It’s here!! After one of the coldest winters on record, we can finally get outside for some fresh air, exercise and to smell the blooms. Spring has sprung in and around Toronto.

And with it comes timely news from the U.S. of a new initiative for a drug-free approach to treating ADHD symptoms with – something lots of children do in the spring – bicycle riding.

Specialized is a major U.S. bicycle manufacturer that supports and sponsors cycling and cycling events around the world, including Tour de France teams and Canadian gold-medal triathlete Simon Whitfield.

ADHD is a personal issue for Specialized’s founder, Mike Sinyard, who has struggled with symptoms throughout his life.

Here’s Where the Story Starts Sounding Familiar to ADHD Parents: Sinyard’s son Anthony was diagnosed with ADHD. Doctors prescribed Ritalin for Anthony’s symptoms, but, according to Sinyard, “the medication made him feel horrible”.

And Here’s Where a Drug-Free ADHD Treatment was Born: “I encouraged Anthony to stop with the medication and start riding. We began to notice that our ADHD symptoms would dissipate after riding and it was this discovery that began the journey to find solutions for ADHD symptoms through cycling,” says Sinyard, who recently launched the non-profit The Specialized Foundation to research and fund programs relating to cycling, attention issues and learning.

Sinyard started the Foundation following research findings that showed cycling led to a “profound” increase in positive mood, improved attention and benefits in cognition for the middle school students from across the U.S. who took part in a study – including children with and without attention deficit issues.

According to Dr. Lindsay Thornton, one of the lead researchers, “the findings also indicated there may be factors more unique to cycling that make it especially effective when it comes to the benefits to the brain of exercise. Factors like maintaining balance, being outdoors, riding in groups and the rhythmic motion of pedaling we theorize may have contributed to our findings being so profound.”

The first words you hear in a video posted to YouTube to help launch The Specialized Foundation are from a young man who asks “what if I could always feel like a super hero?”

Maybe it’s just a boy’s dream. But anything encourages such lofty ambitions in ADHD children is worth pursuing.

Don’t you think so?

Learn more about powerful, safe, effective and drug-free approaches to control or even eliminate ADHD symptoms. Call Maxi Mind Learning Centres at 416-858-9868 today for a free initial consultation. A Maxi Mind solution can be customized to suit your child’s needs and your family’s budget.

Sources:
http://www.bikeradar.com/beginners/news/article/specialized-foundation-created-to-tackle-adhd-43802/
http://www.specialized.com/us/en/news/advocacy-lander