Health Benefits & Concerns for Sweeteners
Attention Deficit Disorder
(ADHD)
Some parents believe that sugar may aggravate ADHD. One study found that avoiding sugar
reduced aggressiveness and restlessness in hyperactive children. Girls who restrict sugar have
been reported to improve more than boys. However, a study using large amounts of sugar and
aspartame (NutraSweet®) found that negative reactions to these substances were limited to
just a few children. While most studies have not found sugar to stimulate hyperactivity,
except in rare cases, the experimental design of these studies has been questioned.
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