Remember that newsletter I did a few weeks ago on ADHD and the gut microbiome? (If you don’t, here’s a link to the post).

To quickly recap, in general people with ADHD tend to have worse gut microbiomes than the general population. Additionally, people with more severe ADHD who need to go on medication tend to have even worse gut microbiomes than others. It’s relatively unclear as the the exact mechanisms of this, but the current tentative understanding regarding ADHD and the gut microbiome is that our species might communicate a little differently than the neurotypical populations and that we might need more butyrate-producing bacteria than others.

To be frank, the most likely reason for the differences we tend to see between ADHDers and neurotypicals in the gut microbiome likely lies mainly in the fact that we’re not eating enough fiber-rich foods. There are other considerations as well, though, such as how our bodies tend to metabolize a few nutrients differently than the general population; however, in general, we should start off with meeting the dietary requirements before we worry too much about other smaller impacts.

I’m getting ahead of myself, here.

(By the way, before we get more into it, here’s how to take the research I give you and make actual changes that work with your ADHD!)

Welcome to the Nutrimind Community: the one-stop shop for all my resources.

For the cost of 1-2 coffees a month, you’ll get:

• A safe space for ADHD struggles: Connect with others who understand what it's like when your throat closes up around food or when you've gone hours without eating because you forgot. No judgment, just understanding and practical support.

• Beyond surface-level content: Get practical, easy to understand PDFs and resources on how to make food your friend.

• First access to research: Get a 5-day head start on this newsletter. No more waiting when your ADHD brain is excited and ready to learn - dive in while your motivation is hot!

Basically - it’s my entire private collection of nutrition research info, ADHD worksheets, recipes, and more: all in one convenient space where you can also connect with fellow ADHDers (oh, also me! I’ll be there moderating!). I can’t wait to get to know you more. ❤️

Multivitamins, ADHD, and the Gut

A few days ago we got another analysis of the MADDY study. The MADDY study, standing for Micronutrients for ADHD in Youth, was an 8-week long randomized, placebo-controlled study that was honestly incredible. We continually are getting new research analyses from it, such as this one where they found that getting adequate micronutrients improved oxidative stress in ADHD kids.

In this analysis, the researchers compared fecal samples between the kids who had placebo and those who had the multi-nutrient pill. Let’s look at what they found.

In other words:

• Supplementation with the micro-nutrient for 8-16 weeks improved the diversity of the ADHD gut microbiome (good)

  • Diversity improvements in the gut microbiome were NOT associated with symptom reduction (uneventful)

• Supplementation reduced the phylum Actinobacteriota in the gut (probably good)

  • This reduction did not impact ADHD symptoms (uneventful)

• The kids who saw improvements in their ADHD symptoms when taking the multi-nutrient had increased levels of butyrate-producing bacteria (amazing!)

Basically, taking the hardcore multi-nutrient did improve the ADHD microbiome, but it didn’t necessarily mean that it helped their symptoms.

In the original study, the researchers found that a little over half (54%) of the kids experienced statistically significant decreases in symptom severity - AKA taking an intense multi-nutrient has about a 50/50 chance of helping your kid feel a little bit better. Based on this later analysis, we now know that somehow it seemed to help those 54% improve their production of butyrate.

So, all together, what does this really mean for me?

There’s two options here, basically.

1. Start yourself/your kid on this really expensive supplement and have them take a lot of pills every single day (this is the supplement that was studied in the MADDY study) and hope you win the 50/50, or

2. Focus on increasing your butyrate-producing bacteria yourself (much cheaper option that I personally take).

Butyrate (or butyric acid) is a short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) produced primarily by gut bacteria when they ferment dietary fibers, especially resistant starches and inulin. Based on this study, it seems that butyrate plays a role in ADHD symptom severity. Here are some ways to improve production:

• DIETARY FIBER!! This is a big one (if you couldn’t tell from the multiple exclamation points and the all caps). The majority of people are not hitting their fiber goals, and this is especially true for ADHDers who tend to have more issues with texture, taste, and motivation. Ideally we’re hitting about 28-35g of fiber a day (each person has different needs of course, but this is on average for adults).

  • We find fiber in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, and beans.

  • A good goal is to aim for 10 servings of any food in the above 5 categories per day. For example, that could look like eating: an orange, blueberries, asparagus, carrots, pistachios, chia seeds, almonds, rice (whole grains have more fiber), chickpeas, and some cocoa powder.

• One resistant starch a day. Resistant starches are our butyrate-production masters. We get resistant starch by cooling down starchy carbohydrates. You can get it by refrigerating your rice, potatoes, and pasta!

  • I like to do this by ingredient prepping starchy foods. For example, I will make a huge pot of rice and use that throughout my week.

• One fermented food a day. If the fiber and resistant starches were the food for our bacteria, fermented foods are the bacteria themselves. Try to shake up what type of fermented food you eat every day for some of the best benefits. Here are some great options:

  • Kefir, Greek yogurt, kombucha, kimchi

P.S. if you want to know what to test for at the doctor’s office to see if nutrients are impacting your ADHD symptoms, don’t forget to join the Nutrimind Community to get access to the ADHD Nutrient Testing Masterlist! It’s available in the higher tier at this time ($13/month).

Thanks for reading!

If you have any thoughts, questions, or comments, be sure to shoot me a DM on Instagram @Nutrimindcoach or simply reply to this email. I LOVE hearing from you!

This week on the Nutritional Mental Health Podcast, I’ve finally spilled the beans on the dietary pattern I personally follow. If you want to learn ADHD Nutrition Guidelines that ACTUALLY Work According to the Research It’s available on podcast platforms + YouTube.