The
Feingold diet was developed by Benjamin Feingold in 1973. It is an "elimination diet." This means users are told to remove foods containing artificial colors or flavors and chemicals called
salicylates. Promoters of this diet believe that such ingredients may cause various disorders in children.
The Feingold diet was originally used for attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (
ADHD) in children. It is also used for
asthma,
ear infections, bed-wetting, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support any of these uses.
The Feingold diet was originally designed based on the theory that artificial colors and flavors and
aspirin-like chemicals in foods (salicylates) cause hyperactivity or attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children. This theory has now been expanded to include a long list of other conditions such as asthma, infections,
seizures, and many others linked to these food ingredients.
The Feingold diet is an elimination diet. It instructs users to remove foods containing artificial colors or flavors and salicylates. The first step is to eliminate all foods containing these ingredients. If improvement occurs after these foods are eliminated, then some restricted foods can be reintroduced in moderation.
Some testimonials and quasi-experimental evidence suggest that introducing these foods and additives cause
symptoms of ADHD. However, higher quality research shows that the foods and additives do not cause symptoms of ADHD.
The Feingold diet was originally designed based on the theory that artificial colors and flavors and aspirin-like chemicals in foods (salicylates) cause hyperactivity or attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children. This theory has now been expanded to include a long list of other conditions such as asthma, infections, seizures, and many others linked to these food ingredients.
The Feingold diet is an elimination diet. It instructs users to remove foods containing artificial colors or flavors and salicylates. The first step is to eliminate all foods containing these ingredients. If improvement occurs after these foods are eliminated, then some restricted foods can be reintroduced in moderation.
Some testimonials and quasi-experimental evidence suggest that introducing these foods and additives cause symptoms of ADHD. However, higher quality research shows that the foods and additives do not cause symptoms of ADHD.