could do was shrug, as if to say, “Sorry, nothing we can do until Max burns through the Milky Way galaxy.”

Resignation passed over our guide’s face. He stopped rowing, turned to me, and said, “At least he has a good voice, doesn’t he?”

By then the boy, fueled by bits of gooey caramel, chocolate, and nougats, had moved on to selections from Phantom of the Opera.

A wave of crankiness rose up in me, but I chose to let it wash away. Jim would have a funny story to tell at the next river guide convention, I told myself. And Max was enjoying himself immensely. Besides, the trout did not seem to mind.

Does Chocolate Cause Hyperactivity in Children? | Guillotine Press

The good poor chocolate has been subject to many myths and wrong accusations. It makes you fat, it causes bad teeth, it is high on the caffeine content, and the most recent one being, it causes acne! (luckily, all of these are myths) An accusation also links chocolate with the serious attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children. But does the accusation holds any value? Does the consumption of chocolate really provoke hyperactivity in children. We need to find the facts. But before that, let’s understand the hyperactivity disorder in children, in brief.

Chocolate’s Influence on the Hyperactivity of a Child: Facts

Hyperactivity in Children Hyper-activeness is the main symptom of ADHD. Most children show a hyperactive behavior on one occasion or the other. But, constantly showing hyperactive behavior is a serious neurological disorder in children, which needs immediate medical attention. The following are the behavioral traits of hyperactive children – Non-stop talking, fidgeting, inappropriate behavior, cannot focus, constant feeling of boredom and therefore moving from one place to the other, lack of attentiveness, etc., Such kids are difficult to deal with, and early diagnosis of the problem can help relieve the ADHD in children up to a certain extent.

Now come the causes for this troubled behavior in children. The causes of ADHD in children are not very direct. Affected brain structure is the primary cause of hyperactivity in children. Genetic and biological factors, and allergy to certain foods can lead to this affected brain structure. Exposure to certain chemicals like polychlorinated biphenyls and other chemical poisons found in pesticides can also lead to this behavior in children. Excessive consumption of alcohol and smoking by a pregnant woman also hampers the brain development in the fetus, thus leading to hyperactivity after it is born. Some studies also point at a link a between exposure to synthetic flavors, preservatives and colors present in food, to ADHD. The popular notion of a link between sugar consumption and hyperactivity made many people link chocolate and hyperactivity. A discussion about this linking follows next. Take a look.

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